Dental Insurance Multi-visit Root Canal Therapy

There are many situations where your tooth may be better treated over a longer period of time and multiple visits vs. the traditional 1-2 visit approach.  Examples include teeth in extreme pain, advanced infections, or even if you simply desire a more confident probability of success.

The goals of the Multi-visit approach are similar to those of Traditional approach – relief of pain, inflammation/infection, and preserving your tooth’s function.  It differs in that it allows the progress of healing to become apparent prior to the completion of the root canal therapy.   The strategy is to actually observe a positive result prior to the placement of the root canal filling material and prior to your investment in a new restoration, i.e. crown.  For example, the reason for needing the endodontic therapy may be an unprovoked aching pain, or the usual pain to biting pressure.  During your consultation, a x-ray image shows a large shadow around the tip of the root (commonly the signs of a probable infection).  The multi-visit approach would take one or more additional visits to clean out irritants from the root canal spaces and then allow placement of a medicated filling designed to provide additional disinfection for possibly 3 weeks to 3 months.  At your next visit, the tooth is reevaluated.  If the pain (both to biting or the ache) is not resolved to an acceptable level, then additional investigation can be completed (perhaps a CBCT, evaluation of the bite, surrounding teeth, etc) and additional time can be spent to further improve the chances of success.  The process is repeated until you are satisfied.  In extreme cases the completion appointment is delayed until the shadowing on the x-ray is shrinking, indicating bone regenerating after the infection has resolved.

Here is the advantage: With the Traditional Approach, most often times the tooth is completed while there is still pain present.  Should the pain not resolve, the entire procedure must first be undone and then redone in order to improve the result.  This is a very frustrating scenario for both the patient and the provider and can be avoided with the Multi-visit strategy.

Does Multi-visit treatment cost more money?

Yes.  To cover the additional cost of time and materials there is an additional fee beginning at the 2nd visit.  Often times this approach is also combined with the use of CBCT (3D) imaging to better understand the complexities of your tooth and quantify the healing progress.  Unfortunately, dental insurance does not recognize these additional visits as a covered benefit, so the costs are due at the time of service.   These fees are necessary to cover the increase in treatment time and additional materials (antibiotics medicines placed into the canal space).