Micro endodontics or Microsurgical endodontics is that aspect of root canal treatment procedure which evolved after the introduction of the Dental Operating Microscope (DOM) to endodontics in the late 1990s. One could ask himself how can a microscope help a dental practioner in treating a root canal?

Severe tooth decay or other trauma creates open gates for bacteria to reach the teeth inner part. When teeth internal nerves and blood vessels have been damaged by this bacteria contamination, the teeth, in most instances, starts to ache. Root canal procedures (the endodontic treatment) goal is to save a hurting tooth by removing pulp tissue comprised of nerves and blood vessels from canals inside the teeth. The canals are then cleaned, shaped and filled with a special material, and the tooth restored, usually with a crown. Sometimes the root tip have to be removed surgically.

Easier said than done, in most teeth, a canal containing nerves and blood vessels runs from the center of the crown (the part you can see above the gumline) of the tooth through the root and out into the jaw. Near the tip of the root, the canal branches into many smaller canals, almost like a river delta. All these smaller branches of the canal have to be completely cleaned and sealed in order to stop the pain and insure a good and long lasting outcome. These minute branches can much easier be seen with the microscope.


After initially using the microscope in surgery, many endodontists (Root canal specialists) discovered that it can also help with diagnosis and nonsurgical endodontic procedures. Dental practioners have used the microscope to find tiny painfull fractures, which are often difficult to detect with traditional diagnostic methods. In addition, hidden, very very narrow or unusually positioned canals become easier to see.

 Sometimes new infection or injury will cause a tooth that has been treated before to need a second endodontic procedure. Dentists call this « retreating » the tooth. To accomplish retreatment, all previous filling material and posts that may have been placed to support a crown must be removed from the tooth. The microscope can help with these procedures as well.


The recent addition of dental operative microscope (DOM) to endodontic therapy can allow better visualization and management of the intricate morphology of the root canal system during endodontic procedures through magnification and greatly improved high intensity lighting. Dental Microscope typically magnifies in the 4X to 25X range. The other commonly used magnification aide, through lens eyeglass mounted surgical telescopes, provides 2.5X to 4.5X magnification. 

"As the saying goes:"A picture is worth a thousand words", what about our 50 seconds video sequence showing the magnifying power of an operating microscope in action? Click here to have a look at what a "microdentist" can see under magnified observation in a range of 10X to 25X." 

Surgical operating microscopes have a steep learning curve and require training, as well as patience and practice to master. Still this piece of equipment and the learning effort it implies is well worth it since cases that once seemed impossible can now be treated with a high degree of confidence and clinical success.