An infection in the root canal often causes bone loss in the area near the root. In most cases, removing the infection from the root canal space allows the surrounding bone tissue to regenerate. It takes several months to a year for bone tissue to heal. The following images illustrate the healing in the bone tissue after root canal treatment.
Completion of root canal treatment on the tooth supporting a three unit bridge; Note the dark halo at the end of the root indicating inflamed tissue with bone loss caused by the root canal infection (When bone tissue is destroyed by disease, it appears dark in the X-ray film).
X-ray taken one year after the root canal treatment. Note the healing of the bone tissue regenerated at the end of the root. The root canal treatment eliminated the infection and promoted the bone tissue to heal.