Expert: Jeff Dalin DDS - 11/6/2009

Question
Is is normal for a dentist to use epinephrine as an anesthesia when performing a root canal?  How much epinephrine is too much?

Answer
epinephrine is not an anesthetic. epinephrine is added to the anesthetic to make it last longer. it comes in 90% of all local anesthetics we have at our disposal. it makes the anesthetic more profound as well.

we are very careful when administering anesthetic to keep it out of blood vessels. if we do that, the anesthetic stays very localized and will not really affect your body. i am sure this is where you are coming from with your questions. the amount of epinephrine in our anesthetic is VERY small. discuss this with your dentist. if you are sensitive to it, you can always ask your dentist to use a brand without it or any vasoconstrictor in it. we keep some around for just these patients.

i hope this answers your questions...good luck,

jeff dalin, dds