A tooth that pulses with no trigger, or keeps aching well after a hot drink has passed, usually has an infected nerve, and a root canal can save it. Call (210) 807-8793 or walk into our Stone Oak office, open seven days a week, 8am to 8pm. Our dentists do root canals in-house.
The emergency exam and X-rays are $125. The $125 covers the emergency exam and diagnostic X-rays. Any treatment is a separate fee, quoted to you in writing before any work starts.
Open 7 days, 8am to 8pm · Same-day appointments · Walk-ins welcome · Se habla español
Signs you need an emergency root canal today
Every tooth has a soft core of nerve and blood vessels inside it. Deep decay, a crack, or a hard knock can let bacteria reach that core, and once it's infected the pain has a particular character. It starts without a trigger. It wakes you at two in the morning. Heat makes it worse, and the gum beside the tooth may swell or grow a small pimple that drains a bad taste.
Not every toothache means a root canal. A dull ache that fades once a cold drink is gone often points to a cavity a filling can still fix. Pain that lingers, pulses, or spreads toward the ear is the kind we look at more closely.
When the infection has collected into a pocket at the root tip, that's an abscess. Our dental abscess treatment page covers draining it; a root canal is often the step that follows. Should the swelling spread toward your eye or down your neck, bring a fever with it, or make it hard to swallow or breathe, the hospital comes first. Methodist Stone Oak Hospital and North Central Baptist Hospital are both in Stone Oak. Call us as soon as you're released.
What happens at your same-day visit
First come X-rays of the tooth and of the bone around its root tip. Our dentists then apply cold and tap lightly on the tooth, comparing it with its neighbors, because the tooth that hurts isn't always the one that's infected. Once we know which tooth it is and what state the nerve is in, you get the diagnosis and the written fee.
After you agree, the tooth is numbed and isolated with a small rubber sheet to keep it dry. The dentist opens the chewing surface, removes the infected tissue from the canals, cleans and shapes each one, and rinses with an antibacterial solution. A rubber-like material seals the canals, and a filling closes the access hole.
A tooth with a large infection sometimes gets medication sealed inside and a temporary filling, with the canals finished at a second visit once the area has calmed.
A back tooth that has had a root canal is hollowed out and more brittle than before, and a crown is usually the way to stop it from cracking under chewing. We talk about the crown at this visit, and it's quoted in writing like everything else.
Cost of an emergency root canal in San Antonio
Your $125 pays for the exam and X-rays. The root canal is its own fee, shown to you in writing before we start. One canal in a front tooth, three or four in a molar: the two aren't priced alike, so the fee is set after the X-rays, not over the phone. The crown, if needed, is quoted separately. We take cash, cards and most PPO plans. That sequence, exam first and a written number second, is spelled out on our cost and insurance page along with what to bring.
Why patients choose our Stone Oak office
Our office is open seven days a week, 8am to 8pm, Saturday and Sunday included. Walk-ins are fine; a quick call ahead lets us set a room up for you. After 8pm a live answering service picks up, and we hold you the first opening at 8am. Our office staff speak Spanish. We accept cash, cards and most major PPO plans. Parking is on site. The practice opened in 2025, and our dentists are licensed in Texas.
Emergency root canal near you in north San Antonio
We're at 18911 Hardy Oak Blvd Ste 221, San Antonio, TX 78258, on Hardy Oak Blvd between Huebner Rd and Stone Oak Pkwy, a mile north of Loop 1604, near North Central Baptist Hospital. Anywhere in Stone Oak is under ten minutes away. From Hill Country Village, take San Pedro Ave north along the US 281 frontage to Loop 1604, then Hardy Oak Blvd, about 10 to 15 minutes. From Shavano Park, it's Northwest Military Hwy north to Loop 1604, then east to Huebner Rd, 13 to 18 minutes.
Frequently asked questions
Does an emergency root canal hurt?
The tooth is numbed before the dentist begins, and for an infected tooth the procedure usually brings relief, since the pressure behind the throbbing is released. Expect some tenderness around the tooth for a few days; a drugstore pain reliever taken by the package directions usually handles that. Call us if the pain climbs instead of fading.
Root canal or extraction: which is right for my tooth?
Keeping your natural tooth is the outcome we aim for, and a root canal does that whenever enough solid structure remains to hold a crown. Extraction is for a tooth split through the root or decayed below the bone. The X-rays and exam show which situation you're in, and we explain both before you decide.
Can I wait a few days if the pain settles down?
Pain that suddenly stops can mean the nerve has died, not that the infection has cleared. The bacteria are still there and can spread into the bone and form an abscess. If a tooth has been throbbing and then goes quiet, keep the appointment. We're open seven days a week.