Overcoming unforeseen incidents: what to do when an unlikely event occurs

Despite clinicians' best efforts, throughout the course of practicing dentistry on a daily basis unforeseen incidents are sometimes unavoidable. While these unexpected events can initially be upsetting to both the patient and the clinician, it is paramount that the clinician maintain composure and calmly rectify the potentially damaging situation. This case report describes an incident in which the clinician's equipment malfunctioned while performing root canal therapy on a patient, and how the clinician was able to carefully dislodge a broken instrument from the patient's mid-root while avoiding perforation of the tooth.