No idea but I’ll have a guess. When they did the root canal they kill and remove the nerve form the part of the tooth buried in the jaw bone (the root). They then usually cover what’s left of the tooth with a crown made of metal or porcelain to protect whats left of the tooth and root. If the tooth is damaged and comes out there’s a good chance that some of the root of the tooth will be left in the jaw so I imagine that he cleared out the remains of the tooth root.

If memory of my dental office days serves me correctly, @Lightlyseared is correct.

I would agree with @Lightlyseared as well.

Here’s a hint, though: why not just ask for an explanation of the procedure before it takes place?

Thank you. @Seelix, I did not ask because I have not been to that dentist for three years and at the time he did it I wasn’t thinking clearly. We don’t live in that state now. But I have heard that yes, endodontists leave part of the nerve in which sounds sloppy to me. LOL