Root canal therapy is routinely performed at dentists’ offices everywhere. However, the mention of a root canal causes fear and trembling among more than a few patients who have heard disturbing rumors about the treatment. Find out root canal basics and some encouraging facts below, which may help in understanding that root canal dentistry is a good thing, when needed.
A root canal treatment is recommended by dentists when a tooth has become severely infected due to a cavity or an injury. The infection is caused by bacteria when the nerve tissue within the pulp chamber of a tooth is affected by decay. This painful type of tooth infection is called an “abscess.” An abscessed tooth has a pus-filled pocket of bacteria underneath the tooth root. The only two options for treatment of an abscessed tooth are extraction and root canal therapy.
You are able to save the tooth with root canal therapy, which dental professionals virtually always recommend. Possible side-effects of having a tooth extracted include improper teeth alignment, bite collapse, dry socket, nerve injury, and more.
Leaving an abscessed tooth untreated is really no option at all. The infected tooth will become increasingly worse. A person’s health will be at risk by trying to ignore such advanced tooth decay, and the pain will only increase as time goes by. The following are among the other outcomes of failing to have a severely infected tooth treated by a dentist:
Two dental visits are needed to complete root canal therapy. During the first visit, your dentist or endodontist will take an x-ray to see whether the jawbone has become infected and to see the shape of the root canals. A local anesthesia will then be administered. Next, a hole will be drilled into the tooth and then damaged nerve tissue will be cleaned out with various sizes of root canal files. Medication will then be placed inside the tooth, to clear up any infection that may remain. Finally, a temporary filling seals the tooth, to keep out foods and other impurities until the final appointment.
On the second visit for root canal therapy, the dentist uses sealer paste and a rubber compound to fill the tooth’s interior. The tooth is weaker now, however. The tooth will be restored using a crown or some other type of restorative therapy.
Rather than being something to fear, root canal treatment provides much-needed relief from pain. The procedure is highly successful, and teeth that have undergone root canal therapy often last a lifetime. Thanks to modern technology, having a root canal isn’t anything like the painful process patients had to endure in times past. The discomfort of the procedure is now comparable to getting a simple tooth filling for tooth decay.
If you are experiencing severe tooth pain, it’s possible you need a root canal. Visit us at Wyandotte Medical & Dental for the best dental care in Orillia, ON. Call us at 705-326-5774 today.
