Saving a Tooth with Root Canal Treatment
Root canal therapy is a treatment that is not widely known to people. The few that know about it associate the treatment with pain and great discomfort. To some, they consider it a process of removing a tooth from its root. However, that cannot be further from the truth. Read more to understand the treatment and why it is offered.
Understanding More about the Procedure
The name ‘root canal therapy’ is derived from what the treatment entails. It involves fixing the internal parts of a tooth including the root area. The primary objective of endodontic treatment is to save the natural mature tooth for as long as possible. This is because natural teeth are stronger than most other dental appliances used for dental works.
The endodontic treatment is necessitated when the internal parts of a tooth have been damaged or been impacted by the damage that occurred externally. A great example is when a patient gets into an accident that hurts his/her mouth. Much as a tooth may not be broken or damaged physically, the impact of the accident can damage the internal structure of the tooth, causing severe pain.
Other than that, there is a common area where the therapy is highly recommended. It is usually following tooth decay. When the decay process begins on a tooth, it starts by forming a cavity on the enamel. The cavity creates an entry point for food residues and bacteria to get inside the tooth. This is how a tooth begins to decay severely.
With time, the infection penetrates the central part of the tooth that houses the pulp chamber. This is where blood vessels, nerve endings, and other soft tissues are housed. The tooth stays alive and sensitive because of this part of the tooth. When the infection gets to this point, a patient suffers discomfort and severe pain. The nerve endings trigger sensations of pain as a result of the infection.
Some patients still are not intentional about getting such a tooth fixed. By allowing it more time, the infection forms an abscess at the root of the tooth. This causes more pain and significant inflammation of the surrounding tissues. Without curbing the situation, the abscesses spread the infection to other parts of your mouth, including the gum tissue.
How Do You Know If You Need The Treatment?
Most times when you visit a dental facility with a toothache, it is upon the dentist to determine which treatment works best for you. It is why a dental exam is mandatory before any dental work begins. After diagnosis, then the general dentist can refer you to an endodontist for the treatment. However, if you are torn over whether or not you need the tooth canal therapy, here are some tell-tale signs you can bank on:
- Mild tooth decay – it is not every case of tooth decay that can be treated with this procedure. Ideally, an extremely decayed tooth is far from being saved. For such, your dentist will suggest other alternatives.
- Severe toothache – if you are having severe toothaches then it means that the internal parts of your tooth are compromised. An endodontist will observe how severe the damage is to ascertain whether the endodontic treatment will work for your case.
- Inflamed area – the area surrounding the affected tooth swells because of abscesses building up at the root of the tooth. If you have a swollen cheek and gum tissue all around the affected tooth, then you might qualify for an endodontic procedure, upon further analysis.
- Highly sensitive tooth – sometimes patients may not experience severe toothaches. Rather, the discomfort comes in the form of increased tooth sensitivity. This means that the nerve endings inside your tooth are being triggered excessively. Such a tooth can make eating and even talking, very uncomfortable. Changes in temperature will cause sensitivity. Chewing and biting on surfaces will also cause sensitivity. For such, it is not enough to use special toothpaste made for tooth sensitivity. Endodontic treatment can help save your tooth and reduce neutralize the sensitivity thereof.
Endodontic treatment is preferred for dental care because of how it helps increase the life of a natural tooth. Besides, it has been proved over the years that a mature adult tooth can survive without the pulp chamber and its content, once it is fully grown.