For the most part, dental treatments have names that make sense because they describe what the treatment literally does. For example, if decay has created a hole in your tooth, your dentist calls it a "cavity," a hole by another name. To fix a cavity, your dentist will use a filling. What do you do to eliminate a hole? You fill it.
Surprisingly enough, the root canal falls under the same rule, even if you don't know what a root or a canal is. This is because the full term for the procedure is actually "root canal therapy," meaning treatment for problems within your root canal, which is part of your tooth's inner structure.
How Your Tooth is Like Tree
Most people are aware that any tree is more than just what you see above the ground. A large part of the tree – the roots – are out of sight and below the ground. Your tooth is like a tree. The crown is what we call the portion of your tooth we see above the gum, while the part below your gums is called the root. Even the names are the same.
A tooth may have multiple root structures that run between the crown's bottom and your jawbone, creating a junction for your nervous and circulatory systems. As a result, your nerves and blood vessels run up a narrow passage, called the canal, to the inner portion of the tooth. This is the complete origin of the term "root canal."
Inside your tooth is the pulp, which is porous tissue filled with blood vessels. If your outer tooth is damaged, bacteria may grow into the pulp and create an infection. Infected pulp will eventually surround your nerve, and the inflammation will cause progressive pain.
When this happens, Dr. Albik at Eldorado Family Dental will likely suggest he or one of his team perform root canal therapy.
Root Canals Hurt, Right?
Root canals have a bad reputation for being painful, and perhaps some of that comes from misunderstanding what the name means. But the opposite is true! What hurts is the infection in your tooth, and root canal therapy is the solution.
Research supports this assertion about root canal pain. The American Association of Endodontists conducted a survey that showed an interesting perception. People who had undergone root canal therapy were six times more likely to say their treatment was painless compared to those who'd never had the treatment.
Learn More about Root Canal Therapy in El Dorado Hills, CA
If you need root canal therapy, you don't want to delay. We treat White Rock, Folsom, Cameron Park, Shingle Springs, Folsom Ranch, and Placerville patients. So give us a call today.