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How Do You Know If
You Need a Root Canal?
How do you know if you need a root canal? That is the question. Chances are, if you’re reading this right
now, and somewhat curious about what a root canal is, you may already have some
of the telltale symptoms.
Let’s talk about the tooth’s anatomy first. The tooth is a living part of your
body. It’s not as static as you may
have thought. Though the outside is
tough as nails, the inside consists of a soft, pulpy material known literally as
the pulp. The pulp is soft blood rich
material that nourishes the tooth’s connection to the gums. The gums supply blood, lymphatic fluid, and
other essential life fluids to the pulp via the root canals. Each tooth has one or more tooth canals that
keep it alive.
The tooth canal is a thin conduit that is like a root in
many ways, hence the name. Whether
because of disease or an injury, your root canal can become infected. Once infected, the roots can never fully
heal due to the inaccessible nature of the root. No amount of antibiotic can properly treat the area surrounding
the root canal.
The symptoms of an infection are rather
straightforward. Blood flow to the
region of an infection always increases.
You will notice an increased feeling of pressure and temperature. Often a throbbing kind of pain can emerge,
much like that of an impacted wisdom tooth.
The infected tooth becomes extremely sensitive to chewing, hot and cold
drinks, and may give you headaches.
You should never diagnose yourself just because you have
these symptoms. A dentist can examine
you more carefully and even take x-rays to investigate swelling in the
region.
If you do not treat a root canal infection soon enough, you
face the possibility of extreme pain finally resulting in the death of the
tooth. Once the tooth dies the
surrounding gum tissue will also being to decay, along with the tooth
itself. The tooth will then fall out,
leaving behind dead tissue. This gap
will give you problems with chewing foods, complications with oral hygiene, and
possible leave a hole in your smile.
That’s why it’s important to consult your dentist on these matters.
Having been diagnosed with a root canal infection there are
only three courses of action. You can
opt to have root canal surgery to save the tooth from falling out. A root canal surgery won’t bring your tooth
back to life though. It will be dead
and capped, thus preventing further infection or the loss of gum tissue. Surgeries are never guaranteed though and
re-infection can occur. You can have
the tooth surgically removed via an extraction, but then you’ll need a partial
denture or dental implant. Lastly,
there is a class of regenerative treatments that can possibly restore your
tooth if it’s caught early enough.
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