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Root Canal
Procedure
If you believe the myth, nothing’s as painful as a root
canal. And if something is worse than a
root canal, you’d better avoid it. But
the truth is that most people who use the phrase don’t even know what a root
canal procedure is. In short, it’s a
surgery that can prevent the loss of teeth and alleviate pain relating to root
canal infections.
Let’s first consider what the tooth is made of. The outer layer is enamel, and it’s all that
is immediately visible. Deeper inside
is a softer layer called the dentin.
The dentin transmits signals like heat, cold, and pressure to the pulp
that is at the very center of the tooth.
The pulp is a blood rich region with nerves that connect the tooth to
the rest of the body. Running down to
the jaw is the root canal. This is the lifeline
of the tooth and the area that can be infected by injury or poor oral
hygiene.
When you have a root canal infection the symptoms are
usually swelling, discomfort, and increased sensitivity to hot and cold. Chewing foods can become agonizing and a
throbbing consistent pain can be a source of headaches. If it goes untreated the pulp will eventually
die, leave a hollow in the tooth and spreading the infection to the gums. Once the gums begin to die the tooth will
eventually fall out with the decay.
The only treatments for a root canal are the root canal
procedure or extraction. Extraction is
just the removal of the tooth and should be considered a last ditch effort. Ideally you should aim to save the tooth
from falling out even though it must die from the infection.
A root canal procedure bores out the inside of the tooth,
removing all infected tissue. It can be
incredibly painful if the nerve endings are still alive, but local anesthetics
can diminish the pain. A drill is used
first to put a large hole at the top of the tooth. Next, the root canals are individually bored out with a thinner
drill. After the dentist has removed
all infected tissue, the cavity is filled with an inert filler material. Since the filler material isn’t nearly as
strong as the original enamel, many root canal procedure patients require a
crown.
Once completed, the tooth is dead but remains lodged in the
gums. The goal is to prevent the gums
from becoming infected so that the tooth can remain. Advantages to a root canal are that you won’t require partial
dentures or dental implants, which can be more costly in the long run than a
root canal.
It’s always better to keep the teeth you have rather than risk losing
them. That’s why root canal procedures
are routinely performed to rescue a dying tooth from the fate of falling out.
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