A root canal treatment is also referred to as endodontic treatment. It involves removing the pulp of the tooth, when the pulp is injured, infected or dead. The pulp resides in canals that are located inside the teeth. The pulp contains nerves and blood vessels that are responsible for helping the tooth to grow.
Why Is A Root Canal Needed?
When the tooth’s nerve is infected, it can cause intense pain for most patients. When the nerve dies, to save that tooth, root canal treatment will be required.
What Is The Cause Of Infection?
If bacteria are allowed to penetrate the tooth through very deep cavities or cracks, the tooth will develop an abscess. An abscess is an infection of the tooth’s pulp. There is usually accompanying pain and swelling with an abscessed tooth. Dental x-rays are often used to diagnose, and treatment abscessed teeth before they cause serious issues.
What Is The Root Canal Process?
Your dentist will use a local anesthetic to freeze the area with the affected tooth. They will then create an opening in the tooth to gain access to the root canals located in the tooth. Special dental tools are used to remove the infected pulp from the canals and to widen the canals a little more. Once that canals are cleaned, they are filled with a rubber-like material called gutta-percha. The opening in the tooth is then sealed permanently, and a crown is secured to the tooth, especially if it is a back tooth that handles most of the chewing.
In some cases, there may not be enough tooth structure remaining to properly support a dental crown. Dental posts are used in these cases to ensure that a dental crown can be supported.
It usually takes one appointment to complete root canal treatment. You may experience some tenderness in the affected area following the procedure that it does not last for more than one to two weeks.
What Happens If The Tooth Is Removed?
If you choose to have the tooth removed or extracted, it may affect your bite and smile. When a tooth is removed, it can cause the nearby teeth to shift from their current position. Teeth will tend to drift towards the open space that was left by the removed tooth. This will be a gradual change and will not happen right away. Once the shifting begins, your bite may change, along with your smile, due to drifting teeth.
When all of the teeth are present, the top and bottom teeth make contact with each other while chewing or eating. When one of those teeth is removed, chewing becomes difficult in that area, since there is no tooth to chew the food against. Having no tooth opposite another tooth will cause the tooth that is present to continue to erupt into the newly created space.
Losing a tooth also causes bone loss in that area. When a tooth is no longer present, the bone that surrounds and supports that tooth no longer has a reason to be present.
Once a tooth is removed or extracted, it should be replaced with an artificial tooth. The best option would be a dental implant, but a dental bridge can also be used.
If you experience pain or swelling in your mouth that does not go away, call us right away.
About Dr. Joseph Salvaggio
Located in Brampton, Ontario Dr. Joseph Salvaggio has been practicing general, cosmetic, and implant dentistry for over 20 years. He enjoys interacting with his patients and helping to restore their oral health for better overall health as well. Meeting new patients, interacting and educating them is one of Dr. Salvaggio’s biggest joys. We encourage you to read our reviews or call us with any dental questions you have. We look forward to speaking with you and meeting you soon.