What Is Root Canal Treatment?

Endodontic treatment or root canal treatment is required when the center part of the tooth, which is also called as the pulp, nerves and living connective tissues, housing the blood vessels, become infected or inflamed.

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It is a procedure which is performed to save the badly infected or damaged tooth, instead of extracting it. This procedure is performed by a root canal specialist.

Basically, the common causes of tooth infection and damage are, cavities which occur due to plaque accumulation, broken or cracked tooth due to any gum diseases, accidents or trauma, and repeated dental treatment of a specific tooth. These problems can lead the pulp inflammation, infection and damage the pulp irreparable. The person may experience acute pain at the time. The pain can reduce when the pulp dies, but it can return very often as the infection spreads.

Why Does Tooth Pulp Need to Be Removed?

When a tooth’s pulp is damaged, it breaks and bacteria starts to accelerate within the pulp chamber. The bacteria and other decayed waste can cause an infection or ulcer tooth. An ulcer is a pus-filled pocket that forms at the end of the roots of your tooth. In addition to an ulcer, an infection in the root canal of a tooth can cause:

• Swelling which can spread to face, neck, or head

• Bone reduction near the tip of the root

What are the steps for Root Canal Treatment?

Root canal treatment is done in three steps, and it takes around 2 to 3 sessions to complete.

1. Cleaning the Root Canal:

The dentist will remove everything which is inside the root canal.

With the patient under local anesthesia, the dentist makes a small access hole on the surface of the tooth and removes the diseased and dead pulp tissue with very small files.

2. Filling the Root Canal:

In the second step, the dentist cleans, shapes and decontaminates the empty, area, by the tiny files and irrigation solutions. Then, the tooth is filled with a material, with the help of an adhesive cement to seal the canals completely.

After this treatment, the tooth is dead. And there is no longer any pain in that tooth because that nerve tissue has been removed, and the infection has been eliminated.

3. Adding a Crown or Filling:

A tooth with no pulp gets its nourishment from the ligament which attaches the tooth to the bone. This supply is sufficient, but in time, the tooth will become more breakable, so a crown or filling offers protection.

Until the crown is complete, the patient is not allowed to use that tooth. Once the treatment is done the patient can use the tooth as before.

How painful The Root Canal Treatment is?

The biggest fears about this kind of treatment are the pain, but if the treatment is done by the trained dental surgeon, it should be painless relatively.

The pain you feel is coming due to an infection and not due to treatment. The treatment does not cause pain; it helps to reduce it.

The dental surgeon will relieve the pain of the by numbing the tooth and surrounding area of a tooth with local anesthesia.

After completion of treatment, some tenderness is normal and it is temporary, and over-the-counter (OTC) pain medication may be enough to relieve it.

The dentist can prescribe you some antibiotics to treat or prevent infection.

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What are the Complications of Root canal Treatment?

As with any procedure, some complications can occur after the treatment:

• Sometimes the doctor finds only three root canals in a tooth which has four. If that one canal remains untreated, the infection can continue which spread into the bone.

• The dentist must make sure the filling material fills sufficiently into the canal. If the root canal is not properly sealed, the infection can return back after some time.

• During the procedure, the root of the tooth can be broken, or the device can break in the canal. Which can make it hard to fill the tooth effectively.

What is the Prevention of the Root Canal Treatment?

To prevent tooth decay, infections, and gum disease, dentists recommend:

• Brushing teeth last thing before bedtime

• Start using toothpaste that contains fluoride

• Use a good toothbrush and replace it regularly

• Attend regular dental checkups.

• Avoid sugary drinks and foods.

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