Root Canal Treatment 101
One of the procedures that dentists perform is called root canal treatment. It is a common and also a significant procedure that can help in keeping your teeth healthy. However, what exactly is root canal treatment and why is it performed?
Root canal is a procedure that involves in treating the infected pulp or the nerve of the tooth for eliminating the infection. The infection or damage to the tooth can be caused due to a number of reasons, including decay of the tooth, chip or crack in the tooth, repeated dental procedures on the tooth and faulty crowns. The procedure, which is performed over a number of sessions, also helps in preventing the infection from coming back in the future.
What does Root Canal Treatment involve?
Root canal treatment is a procedure that our dentists or specialist Endodontists perform. An endodontist is a dentist who specialises in diagnosis, prevention and treatment of infection, damage or injury to the nerve or pulp of the tooth. To begin with, the dentist will take an X-Ray of the infected tooth to evaluate the extent of the injury.
The X-Ray determines the shape of the root canals, enabling the dentist to know where the treatment has to be performed. This is followed by administering of anaesthesia, although this is not necessary, as the nerve is already damaged or dead. The main procedure involves in drilling hole into the tooth to remove the infected pulp, along with the bacteria that has decontaminated the tooth.
After the pulp is removed and the tooth is cleaned, the gap in the tooth is filled with gutta-percha, which is a rubber like material. Later, the tooth is restored via filling or with a crown. The tooth will get back to normality and function as it should after the restoration process is complete.
Why root canal is important?
Earlier, when a tooth was infected, it had to be extracted to remove the infection. However, advancements in dentistry enable treatment of the infected tooth with a process called root canal, which involves in removal of infection without removal of the tooth. This repairs the damage and also prevents spreading of infection to adjoining teeth. The process also prevents the infection from coming back.
Root canal is not as complicated or painful as it may sound. The process usually takes a few sittings, but sometimes it can be completed in just one sitting. Root canal is not a painful procedure, unlike what many people think. Our dentists perform root canal treatments using the latest instruments and we perform the procedure with digital xrays to ensure little or no discomfort to the patient.
