Endodontics / Root Canal Treatment
Endodontics or root canal treatment refers to a dental treatment procedure that involves removal of the nerves inside a tooth. Pain in all parts of the body is transmitted via the nerves. Thus, the nerves inside the tooth transmit the sensation of pain of your teeth. When your tooth has a severe infection or has undergone trauma, the nerves and blood vessels inside it get affected and this causes severe pain which may even disturb your sleep. When this happens, we recommend you to get a root canal treatment.
Importance of keeping original teeth
A root canal treatment involves extirpation of the nerves and blood vessels inside your tooth. This is important because only the nerves are removed and you will get to keep your natural tooth, which is much stronger than an artificial one, which you would have to get if you opt for tooth removal.
Benefits of root canal treatment
- You will get to keep your natural tooth
- The severe pain of a toothache will be eliminated
- There is no associated bone loss that would otherwise come with tooth extraction
- The adjacent teeth will not drift and cause spacing
Root canal treatment process
- At your first appointment, we will take an initial radiograph of your tooth: this is used to assess the feasibility of doing root canal treatment, as well as check for any infection around the root of your tooth.
- You will be given local anesthetic to numb your tooth
- We will drill into your tooth to gain access to the pulp which contains the nerves
- We will insert some endodontic instruments (files) that we use to extirpate the nerves
- We will use an irrigating solution to flush out the debris inside the canals. This helps to remove the infected pulp and to wet the canal
- Your canals will be dried using paper points and we will apply some medication into the canal, to help get rid of the remaining infection
- We will then cover the opening of your tooth with a temporal filling
- At your second appointment (which is about 2 weeks after your first appointment), we will start by removing the temporal filling and the medicament in the root canals. We will irrigate and shape the canals further. You will also need another X-ray which is the Final Working length X-ray. This determines the final length at which the files should be inserted, in order to remove a full length of the nerves completely.
- On the third appointment, we will put a permanent filling inside the root canals
- The fourth appointment will involve placement of a permanent filling on the coronal pulp
After treatment care and importance of crown post treatment
After you have had a root canal treatment, you should expect that your tooth will start to lose its color. This is because the tooth is now lifeless and has no nutrition, therefore it turns grayish in color and eventually becomes brittle. It is for this reason that we recommend you get a crown on your tooth, in order to preserve normal function and prevent breakage from brittleness.
Disadvantages of extracting teeth and Advantages of keeping tooth
Having a root canal treatment will ensure that you keep your natural tooth. This is important because it will help to preserve the bone around the tooth and prevent consequences of tooth loss such as drifting, spacing and bone resorption.
Potential risks
- Allergic reactions to irrigating solutions
- Perforation of canals
- Breakage of instruments into canals
- Potential failure of the treatment: commonly happens when there are accessory nerves
For more inquiries, drop us a message at Sapphire dentistry or contact us directly, we’re ready to answer your questions.