Category: Root Canal

Everything You Need To Know About Root Canal Treatment

root canal

What is a root canal treatment? 

A root canal treatment is a surgical procedure that is aimed at taking the infected pulp out of a tooth and treating the infected root canal of the tooth. Dentists who perform a root canal treatment are called endodontists.

The purpose of a root canal treatment is to make sure that the tooth does not get infected in the future and also to save the natural tooth.

Why do you need root canal treatment? 

As you’ve already understood, you need a root canal treatment when the pulp of your tooth is infected. This is a condition called ‘pulpitis’. The pulp is the innermost part of your tooth. When an infection has been left untreated or gone unnoticed for too long, the bacteria start to penetrate the tooth and eventually reach the pulp.

No amount of brushing and flossing is enough to get rid of this infection and a root canal treatment is often the most viable option.

What are the symptoms of needing root canal treatment?

The symptoms that you need a root canal treatment could be as minor as a mild toothache and as severe as a swollen lymph node. Let’s take a look at them all:

  • A severe or mild toothache
  • Fever
  • Discolored tooth
  • Increased tooth sensitivity to hot and cold
  • Sensitivity to sweet food
  • Swollen and red gums.

There are many more symptoms that you need root canal treatment. However, the ones mentioned above are the most common. Sometimes, patients may not show any signs at all until it’s too late. This is why you must go for dental check-ups at least twice a year.

Does a root canal treatment hurt? 

A root canal treatment does not really hurt and there’s a reason for that. In a root canal treatment, you get the pulp of your tooth taken out, which harbors the nerve tissues. These nerve tissues are responsible for sending distress signals to the brain.

When these nerve tissues are taken out, your tooth will be rather painless! Furthermore, the nerve tissues in your tooth would likely have been damaged to an extent that they wouldn’t be able to send any signals to the brain.

The root canal treatment procedure

The root canal treatment procedure is a simple, yet complex one.

  • At first, the endodontist will drill an access hole in your tooth, all the way down to the root.
  • Following that, the endodontist will take the infected pulp and surrounding nerve tissues out of the tooth.
  • A dental filling would be placed in your tooth to fill the area taken out in the root canal treatment.

In some cases, an endodontist may even prefer to temporarily seal the tooth and apply the filling on the next appointment.

Is there an alternative to root canal treatment? 

You’d think that a tooth extraction is a good alternative to a root canal treatment. However, as mentioned earlier, a root canal treatment aims to save your natural tooth. With tooth extraction, you lose your tooth.

However, in some instances, it could be a better option than root canal treatment. This is because after a root canal treatment, your tooth becomes dead and it needs a lot of nourishment to keep it healthy despite the absence of the pulp inside the tooth. This tooth can get discolored or even fragile and break in the future.

Thus, it’s often a better choice to get your tooth extracted and replace it with dental implants. It’s important to get a good dental consultation for this matter. In Carthage NY, you can get the best endodontist near you open today to get your dental consultation for a root canal treatment.

Step by step procedures of Root Canal

If your tooth has severe damage, it becomes necessary to undergo the procedures of root canal treatment. However, that suggestion is to be made by a dentist after examining the teeth. The dentist will take an X-ray of your teeth so that he can find out the level of damage. If root canal treatment is suggested to you perhaps, you will want to know the procedures that are involved during the treatment. Below, it is given a systematic process of root canal treatment.

Examining the infection

root canal process examining the infection

The dentist will begin by assessment of the affected teeth or tooth cautiously. The dentists will prefer to use this treatment when no other procedure is capable of treating the damages in your tooth/teeth. The damage of the root will cause inflammation or infection of the tooth. The root to be affected, the infection/damages will be quite deep.

Accessing the root

root canal process accessing the root

After being convinced, your tooth must undergo this treatment process, the dentist will find a way of accessing the root of the tooth. First, the dentist will begin by numbing the tooth. This is because the root canal process is painful when it is not done under anesthesia. Getting your tooth numb, the dentist will drill a route so that he/she will be able to get to the root.

Removal of infected areas/parts of the tissue

After drilling a hole into the tooth is done, the cleaning process will start. The dentist will use special equipment to clean out the infected parts out of the root canal. After completing the cleaning process, the canals are shaped again. For effective cleaning and removal of spoilage, irrigation is used. This is done to prepare for the refilling process.

Canal Fillings

root canal process canal fillings

After your canals are clean and empty of spoilage, next comes the filling procedure. The filling process is necessary to support the tooth. It prevents further infection of the tooth. A material is used to fill the tooth by the dentist. The material commonly used for filling your tooth is called gutta-percha.

Tooth Rebuilding

root canal process tooth rebuilding

When the dentist has complete filling your tooth with the gutta-percha, he will seal it with a temporary material. A temporary material is used because your tooth is supposed to be covered by a crown. When a suitable crown is found for your tooth, the temporary filling material will be removed. The crown looks exactly like the covering of your tooth. Positioned on the top of the tooth.

Providing extra support

If your tooth had encountered serious damage, it might need support. When extra support is needed, the dentist will reinforce your tooth with a post on the gutta-percha. The post on the gutta-percha will give the crown more support and it will be able to be positioned properly. However, it is advisable that you know the decision of the dentist about adding extra support to your crown.

You Might Experience Bleeding After an Oral Surgery, Here’s How it Can Be Stopped

You might fret over your bleeding gums after a dental surgery, but, getting an insight into how to control it can be helpful. The surgical site takes time to heal and you must be extra cautious until its recovery. However, do not ignore an excessive amount of bleeding, contact your dentist immediately if you feel the blood is oozing out immoderately.

Following these 9 measures can be beneficial for you after a root canal surgery.

You may not come across a dentist during every hour of the day, therefore, it is essential to know a few tips to control or stop the bleeding. Go through the points mentioned below to get an idea.

Swish With Salt Water

Doing this for 3 to 4 times a day can play a big role in controlling the bleeding. Take one cup of lukewarm water and add ½ tablespoon of salt in it and swish. Make it a point to continue it until the surgical site gets recovered completely.

You Must Not Smoke At All

Smoking cigarettes after a dental surgery can certainly elevate the bleeding. It can dislodge the blood clot at the surgical site and can extend the healing period as well. Therefore, it is suggested not to smoke for a few days after the surgery. Smoking anyway is injurious to health, thus, it’s better to quit or cut down on it.

Don’t Drink With a Straw

Drinking anything with a straw after a dental surgery can lead to dry socket as it can also dislodge the blood clot. Therefore, avoid using a straw for a few days after the surgery.

Take Proper Rest

Getting indulged in strenuous activities can extend the recovery period and escalate the bleeding, Thus, don’t exercise right after the surgery and avoid picking up heavyweights. Take a proper amount of rest until your dentist asks you to get back to normal routine.

Be Careful While Chewing Your Food

Sometimes eating from the side of the surgical area can also lead to bleeding. Thus, be careful while having your food or else it cause something even more severe.

Place a Wet Gauze on the Surgical Site and Bite Down on It

This could work if your gums bleed after an oral surgery. Bite down firmly on the gauze for at least 20 minutes to stop the bleeding.

We at Long Falls Dentistry offer free dental consultations to all our new patients. Contact us today 315-497-6316.

9 Measures You Need to Take After Your Root Canal

41,000 root canals are performed in the U.S, that figures out to be 15 million every year.
Root canal, the last resort to your decayed tooth, which cannot be even managed with simple filings or by any other way, is corrected with advanced techniques by the professional dentist.

Root canal therapy; guarantee that crown has been placed properly for strength and support. Proper care needs to be taken after root canal otherwise if your tooth fractures or splits then the tooth need to be extracted.

Well, you know what you can expect during a root canal.

Root canal treatment follows up many steps:

  • If dentist thinks that you need a root canal then he will X-ray to see where the decay is located.
  • A dentist will locally apply anesthesia in the teeth.
  • An incision is made and diseased tooth pulp is removed.
  • Roots that have been opened to remove the diseased pulp and the place is filled with gutta-percha and then sealed off with cement.

Measures that need to be taken to protect the tooth:

  1. When you undergo the process of root canal then the interior portion of the tooth gets affected, which thereby weakens the entire tooth structure. In order to protect the intact tooth structure dentist restore your tooth with the help of “cap”. This enables the surrounding tissue to heal up completely.
  2. After root canal treatment, don’t consume any kind of hard crunchy foods, this can increase the risk of damaging any kind of temporary fillings that your teeth might have undergone. Hard foods can damage any tooth filling.
  3. After root canal surgery your teeth and gum require special attention, if you brush roughly then, tender gums will start to bleed.
  4. Do not force to floss this, may hurt your gum and will give you pain.
  5. Take medicines, especially painkillers or some kind of anti-inflammatory drugs like aspirin, acetaminophen to control your discomfort and relieve you from pain.
  6. It is suggested to sleep with your slightly elevated for the first few days succeeding to the procedure if you are not afflicted from any physical limits.
  7. Do not smoke for 24 hours or intake alcohol, because these can strain your tender gums.
  8. Rinse your mouth with warm water, your affected tooth will stay sensitive to any kind of pressure and you can feel the pain.
  9. You can experience a small pain with a little amount of inflammation near the gum tissues. Don’t get panic as this is a normal way of draining out excess fluid that had remained accumulated due to swelling process. After some days the pain will subside.

These are certain essential tips if you have gone under root canal. If you follow this precaution then you can heal your pain collapse within few days of time.

Long Falls Dentistry with their expertise method will cure your root canal problem without any glitch. Contact us
315-497-6316