Sometimes even with dedicated care, complications with our teeth can occur. In situations where the inner tooth is infected, our dentists can perform root canal treatment to remove the infection and keep your teeth healthy. At Vibrant Square Dental, we can provide root canal therapy to protect your teeth from further infection and decay by working to preserve the tooth’s structure so your teeth can last a lifetime.
What Are Root Canal Treatments?
To best understand root canal treatments, it starts with understanding how your teeth work. Our teeth are composed of multiple layers, with each layer serving an important function for our oral health. The enamel, known as the outermost layer of our teeth, is the hardest material in our bodies and works to protect the inner parts of the tooth from decay and infection. Underneath the enamel layer is the dentin, the softer, porous layer that cushions the nerves and blood vessels. The inner last layer, called the pulp, is the soft tissue inside our teeth that contain all the nerves and blood vessels that allow our teeth to maintain sensation.
Root canal treatments are used in cases where the inner pulp becomes infected, most often due to the deterioration of the enamel and dentin layers. When the pulp becomes infected, it is important to remove the infection entirely to prevent it from spreading to the adjacent teeth. Root canal treatments can also be used when a cavity filling is insufficient to protect the tooth; there is exposed pulp trauma from injury and other restoration complications. When infection sets in, the tooth needs to be cleaned out and filled to protect the tooth from further infection.
How We Perform Root Canal Treatment
Our primary focus for providing root canal treatments is to provide extensive pain relief from infection, saving the tooth in the process. Root canal treatments can be completed within two visits to our office. Below is how we perform a root canal procedure:
- Cleaning and Prepping: In order to prevent outside infection, the teeth are cleaned and prepped for the procedure. Prepping the area works to help isolate the affected tooth and prevent the onset of reinfection.
- Local Anesthesia: In order to continue prepping the affected tooth, the area is numbed with a local anesthetic to prevent discomfort and pain, and then the tooth is surrounded by a dental dam to keep out moisture and debris.
- Opening the Inner Tooth: Once the area is fully prepped, the interior of the tooth is opened up and thoroughly cleansed using irrigation systems to remove signs of infection within the roots.
- Extracting the Pulp: The pulp is then surgically extracted, and further irrigation is used to clean out the inner cavity and prep it for filling or restorative treatment.
- Filling: Once the tooth is cleansed and prepped, our dentists will use gutta-percha, a material somewhat like rubber, to fill the inner tooth and protect it from further decay.
- Temporary Filling/Cap: In these cases, the tooth is sealed with a temporary cover to ensure that the infection doesn’t return. After a few weeks, the temporary seal cover is replaced with a permanent filling/cap on your follow-up appointment.
Root canal treatments are considered some of the best pain-relieving methods available for infected teeth. By preserving your natural teeth, we can help bringing you all the benefits that come with it. Want to know more? Call and schedule an appointment at Vibrant Square Dental.