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Root Canal Treatment |
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Inside each tooth is a canal or space that contains a pulp or nerve. If a tooth becomes injured from deep decay or a blow to the tooth then the nerve can die. This process may be painful and may involve infection and swelling.
In order to treat this it is necessary to remove what remains of the nerve. This can be done by extracting the tooth or removing the nerve (root canal treatment).
Root canal treatment normally involves a number of visits. During these visits the canal inside the tooth is cleaned out (the nerve is removed). This procedure involves widening and shaping the canal. After the canal is clean and free of bacteria it is filled. This is called the root canal filling. This filling will stay inside the tooth indefinitely.
After each visit the tooth may be slightly sensitive. You may need to take an analgesic. If the pain gets worse rather than better you need to call this surgery. During treatment the tooth and filling are fragile so you need to avoid biting hard on the tooth.
A tooth without a nerve should be cleaned like any other tooth. With proper care it can last a life time. A tooth with a root canal filling often contains a large filling and crowning the tooth will prevent chipping and fracture of the tooth or filling.
The success rate of root canal treatment is high (over 95%) but not 100%. Root canal treatment can be technically complicated and local anatomy or a root fracture may result in a failure. In a few cases there is no alternative to extracting the tooth.
If the nerve is dead why is the tooth painful? A tooth containing a dying nerve can be very painful. This is because a tooth will normally die gradually. As it dies the dead cells will cause pain in the other cells. Once the tooth s completely dead it can still remain painful (even though the type of pain may change). This is because there are nerves in the bone surrounding the tooth. This is where the pain comes from.
http://www.ada.org.au/faqs/faqsCategory,category,Root_Canal_Therapy.aspx |
