An Informative Guide on Root Canal Treatment
If you have ever experienced a tooth infection or an abscessed tooth, you know how uncomfortable and painful this scenario can be. This dental issue is a dental emergency, and a call for you to promptly visit our emergency dentist in Mississauga for medical attention.
An infected tooth needs to be treated because postponing to do so gives the infection a chance to spread from the site to the surrounding neck and head tissues. Apart from this, not dealing with the condition increases your risk of suffering from sepsis and osteomyelitis complications.
An infected tooth occurs when a pus pocket or abscess forms within the affected tooth’s root tip region. An abscessed tooth is always signalled by symptoms that may include; fever, a persistent toothache, sensitivity, foul breath, headache, facial inflammation, and swellings on the gum region around the affected tooth.
If you notice these symptoms, you should contact our dentist near you, for immediate medical attention. The good news is that our endodontist in Mississauga has several treatment options for this dental issue. One of the effective solutions we offer for dealing with abscessed teeth is a root canal treatment.
Root Canal Treatment, In a Nutshell
A root canal treatment is an endodontic procedure used to repair and restore infected and decayed teeth. When a tooth undergoes extensive decay, it may develop an infection when the nerve and pulp region of the affected tooth is inflamed or irritated.
Ideally, a root canal procedure involves removing the infected nerves and pulp section within the affected tooth before cleaning and sealing the site. Most people would think that the root canal procedure would forever transform how the affected tooth operates.
However, you will be glad to know that your tooth can survive without its nerves, and removing the infected pulp and nerves will not interfere with your tooth’s functionality.
It is vital to remove the infected pulp and nerve tissue because failing to do so encourages the multiplication of bacteria within the infected pulp region, and this eventually leads to an abscessed tooth.
What Symptoms Indicate That a Root Canal Treatment Is Required?
Specific symptoms can signify whether you need to undergo a root canal treatment. It is essential to know these symptoms so that you can respond faster when faced with this dental issue and seek emergency dental care from our emergency dentist in Mississauga.
These symptoms may include:
- A persistent and severe sharp pain whenever you bite down or chew food
- Pimple-like swellings on the gums surrounding the infection site
- Knots, bulges, protrusions, or swellings on your gums
- Severe tooth sensitivity
- Signs of extensive tooth decay
- A damaged, broken, fractured, cracked, or chipped tooth that is causing you any discomfort, bleeding, or pain
- Facial inflammation on the side of the affected tooth
- Foul-smelling breath
- A severe and persistent toothache
- A fever and headache that can be traced back to when the infection began
The Root Canal Procedure
Your root canal procedure will be performed by our experienced endodontist in Mississauga. The process will involve the following steps:
- Our dentist will ask you to get an X-ray. This image will give our dentist a more detailed look into your root canal and the extent of the infection. It will also enable us to ascertain whether the surrounding jaw bone area has been affected by the issue.
- After the examination has been concluded, the procedure will begin. Our dentist will use some local anaesthesia to numb the site and ensure that your treatment is as comfortable and painless as possible.
- Our dentist will then use a rubber dam to ensure the area being worked on stays dry during the procedure.
- Next, our dentist will begin drilling into the tooth. The drilling is necessary to create an access point into the infected pulp region of the tooth. The infected pulp, decayed tissues, and bacteria are removed from the tooth through the access point.
- Once the infected tissue and pulp have been removed, the root canal will be cleaned out and rinsed out thoroughly to ensure all the debris and infected tissues are cleared away.
- After this, your affected tooth can then be prepared for sealing. Before being sealed, our dentist may apply some medication to clear out the infection and prevent any chances of infection ever reoccurring in the future.
- The tooth will be sealed off using a substance known as gutta-percha.
In other instances, our endodontist in Mississauga may recommend you get a dental crown. This will structurally reinforce the affected tooth after a root canal procedure.
At Dr. Jeff Levman, we have an experienced endodontist always on call to perform any of our root canal procedures. Contact us today for a painless and comfortable root canal treatment.