Root Canal Treatment: What and Why?
Everyone knows someone who has had a root canal. Chances are, whoever it was didn’t exactly explain the process in a positive light. But what exactly is a root canal? And why might someone need one?
If the pulp of a tooth becomes infected, the infection needs cleared out before it spreads through the roots and into the surrounding gum and bone. Your tooth’s pulp is the innermost layer of the tooth. It’s not hard like the outer layers (dentin and enamel); it’s technically a soft tissue. This is where all your tooth’s blood flow and nerve function is located. So when the pulp is infected, chances are you’re in a lot of pain, since the nerve is probably compressed by inflammation. Your tooth’s pulp can become infected in a lot of ways – if the tooth cracked, a filling cracked or a crown broke, decay reached the tooth center, and many other things.
Traditional Root Canal Treatment
The traditional root canal dates back to the mid-19th century, when someone used a watch spring to dig the infection out of a tooth pulp. Sounds gross and painful, right? Well, it probably was. Traditional root canal treatment has definitely improved since then, but it’s still an invasive procedure that requires anesthetic and an uncomfortable recovery. Basically, a dentist goes into the tooth with files and cleaning fluid to scrape out and remove the infection. Then they put a temporary crown on. Often, you come back into the office after some healing time, the dentist makes sure the infection is truly gone, and then places a permanent crown over it. In cases where the root canal doesn’t take, or has complications, a dentist may choose tooth extraction and replace the tooth with an implant crown. It doesn’t happen that often, but it does happen. Especially if you waited on weeks of tooth pain before choosing to see a dentist.
GentleWave: Making Root Canals Easier and Less Painful
A new type of root canal treatment is the GentleWave method. It’s less invasive, less painful, has faster and less uncomfortable recovery times, and has been shown to be around 97-98% effective. The GentleWave method replaces the files used in traditional root canal treatment with acoustic vibrations. The vibrations make the cleaning fluid reach every crevice and corner of the tooth’s pulp more effectively than traditional treatment, and causes less physical trauma to the tooth. Even better, often it’s only one appointment instead of two! Because of all of its advantages, dentists who use GentleWave often stop performing traditional root canals altogether.
Cincinnati Dental Care that Includes Root Canal Surgery
We perform root canals in Cincinnati and the surrounding areas out of our office that is conveniently located in Sharonville. Our practice focuses on gentle dental work. Talk to one of our dentists today about your options. Don’t wait on that toothache. Take care of it before it becomes serious.