If you have pain that won’t go away, sensitivity to hot or cold, or a cracked or chipped tooth, you may need a Bowling Green KY root canal. Chandler Park Dental Care provides professional root canal treatment that will help relieve your symptoms and restore your healthy smile.

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Root Canal Treatment

Root canal treatment (endodontic treatment) is needed when a deep cavity, crack, chip, or injury damages the living tissue inside your tooth. This tissue, called the dental pulp, has nerves and can become infected or inflamed. Infection can also form a pimple-like structure called an abscess in the gums. If you have persistent tooth pain or sensitivity to hot and cold, you may have a serious problem that needs immediate attention. Chandler Park Dental Care can help you with a root canal, which removes the painful infection and saves your tooth. A Bowling Green KY root canal can prevent the need for tooth extraction, which is more costly and can create problems for adjacent teeth. Root canal therapy is highly successful and, when properly maintained, can last a lifetime.

Endodontic Treatment

Root canal treatment, or endodontics, is a specialized branch of dentistry dealing with the complex structures inside of your teeth. It is necessary when an injury or tooth decay affects the inner pulp of your teeth, which contains nerves and blood vessels. Endodontic treatment can save your natural tooth and relieve pain.

An infected or abscessed tooth can be extremely painful. You may also notice swelling, tender gums, or sensitivity to hot and cold. If left untreated, the infection can spread throughout your body and cause serious health issues.

Historically, a diseased or damaged tooth would need to be removed altogether. However, modern dentistry has been able to restore damaged and infected teeth with root canal therapy. During this procedure, the infected tissues and nerves are removed and replaced with a filling material. The space is then sealed with a dental crown.

During the root canal process, your dentist will administer anesthesia to numb the affected area. Then, a rubber dam is placed to keep the affected area dry and free of saliva during the procedure. An access opening is made in the top of the tooth and using a series of small handheld instruments, the bacteria and unhealthy pulp are removed from the canals. The space is then cleaned, shaped, and filled with a biocompatible material known as gutta-percha. Cement is then placed to seal the opening on top of the tooth.

Root Canal Therapy

Root canal therapy can stop severe tooth pain, reduce swelling and sensitivity, prevent infection, and preserve your natural teeth. This restorative treatment removes the bacteria, pulp and nerves that cause these symptoms, then replaces them with a sterilized material. After the procedure, a dental crown or filling is added to protect and restore the tooth. A root canal treatment is one of the most common dental procedures performed – more than 14 million per year. It can also prevent the need for dental implants and bridges, and save the cost of a lost or extracted tooth.

The root canal is a space inside each of your tooth’s roots that contain blood vessels and nerves. The canals can become infected when a tooth is damaged or injured, such as from a deep cavity that exposes the pulp to bacteria, cracks or chips in the teeth, or repeated dental procedures. The infection can lead to severe tooth pain, sensitivity to hot or cold or even bleeding gums around the affected tooth.

During a Bowling Green KY root canal, anesthesia is used to numb the area around the tooth, so there will be little to no discomfort during the procedure. Your dentist will access the root canals by drilling a hole in the tooth, and remove the bacteria and nerves that are causing pain and infection, then replace them with a sterilized material.

Root Canal Procedure

A spongy material called pulp containing blood vessels and nerves resides inside the center of your tooth beneath the hard enamel and harder dentin. Tendrils of this tissue extend down the root canals of each tooth and connect to the surrounding bone. If the pulp becomes inflamed or dies, a painful infection can develop that is often referred to as a dental abscess.

In a root canal treatment, also known as endodontic treatment, the inflamed or dead pulp is removed and the space is thoroughly cleaned and disinfected. The empty space is then filled and sealed with a rubber-like substance called gutta-percha. A temporary filling is usually placed to protect the tooth between visits. When the infection is gone and the tooth is fully restored with a filling or crown, it will continue to function like any other natural tooth.

While the procedure has a reputation for being very painful, modern anesthesia and techniques make it no more uncomfortable than getting a regular filling. After the root canal, the tooth may feel sensitive for a few days as the tissues settle. Over-the-counter pain relievers can help with this discomfort. It is important to avoid biting or chewing on the tooth until it is permanently repaired with a filling or crown. Until then, chew on the other side of your mouth or eat soft foods that require little chewing.