Removing the Stigma From Root Canal Therapy
A common dental procedure that many people have heard of, but often misunderstand is the process of root canal therapy. The term root canal elicits images of pain and many people will do anything to avoid it, including missing regular dental appointments.
However, the pain that people often associate with root canals has more to do with the infection in the tooth, rather than the procedure itself. Having root canal therapy can alleviate those symptoms and get you back to your regular routine. Learning more about what exactly route canal therapy is can remove the stigma from it and help you to understand that seeing your dentist is the best thing to do to avoid tooth pain!
What Is Root Canal Therapy
Perhaps the best way to remove the stigma from root canal therapy is to understand exactly what it is. Inside each of your teeth under a layer of dentin is a soft tissue called pulp. This tissue contains blood vessels, nerves, and connective tissue that helps you grow the root of your tooth during its development. When the pulp inside your tooth becomes damaged or inflamed, it can cause an infection or abscesses that often cause pain.
Root canal therapy is the procedure used to treat the inflamed pulp and eliminate the infection in your tooth. In order to restore your tooth and eliminate pain, the infected pulp is removed, your tooth is cleaned and shaped, and a crown is placed on top. This treatment prevents the spread of infection and eliminates the pain associated with inflamed dental pulp.
What to Expect at Your Appointment
To give you peace of mind that having root canal therapy can be a comfortable and easy procedure, it helps to understand what to expect at your dental appointment. If you show signs of an infected root canal, your dentist may order an x-ray to properly diagnosis you with an infected root canal system and schedule a day to come in for root canal therapy.
Once diagnosed, you can expect to have numbing gel placed on your gums and afterward be injected with a local anesthetic to completely numb the area. This allows you to have a simple, painless procedure. Next treatment fluids are used to remove the infected pulp and to disinfect the tooth. This not only removes the pulp but ensures that the infection is completely cleared from your tooth and won’t return.
Lastly, the tooth is sealed. Some dentists prefer to wait a week to seal the tooth to ensure that the infection is completely gone before sealing. The process of root canal therapy can be compared to having a filling placed and is a simple, comfortable procedure.
Don’t Live With the Pain of An Infected Tooth
The next time you hear root canal therapy mentioned, remember that it’s a simple procedure that helps eliminate pain, rather than cause pain! Root canal therapy doesn’t deserve the stigma around it and you don’t deserve to live with an infection your teeth due to fear. Give us a call today at (586) 573-7700 to begin root canal therapy and see for yourself what a simple and comfortable procedure it is.