Book an appointment
Ah, the famous surgery that has people trembling at the very thought of it, but does the uncomfortable vision of endodontics really help us understand what the therapy involves? We at Chelsea Green Dental, your local dentist in Chelsea, want you to have a clear understanding of this important treatment so that you can come into an appointment unafraid, based on the facts of a procedure that is meant to help you and bring you quality of life.
Do I need a root canal?
An infection inside a tooth’s pulp and root can cause an immense amount of pain and discomfort and left untreated it will spread, but how do you know if you have bacteria causing an infection that needs attention? Tooth pain could mean several things, right? If discomfort begins it is a good idea to go see your local dentist in Chelsea for a diagnosis, but here are some symptoms to look out for.
Persistent pain – pain that never goes away needs to be attended to, do not delay on this, it may only get worse as time goes on. It may be felt deep in the tooth or even in the face, jaw or other teeth.
Sensitivity – does heat or cold make you wince? This could be an indication of infection.
Tooth discolouration – an infection in the root or pulp of the tooth can cause it to become discoloured and even blacken.
Pain on contact – pain when you touch the tooth or eat foods may also be an indicator that the tooth is beginning to become infected.
Tooth mobility – when a tooth is infected it may feel looser and less stable in the jaw.
The treatment
A root canal or ‘endodontics’ is a procedure that removes the decay from the inside of a tooth to help preserve the integrity of the tooth before it has a chance to fall out completely or infect other teeth.
The treatment performed at your local dentist in Chelsea follows the steps below, we hope that by explaining the procedure to you it will help to calm any anxieties you may have about the process, allowing you to come in with confidence knowing that we aim to remove the pain, not inflict it.
Step 1 – numbing. Using a needle, a local anaesthetic is administered to the area numbing the tooth before any work is applied to it.
Step 2 – making space. Using very small tools, the dentist will drill an area at the top of the tooth to expose the infection.
Step 3 – cleaning. Using small files to clear away the damage, the dentist will remove the diseased pulp from inside the tooth, sometimes using jets of water and antiseptic fluid to help clean away debris.
Step 4 – filling. Once the canal is cleaned and dried it is then filled with a substance which will protect it from future infections, then a temporary filling is used to cover it until it is set, so that it can be correctly crowned at a later date.
Living with tooth pain may be unbearable at times and it is a relief to know that something simple can be done about it, this treatment only takes roughly 90 minutes and brings about a great deal of healing and relief of discomfort.
