What Is Root Canal?
There are two portions of a tooth: the upper part which is found above the gum line – the crown of the tooth, and the lower part which is below the gum line – the root area of a tooth.
The crown area is the visible portion of a tooth, while the root area is embedded into the jawbone and holds the tooth in place.
Once bacteria penetrate the crown of a tooth and are left untreated for a long time, it may cause irreversible disease on the nerve which may now need root canal treatment instead of tooth filling only.
What is Root Canal?
Root canal is where the nerve (pulp) of the root area is located. It can be infected by deep tooth decay, cracked, or chipped teeth, trauma to the tooth, or any faulty dental restoration. These instances can cause an opening to the pulp chamber which is where the nerve is located.
When the pulp of a tooth becomes infected, it can cause pain, swelling and sensitivity to hot and cold temperatures.
This can lead to the spread of the infection to its surrounding tissues, which may even cause an abscess. In this case, dental filling will not be recommended since it will not treat the problem – the infected pulp.
One treatment for this pulp infection is root canal therapy. It is a dental procedure which involves removing the damaged or infected pulp from the inside of a tooth.
In this procedure, the root canal is cleaned and disinfected to remove any remnants of the pulp. Once cleaned, the canal will be filled and sealed to prevent further infection.
Root canal treatment is usually done to save a tooth from being extracted. If you are feeling any symptoms of infection such as root canal pain and swelling, you need to have your teeth consulted for a possible root canal Sydney.
