While pain is never pleasant, it can be a very important messenger. Pain is what lets you know that something is wrong. Sometimes, a painful tooth may only indicate that you have a particle of food trapped between two teeth or in the gum. In this case, good flossing should do the trick. However, when the pain is so severe that you can’t even think straight, then something more serious may be occurring within your tooth. A severe toothache may indicate a tooth infection. In this case, root canal therapy in Mechanicsville is the answer.
Common Root Canal Questions
What Is a Root Canal?
A root canal or root canal therapy is a common dental procedure that removes the infection and natural contents of a tooth’s pulp chamber and the tiny canals that lead through the tooth roots. The pulp and root canals are where a tooth’s nerve, lymph and blood tissue are housed. Fortunately, a tooth can function normally without these tissues.
How Does a Tooth Become Infected?
Your teeth are remarkably strong. In fact, the outer layer of enamel is the hardest substance in the human body. Underneath that is dentin, another tough material conducts sensation to the nerve of a tooth. Yet despite this protection, tiny bacteria can make their way inside your tooth if they have access. Advanced tooth decay, traumatic injury or a deep crack can all open a route for bacteria to enter the pulp chamber. Once there, infection and inflammation set in and the pain begins.
Other symptoms of an infected tooth include:
- Sensitivity to hot or cold temperatures.
- A small pimple-like sore on your gum tissue near the tooth.
- Pain upon biting down or chewing.
- Fever.
Although ignoring the pain of an infected tooth is usually impossible, left untreated, the infection can spread into the gum and bone tissue, causing an abscess. If you are experiencing any of the symptoms mentioned, please call your Mechanicsville root canal dentist at St. Mary’s Dental immediately to schedule an appointment.
What Happens During a Root Canal?
After administering a local anesthetic to keep you comfortable throughout root canal therapy in Mechanicsville, Dr. McCray or Dr. Demer will drill a small hole in the top of your tooth and use special endodontic files to clean and disinfect the pulp chamber and root canals. Medicine may be inserted to eradicate the last bit of infection, then the space is filled with an inert substance that prevents recontamination. Finally, the tooth is given a filling and prepared for a dental crown that will protect the tooth and restore its natural appearance and function.
Schedule Root Canal Therapy in Mechanicsville
Contact our office in Mechanicsville, MD, today to schedule your consultation with our experienced and caring doctors. If you suspect that you might have an infected tooth that requires a root canal, we’ll do what we can to help relieve your pain and save your tooth!
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