Among dental treatment procedures, the most anxiety-inducing procedure is usually root canal treatment. Today, root canal treatment is usually performed in one session in living teeth and in two sessions in teeth that have lost their vitality.
Anatomy of the Tooth
The part of the tooth that is visible in the mouth is called the crown, and the part that is not visible in the mouth and remains in the bone is called the root. Our tooth consists of several layers. The outermost part of the crown, the part seen in our mouth, is called enamel. Enamel is one of the hardest tissues in our body. The cementum layer covers the root part of our tooth, which is under the gum and surrounded by bone. Under the enamel and cementum layers is the dentin layer. The characteristic of dentin is that it is the largest layer of the tooth and, unlike the enamel layer, it contains nerve endings. This feature plays a role in the pain mechanism.
Under the dentin layer is the pulp of the tooth. This part contains the vessels and nerves of the tooth. The pulp plays an important role during the eruption and development of the tooth. In addition, after the tooth erupts, it transmits the problems faced by our tooth to us through the pain mechanism.
How can you tell if a tooth is infected?
Inflammation and the onset of inflammation can be mentioned in pain and sensitivity to cold and hot foods and beverages, pain during eating. Again, excessive color changes in the teeth can also be perceived as a sign of inflammation. In addition, in untreated teeth where the decay has reached the pulp, the infection can spread from the root tip to the jawbone and cause small or large swelling on the face. In this case, in addition to the procedures performed by the dentist, the use of antibiotics is also appropriate in the fight against infection. The general opinion is that the tooth that causes swelling on the face should be removed after the swelling subsides. However, this is a very old idea. Even teeth that cause such major infections can be kept in the mouth by root canal treatment and this tooth can serve you for years, just like the healthy tooth.
Root Canal Treatment Stages
- Radiography is taken to identify the problematic tooth.
- If the tooth is alive, local anesthesia is applied to eliminate sensitivity in the tooth and surrounding tissues.
- Cleaning the caries in the enamel and dentin layers of the tooth and creating a cavity to reach the pulp.
- Isolation of the tooth by placing a rubber dam.
- Determination of the working length using electronic instruments and confirmation with radiography.
- Destruction and removal of infected dentin layers and microorganisms in the root canal using rotary instrument systems.
- Destruction of microorganisms with various root canal disinfectants while using rotary instrument systems in root canals.
- Destruction and removal of infected dentin layers and microorganisms in the root canal using rotary instrument systems.
- If the tooth is not alive when starting root canal treatment, waiting for a certain period of time with a canal antiseptic to be placed in the root canal and filling the root canals at the next meeting.
After root canal treatment, the tooth is cut off from the surrounding tissues to prevent infection from occurring again and to repair any damage to the surrounding tissues of the tooth.
Following root canal treatment, especially after treatment of living teeth, the tooth may have a bearable pain for a few days or pain when pressing on the tooth. This is a normal pain after root canal treatment. It disappears in a short time with some protection of the root canal treated tooth. Today, the success rate of root canal treatments with the right treatment method is up to 90%.
