Reference - Root Canal Treatment

Each tooth consists of two parts - the crown and the root. Only the crown is visible in the mouth. The root is in the bone under the gums. The centre of the crown and root is hollow and is called the pulp chamber, which extends further down the root forming the root canal.

The pulp, which is made up of living tissue and nerves nourishes the tooth and is contained in the pulp chamber and root canal. When the pulp becomes infected, either through decay or trauma, it needs to be removed to prevent the onset of jaw inflammation and extreme pain.

Root canal treatment is the process of removing the pulp and cleaning out all the infected tissue in the pulp chamber and root canal. This is done using tiny files until all traces of the pulp are gone. The first visit usually involves the removal of the infected pulp and cleaning out the infected chamber. Usually medication is left down the pulp chamber for a period of a few weeks to ensure that all the bacteria has been eliminated prior to sealing the tooth.

On the second visit, if all the bacteria has been removed, the tooth can be sealed with a pink substance called gutta-percha to ensure no bacteria can get down the root of the tooth again. On the other hand, if bacteria still remains, we will keep cleaning out the infected pulp chamber and replacing the medication until the chamber and root canal is totally free of all bacteria before performing the final seal with gutta-percha.

Because the tooth has no pulp to nourish it after root canal treatment has been done, it will become weaker than a normal tooth, turn grey in colour and be susceptible to cracking and splitting. For this reason it is recommended that a crown be fitted, so that the structure of the tooth is not compromised and its appearance remains the same.

Usually root canal treatment is painless and, if done correctly, there is usually a 95% long-term success rate with this procedure. This is far better than having the tooth removed as we can maintain the health of all the teeth in the mouth and maintain the correct bite characteristics with the existing teeth.

 

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