A bundle of vessels and nerves passes through the middle of each tooth, providing its nutrition and sensitivity. This vascular-nerve bundle is called the pulp of the tooth. If the pulp is damaged for various reasons, it becomes inoperable and becomes a potential focus of infection. Because this tissue does not have the ability to renew and repair itself like other tissues in the body. Deep caries, operations performed on the tooth (e.g. fillings or tooth cutting), fractures and cracks in the tooth may cause inflammation of the pulp. In addition, trauma to the tooth can cause inflammation and damage to the pulp, even if there is no crack or decay in the tooth. If the inflamed pulp is left untreated, it will cause pain and abscesses. Removing this diseased pulp and filling it with artificial materials is called root canal treatment.
How to understand that a tooth is infected?: Inflammation or the beginning of an inflammation can be mentioned in the pain and sensitivity of the tooth to cold and hot foods and drinks, and in the pain that occurs during eating. Again, extreme color changes in the teeth may also be perceived as a sign of inflammation. Apart from these, in teeth where the decay reaches the pulp but is not treated, the infection spreads from the root tip to the jawbone and may cause small or large swellings on the face. In this case, dentist intervention with the help of antibiotics is essential to combat the infection.
Stages of Root Canal Treatment
- Detection of the problematic tooth by taking radiography.
- If the tooth is alive, local anesthesia is applied to eliminate the sensitivity of the tooth and surrounding tissues.
- Cleaning the caries in the enamel and dentin layers of the tooth and creating a space to reach the pulp.
- Destruction and removal of infected dentin layers and microorganisms in the root canal up to the root tip, using the rotary instrument system used in our clinic, which also determines the working length during the procedure.
- Destruction of microorganisms with various root canal disinfectants when using rotary instrument systems in root canals.
- When starting the root canal treatment, if the tooth is not alive, wait a certain period of time with a root canal antiseptic and fill the root canals at the next meeting.