Root Canal Treatment – A Lifeline For Infected Teeth

Root canal treatment involves removing infected or irreversibly inflamed tissue from your tooth, cleaning the root canal and then filling it to prevent further damage or infection. Root canal treatment can save your tooth from having to be taken out.

Infection or irreversible inflammation can occur in several ways e.g.

• Severe tooth decay
• An injury, such as a blow to your mouth
• Cracked or loose fillings or repeated large fillings in your tooth
• Gum disease

Root canal symptoms

If the pulp in your tooth becomes infected, this can spread to the root canal, and your tooth may become painful. If the infection spreads further, it can cause a tooth or dental abscess, which is a collection of pus. An abscess can be painful and tender when you bite down on your tooth and can cause swelling around your tooth and jaw.

Root canal or extraction?

Without treatment, the infection may spread further into your jaw, and you may need to have your tooth taken out. Sometimes your tooth may look darker in colour than your other teeth, which means that the nerve inside your tooth is dead or dying.

Root canal procedure

Root canal treatment can be carried out in one or more visits to the dentist, depending on the cause of the problem, the tooth, and the severity of the infection.