Don’t panic, it really isn’t so bad, we promise. We know that the thought of this treatment probably has you cringing, but there really is no need, it is a standard dental procedure that we at Garden View do weekly – if not daily – and most of our patients leave feeling surprised at how painless it was in the end. In fact, if you are in need of a root canal treatment you are probably in more pain right now than you will be in our chair at the dentist in Buckinghamshire, and we hope that by providing you with an understanding of the treatment, you can come to visit us without any fear.
When do you need a root canal?
If there is an infection inside the pulp of your tooth, you are going to know all about it because that tooth is going to be hurting. Biting, chewing, and even speaking may be painful and we want to take that pain away. If you don’t take care of that tooth now, the infection and the consequences thereof will spread to other teeth; a painful tooth could, however, mean something else like a simple small cavity or a piece of popcorn that’s been lodged in there a while. The minute you start to feel discomfort make an appointment to come see your dentist in Buckinghamshire, in order for us to determine what treatment you may need, but here are some other symptoms you can look out for too.
Sensitivity
If cold or hot foods and drinks make you wince in pain for a particular tooth it may indicate an infection.
Discolouration
An infection in the pulp could blacken the tooth on the outside, in which case it may be too late to rescue that particular tooth, but we will need to take care of the infection to save the rest of your teeth.
Persistent pain
Not only will you feel pain deep in the tooth, but if you leave it long enough the pain will be felt in your face and jaw.
Loose teeth
An infected tooth may begin to wiggle in its socket.
Treatment
A root canal treatment at your dentist in Buckinghamshire is a procedure that removes the decayed pulp from inside your tooth to help preserve it before it has a chance to infect other teeth or fall out completely, there are four steps to this treatment:
Numbing
Anaesthetic is administered with our special wand so that you will feel nothing during the procedure.
Drilling
The dentist will make a space at the top of the tooth to expose the infection.
Cleaning
We will then remove the infected pulp from your tooth and properly clean out the space with jets of water.
Filling
After cleaning the tooth is then filled with a special substance once more, to replace the pulp and then it is given a temporary covering while a crown is made to be permanently fitted later on.
Treatment can take roughly ninety minutes during which, and for a while afterward, you will not feel any pain.