Toluca Lake Dentist Discusses Situations In Which Root Canal Therapy May Be Necessary

Written by Dr. McKay on Mar 3, 2015

Root canal therapy is an important restorative treatment that is used when a patient’s tooth (or multiple teeth) is severely damaged. But what exactly does this mean? Today our Toluca Lake dentists are giving you some more information about specific scenarios in which root canal therapy may be called for. We hope that this article helps you better understand how root canal therapy functions in restorative dentistry.

The general purpose of root canal therapy is to save as much of a severely damaged tooth as possible. Basically, when a tooth is damaged down to the dental core, it will probably require root canal treatment. During root canal treatment our team removes all of the “living” parts of your tooth, such as the dental pulp and the tooth root. Then, we will restore the remaining tooth—the healthy dentin and dental enamel—with a restoration.

When a dental infection—a cavity—works its way through the dental enamel and the dentin into the core of the tooth, the tooth will likely require toot canal therapy. If this tooth goes untreated, the infection can spread to other teeth and to surrounding oral/bone tissues. By removing the dental pulp and the tooth roots, and then sterilizing the tooth, our dental team preserves healthy tooth structure while eliminating the infection.

Sometimes root canal therapy is employed because a patient has sustained a traumatic dental injury. Let’s say, for example, that you are in a bike accident, and you crack one of your teeth. If the damage extends into the dental pulp, our team may use root canal therapy to restore the tooth. This level of dental damage is often quite painful (because the nerves within your tooth are exposed) so prompt treatment is essential for aesthetic, functional, and comfort reasons.

Although many patients have knee-jerk reactions to the term “root canal,” this treatment is actually an invaluable restorative solution for people of many ages. If you want to learn more about all of your restorative options, including root canal treatment, please feel free to contact our Toluca Lake dental team!