This six-part article series answers questions about four dental procedures that carry a reputation for being the most traumatic and painful: tooth extractions, root canals, orthodontic braces and dental implants.

Welcome to the fourth installment of this six-part article series on the four dental procedures that strike the greatest fear into the hearts of patients! So far, dentists in Colorado Springs have answered your questions about tooth extractions and orthodontic braces. In this article, we shall discuss perhaps the nastiest of the four. The one that has even been woven into the English language to provide a form of hyperbolic reference: root canal therapy.

Your Frequently Asked Questions Answered by Dentists in Colorado Springs

FAQ: What is ‘root canal therapy’ and why is it necessary?

Dentists in Colorado Springs Answer: Endodontic – meaning ‘inside the tooth’ – therapy, otherwise known as a ‘root canal’ is a procedure recommended by dentists in Colorado Springs when the living tissue inside a tooth has become infiltrated by bacteria and infected. Because this tissue is surrounded by the rigid structure of the tooth, there is no way for your body to push the toxins out, as would be the case with an infected sore on your skin. Only intervention by dentists in Colorado Springs can save this tooth from the decay that will eventually claim its life.

FAQ: What does root canal therapy involve?

Dentists in Colorado Springs Answer: Endodontic therapy essentially involves the sterilization of a damaged and/or infected tooth. Dentists in Colorado Springs do this with a selection of very fine tools, which they use to remove the collection of blood vessels, nerves and connective tissue housed in the pulp chamber and root canals. Once the insides of the tooth have been thoroughly sterilized, they will fill it with inert cement that will minimize the chance of future infiltration and infection. The tooth is then capped with a resilient and durable ceramic material, explain dentists in Colorado Springs (see above image).

FAQ: My dad was in a car accident – he’s fine – but he had to have two root canal procedures performed on his damaged front teeth. Why?

Dentists in Colorado Springs Answer: Sometimes, root canal therapy is performed as a preventative measure, in other words, before a tooth has become severely infected. The reason it is recommended is because the damage tooth in question is at a substantial risk of infection in the immediate future. This might be necessary when a tooth has sustained physical trauma in, for example, a car accident or by biting down on something exceptionally hard. By cracking open the enamel and exposing the soft and vulnerable insides of a tooth, the best chance dentists in Colorado Springs will have of saving it is by removing all the pulp and sealing up the tooth against bacteria.

FAQ: Isn’t root canal therapy terribly painful?

Dentists in Colorado Springs Answer: If you had to undergo endodontic therapy without the aid of anesthesia, then yes; endodontic therapy is excruciatingly painful. And when you consider that dentists in Colorado Springs are scraping out the pulp of a tooth – nerves and all – it isn’t hard to understand why. But, just like a tooth extraction, pain is entirely manageable with the help of strong local anesthesia and, post-operatively, prescription analgesic medication, say dentists in Colorado Springs. What patients need to understand and focus on is that a timely root canal procedure can save a tooth on the brink of irreparable decay. It also saves you from the trauma and expense of needing to replace your own natural and superior dental technology with an implant.

Two Important Messages:

There’s another way you can look at the entire situation: An infected pulp chamber is madly painful, say dentists in Colorado Springs. A root canal procedure actually provides relief for patients who are already coping with tremendous amounts of pain, sensitivity and discomfort. It’s not the procedure one needs to be afraid of; it’s actually developing an endodontic infection that patients should be nervous of, say dentists in Colorado Springs. And this is where the second message comes in. Prevention is better than cure. Lifelong thorough oral hygiene and regular dental appointments and professional cleanings go a long way to keep you out of dental surgery!

Dentists in Colorado Springs: Stay Tuned!

To read about the last of the ferocious four – dental implants – stay tuned for the final installment of this six-part article series, courtesy of dentists in Colorado Springs.