When you have a cavity, we offer relief with a dental filling. But what if you have an infected tooth? To avoid discomfort and the risk of tooth loss, we can offer an endodontic treatment. In today’s blog, your Livonia, MI, dentist talks about how we provide lifelike results with a root canal procedure!
The Causes of an Infected Tooth
An infection means that harmful oral bacteria have reached your inner pulp, the nerve center in your tooth. This contact could be due to untreated cavities or injuries that crack or chip a tooth, or wear down outer structure. When the infection begins, you could experience tooth sensitivity when you eat or drink, or a toothache that persists for more than a day. Other symptoms include swelling near the tooth, pain when you bite down or chew, aches in the face, jaw, and ears, and even a discharge from the tooth itself. When you experience one or more of these symptoms, we urge you to visit our office today for root canal treatment. Otherwise, you risk the tooth requiring extraction to prevent the spread of infection, or tooth loss.
Root Canal Treatment
Our team will start the root canal procedure by carefully examining your tooth with digital imaging technology, so we can assess the cause, severity, and position of your infected tissues. We will numb the tooth being treated to keep you comfortable and we can also discuss dental sedation if you have anxiety. Once you’re relaxed, we will open the tooth to access and remove the tissues from within. We then clean the interior of the tooth and the canals thoroughly, before we add a special restorative filling material known as gutta percha. We then cap the tooth with a crown to complete the root canal. The crown is custom-made to ensure it not only fits well and keeps your bite balanced, but that the results look natural too.
Avoiding Future Infections
Our team would also like to help you protect your smile from future cavities and infections. We urge you to brush and floss daily, and limit the amount of sugar and starch in your diet. Be sure you see our team for a checkup and cleaning too, so we can monitor your smile and catch issues that need treatment in the early stages. If you have any questions about how we diagnose and treat infected teeth with a root canal, then contact our team today.
LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR ENDODONTIC TREATMENT WITH DR. STEWART, DDS!
We want to offer an endodontic treatment to help you avoid the painful symptoms of an infected tooth. To find our more or to schedule their next appointment, give us a call at our office in Livonia, MI at (734)425-4400.