Root Canal Treatment – Colchester, VT
Stop Your Pain, Save Your Tooth
Pain is never pleasant, but it is often important signal that something is wrong. Understanding this signal is critical. In the case of a toothache, the pain can be indicative of a minor problem — such as a small piece of food stuck between two teeth — or a more significant issue, like an infected tooth. If the pain you feel is debilitating, it may keep you up at night and prevent you from being able to maintain your daily routine. To eliminate this kind of pain, root canal treatment, or endodontics, may be necessary. At Elevate Dental, our dentist can perform root canal treatment in Colchester, VT that will remedy your toothache and preserve the tooth.
Why Choose Elevate Dental
for Root Canal Treatment?
- Root Canal Treatment and Tooth Restoration in One Appointment
- Complete In-House Endodontic Treatments
- Prompt Emergency Appointments
How Does a Tooth Become Infected?
A tooth becomes infected when bacteria in your mouth gain access to the interior portion of the tooth. When healthy, this interior — also called the pulp chamber — is surrounded by two outer layers. The outermost layer is enamel, the hardest substance in the human body. While enamel is very hard, there are microscopic bacteria, acids and other toxins in your mouth that can erode this surface to form a cavity.
The middle layer of each tooth is called dentin, a softer and more sensitive layer because of tubules that conduct feeling from the outside of your tooth to the nerve inside the pulp chamber. Branching off from the pulp chamber are root canals, which absorb nutrients and eliminate toxins through your bloodstream.
Infection can begin inside the pulp chamber and root canals when bacteria have access via severe tooth decay, a crack, or any other type of serious damage. Once infected, the pulp chamber begins to die and there is pressure within the tooth that is extremely painful.
The nerve of a tooth can actually die from bite or acute trauma without any bacteria or cavities. Sometimes when teeth are hit too hard or are too heavy in your bite, the nerve inside can die. Eventually, the body sees this dead nerve as foreign and mounts an inflammatory response against it. This can turn into a painful abscess that may also need a root canal to remove the necrotic nerve and pulp tissue.
What Happens During a Root Canal?
When you have a root canal, the infection, debris, and the contents of the pulp chamber are all removed. Fortunately, a tooth can function perfectly well without the nerve, blood, and lymph tissue in the chamber and canals. The procedure is done under local anesthesia, so you won’t feel any discomfort. Some patients are concerned that root canal therapy is painful. Quite the opposite — root canal treatment eliminates the pain of an infected tooth.
Once the chamber and canals are cleared and disinfected, an inert substance is injected into the space to seal the root canal system and prevent reinfection. Then, the chamber and your tooth are sealed. Once your dentist in Colchester is certain that the endodontic process has been successful, your tooth will be prepared, and a porcelain dental crown is attached for strength and protection.
Conveniently located in Colchester, Vermont, Elevate Dental serves families from Burlington, Shelburne, Essex Junction, and South Burlington. We invite you to experience whole-health dental care with Dr. Kristen, Dr. Mike, and our team of experts. Call our Colchester, VT dental office today to reserve your personal consultation, checkup, or second-opinion visit.