When you experience dental pain, it’s important to pay attention to your body’s signals. Root canal treatment may be necessary to eliminate the pain and preserve your tooth. With a skilled dentist performing the procedure, you can expect a painless experience, retain your tooth, and find long-term dental pain relief.
Why Root Canal Treatment is Essential
Root canal therapy, commonly referred to as a root canal, is a routine procedure performed by dentists to save a tooth suffering from internal infection or at high risk for it. A deep cavity or a fractured tooth can allow bacteria to invade the pulp chamber, leading to an infection.
Once bacteria enter the tooth, they can proliferate, causing inflammation and pain. Root canal therapy effectively removes the infected tissue, stopping both the pain and the infection.
What is Endodontic Therapy?
Root canal therapy falls under the umbrella of endodontic treatment, which focuses on addressing issues deep within the tooth. While you may not see these problems, they can result in significant discomfort. If left untreated, the tooth could die and require extraction. Root canal therapy is the most common form of endodontic treatment and can be performed conveniently at Liberty Family Dentistry in Bloomington.
How Root Canal Treatment Saves Your Tooth
Think of root canal therapy as a way to clean out and treat an infection, similar to how a doctor would clean and bandage a wound on your skin. During the procedure, your dentist removes the infected material from inside your tooth, halting the spread of infection, and seals the tooth to prevent further contamination.
By stopping the infection, your dentist helps preserve your tooth, preventing the need for extraction or complications from untreated dental issues.
What to Expect During a Root Canal Procedure
Here’s what you can expect when undergoing a root canal:
- Anesthesia: To ensure a pain-free experience, the dentist will apply a numbing gel to the area and administer a local anesthesia shot. You might feel slight pressure or a brief poke, but the area will become completely numb, ensuring comfort throughout the procedure.
- Accessing the Tooth: Your dentist will create a small opening in your tooth to access the infected pulp. This opening will be slightly larger than a cavity filling to allow thorough cleaning.
- Cleaning and Sealing: Your dentist will use fine tools to remove the infected pulp and clean the inside of the tooth. Once cleaned, the tooth is sealed with gutta-percha, a rubber-like material, to prevent further infection. The tooth is then filled to restore its form and function.
At Liberty Family Dentistry, we offer sedation dentistry for patients with dental anxiety. If needed, sedation can help you relax during the procedure, and you may even sleep through it, waking up with a repaired tooth.
Aftercare Following Root Canal Treatment
Once the root canal procedure is completed, the area will remain numb until the local anesthesia wears off. You may experience mild sensitivity or pressure in the treated tooth for a few days—this is a natural part of the healing process. After this subsides, you’ll experience lasting pain relief.
To protect the treated tooth and prevent future damage, your dentist may recommend placing a crown over it. This helps restore strength and function. Delaying or avoiding the crown can increase the risk of reinfection or further damage.
For your convenience, Liberty Family Dentistry offers same-day CEREC crowns. Using advanced digital mapping technology, we ensure precise fitting without the need for messy impressions. Plus, your crown will be ready the same day, allowing you to complete the entire treatment process quickly.
Trust Liberty Family Dentistry for Root Canal Treatment in Bloomington
The success of root canal therapy depends largely on the expertise of the dentist. With over 70 years of combined experience, the team at Liberty Family Dentistry is committed to providing exceptional care and long-lasting relief. If you're in Bloomington and in need of root canal treatment, contact us today to schedule an appointment.