Deciding on the right treatment option for addressing your oral health concern can sometimes be simple. Many treatments are designed to address specific types of concerns, and the nature and extent of your problem could be the biggest deciding factor. This is often the case with tooth decay, which is the most frequently occurring chronic oral health concern. While there are multiple dental treatments designed to address tooth decay, such as root canal treatment, choosing the right one depends largely on just how severe your tooth decay has progressed.

What does root canal treatment mean?

Root canal treatment, which is also referred to as endodontic treatment, is the process of carefully accessing the interior pulp chamber of your natural tooth structure. This chamber houses the tooth’s nerves and blood vessels, and connects to the root canal that extends into the underlying jawbone structure. When tooth decay first develops, it’s typically centered within the main structure, or dentin, of your tooth’s crown, and can often be treated early with a tooth filling. However, if the decay reaches the pulp chamber, then root canal treatment will be required to remove the infected tissues from the pulp and root canal.

The condition that calls for root canal treatment

Internal tooth decay, or tooth infection, is less common than its more mild form. In the mild and moderate stages of tooth decay, the condition can often be treated with a more conservative tooth filling procedure. This also involves removing the infection from your tooth structure, but can be performed by removing only the part of the dentin that has been infected. Then, your dentist can fill the cleaned cavity with biocompatible material to restore the tooth. However, severe tooth infection threatens much more of your tooth’s structure, as well as its nerves and vital tissues. This can cause your tooth an extreme amount of discomfort, as well as warn of potentially more serious concerns if the severe decay isn’t treated promptly.

Deciding if root canal treatment is the right option

If your tooth has developed a severe case of tooth decay, then root canal treatment may be the right, and only, option for saving the tooth. At this point of the tooth’s decay, the infection has already eroded a significant amount of the tooth’s structure. Also, the root canal carries your tooth’s vital tissues to your jawbone structure, and an infection in this canal can lead to several more significant oral health complications.

Save your tooth with root canal treatment

If your tooth is compromised by a severe, internal infection, then root canal treatment might be the right answer for removing the decay and saving your tooth. To learn more, schedule your appointment by calling Healthy Smiles in Gary, IN, today at 219-938-2637.