Severe Toothache? Get Relief with Root Canal Therapy in Fayetteville & Johnson
What started off as a minor toothache now has you sitting on the couch with a bag of frozen peas pressed against your face.
You’ve had cavities before, but they never caused this much pain. Why does your tooth hurt this much, and better yet, how can you make it stop? When it comes to the most severe dental pain, root canal therapy in Fayetteville is likely the solution. What is often thought of as an extremely painful procedure could actually be exactly what you need to find relief.
Why Would I Need Root Canal Therapy?
The teeth are actually composed of three distinct layers. You’re probably familiar with the outermost one, enamel, and it’s supported by a layer of dentin underneath. Inside that is housed the dental pulp, which in addition to containing numerous blood vessels, also has the central nerve of your tooth.
If a cavity is left untreated for a very long time, the decay can reach this inner chamber and infect the pulp. This can also happen if a tooth is fractured during an accident that exposes the pulp to outside bacteria. In either case, this infection can be quite painful because it’s literally right on the nerve.
Here are some common signs that your dental pulp may be infected:
- Extreme dental pain
- One tooth has suddenly become very sensitive to hot and cold temperatures
- Pain is felt when biting down on a tooth
- There is swelling, redness, or a bump on the gums near a tooth
When this kind of problem presents itself, root canal therapy is usually the best way to both save the tooth and alleviate a person’s discomfort.
How Root Canal Therapy Works
First, let us address the elephant in the room.
Despite its dubious reputation, root canal therapy is actually NOT a painful procedure. In fact, it’s one of the most useful tools in all of dentistry when it comes to relieving dental pain and saving teeth that would otherwise need to be extracted. The pain often associated with the procedure stems from the initial infection itself!
Should your dentist in Fayetteville, Dr. Don M. Chaney, determine that root canal therapy is the best treatment for your pain, the procedure will proceed as follows:
- He will thoroughly numb your teeth and gums using local anesthesia.
- A small hole will be created in your tooth to reach the infected tissue.
- This tissue will be removed, the tooth cleaned, and then it will be filled with a material called gutta-percha.
- A temporary crown will be placed over the tooth, and at a follow-up appointment, a permanent crown will be placed to restore the tooth’s functionality and appearance.
Thanks to modern dental techniques like local anesthesia and sedation, this procedure is now virtually painless, and therefore, nothing you need to fear.
Have Any Questions?
If you have a toothache that is so bad that you can’t think straight, root canal therapy can provide the solution you need. Thanks to Dr. Chaney’s experience and state-of-the-art technology, he’ll be able to completely relieve your pain and make sure you’re comfortable during the entire treatment. Living with dental pain is no way to go through life, and with root canal therapy, you don’t have to.
If you have any questions about root canal therapy, or you need relief from dental pain, please contact us today for an appointment.