Root canals have a bad reputation for being painful and unnecessary—both of which are false. The treatment is used to relieve pain and cleanse infection from an afflicted tooth. If you have put off receiving the treatment due to finances, fear, or misinformation, now is the time to go back to your dentist and go through with it.
But what will happen if you don’t? If you want to understand the gravity of the situation, continue reading. Here are the progressive stages of what happens after a tooth becomes infected.
The Structure of Teeth
To understand what’s going on with your tooth, it’s best to explain the structures inside them. Your teeth are made of three distinct layers:
- Enamel – This is the hard outer shell of your tooth. It is made of the hardest substance in your body and protects the inner layers.
- Dentin – The slightly yellow layer under your enamel is a softer material that makes up the bulk of your tooth’s mass.
- Pulp – The innermost chamber of your tooth is the pulp. It houses all of your tooth’s nerve endings and blood vessels it uses to feel temperature and pressure inside your mouth.
Stage 4 Pulp Decay
We begin at stage four of the decay cycle of teeth because, by the time you need a root canal, you have already passed the first three stages. Once a cavity progresses from stage two (enamel decay), it becomes irreversible by remineralization.
Because the pulp contains all the nerves of your tooth, this stage is ultimately the most painful. A severe toothache is the hallmark of this stage as the decay begins to destroy the pulp chamber.
Stage 5 Dental Abscess
If the decay goes unchecked, it progresses to the next stage. The infection spreads into the bone of your jaw through the roots of your tooth, forming a dental abscess. This is a true infection as the bone weakens and fills with bacteria causing more pain.
Stage 6 Gum Boils
The only bright side to this stage of tooth decay is that it is generally painless. As pressure builds from the infection in your bone it pushes back up through your gums causing pimple-like boils full of infected pus. This creates a path where the infection can relieve the pressure going on below.
The downside is, now you have a mass of infectious pus growing in your mouth every day. If it ruptures and you swallow any of the discharge, it could make you feverishly ill.
Stage 7 Facial Swelling
The end stage of the decay process is unmistakable. Your face will swell up on the side with the infected tooth and cause pain throughout your mouth and head. This is an emergency and will not go away on its own. Only through dentist intervention can your mouth be restored.
Leaving a tooth to rot and cause disease and pain isn’t a good idea. If you need a root canal, contact your dentist and have the procedure done as soon as possible. A root canal can save a tooth if done early enough, but waiting could cost you more than a tooth.
About the Practice
At Plush Dentistry, Dr. M. Faizan Ali and Dr. Naira T. Kraipak are your talented professional dentists. Trained in the latest technologies and techniques, these two professionals will guide you through the process of your treatment with confidence and empathy. Their priority is your oral health and overall well-being. To schedule a root canal treatment, call (469) 256-7098 or visit the website to learn more.