Whats a root Canal?
Root canal therapy is a way to save an infected tooth. It’s the only alternative to taking out the tooth. To be more specific, it’s necessary to understand the structure of a tooth. Every tooth has a hollow space inside. That space runs inside the tooth (the chamber) along its length right to the tip of the root (the canal). Inside that space is soft tissue (nerves, blood vessels, and other tissue) called the pulp, but often referred to as “the nerve”. This tissue has a very limited ability to heal. When injured, either from trauma or from infection, the pulp usually dies. Tooth decay is a bacterial infection of the tooth, and when the decay gets close to the pulp, bacteria can enter the pulp chamber and infect that tissue. Root canal therapy cleans that space, disinfects it, and fills it with a specific material used only in root canals. Following root canal therapy, as long as the tooth is properly restored, the tooth should last as long as any other tooth in the mouth.
