Endodontics is the specialty of the Dental Medicine that is dedicated to the treatment of the pathology of the dental pulp and periradicular tissues.
When caries reaches the tooth pulp (commonly referred to as “nerve”) it has to be removed, the bacteria have to be eliminated and the seals are sealed. This procedure is called endodontia (popularly called devitalization).
Due to the scientific and technological evolution of the last years, teeth that previously had to be extracted, at the moment it is possible to eliminate foci of dental infection and to conserve the tooth.
Pulp (“nerve”) of the tooth is a structure formed by connective tissue, arteries, veins and nerve tissue. These structures are housed inside the tooth in what we call the canal.
When there is inflammation of the pulp (artery, vein and nerve), it increases in volume due to increased blood supply. Because the tooth canal is a rigid structure, it does not have room for this volume increase, causing pressure on the nervous tissue, thus causing pain. The immediate consequence may be the necrosis of the pulp and the invasion by bacteria producing purulent secretion (abscess).
The ideal would never get to this point and the tooth to be treated as soon as possible, in order to avoid major complications.
The apical lesion is a result of bone destruction in the apex of the tooth root caused by the infection. Depending on the case, this lesion regenerates totally, partially or in some cases originates an apical cyst.The “channel treatment” consists of the removal of the necrotic pulp, the disinfection of the channels and the filling of the space where the pulp was housed, with a suitable obturator material.
Depending on the type of tooth we can find 1 to 3 channels (in rare cases 4 channels).
Early diagnosis and timely and appropriate treatment are the key to success.