What is a root canal? Also what is the process of getting one done?
In: Biology
Teeth have one or multiple roots, that’s the part going into your jawbone, ensuring your teeth stay in place.
The outside of your teeth is hard, as you probably know, but inside it is softer, there is this stuff called pulpa. The pulpa also is within the root, in a sort of small tube you might say, this is the root canal. And within it there runs a nerve.
Unfortunately, the inside of that canal or where the root/tooth stops and it resides in your jaw, can get infected. This causes buildup of infectious stuff and causes pain. In the worst case it can destroy the tooth.
What your dentist will do is drill a hole in the top of your teeth, to get access to the pulpa. And next he will drill right through the canal, until he reaches all the way to the end, where your tooth stops. He cleans all infected stuff, rinses it out using a desinfectand and makes sure it is all clean. The nerve unfortunately will be lost in this process. But when everything is clean and the infection is gone, he will close everything up again, filling the empty space left behind. And your tooth will be saved from the infection.
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