Whether you need a dental filling or root canal therapy, the need will arise from a disease known as tooth decay, which is actually a bacterial infection that leaves holes called cavities in your teeth. Stopping the infection, and therefore preserving your healthy tooth structure, requires expert restorative care, and the exact procedure required depends on the extent of your condition. While preventing cavities is preferable, we can restore and rebuild a tooth infected with decay by recommending the appropriate restorative dentistry treatment.
Mild to Moderate Cavities
A cavity develops in stages, beginning as a small hole in your tooth enamel (the outer layer of a tooth) and progressing into a larger hole as bacteria infect your tooth’s main structure. When a cavity is caught and treated at this structure, called the dentin, it can usually be restored by cleaning the cavity and filling it with tooth-colored composite resin. Known as a tooth-colored filling, the restoration will rebuild your tooth’s interior to restore its strength while providing a seal to protect the interior from further infection.
More Severe Tooth Decay
At the center of your tooth lies its nerves and blood tissues, housed in a chamber called the pulp, that are also connected to the tooth’s root(s). If tooth decay is allowed to reach this chamber and infect the tissues, then root canal therapy may be required to treat the tooth and stop the bacteria from spreading further. Root canal therapy describes accessing the interior of the tooth, then cleaning and sealing the root canals before filling the cavity and adding a dental crown. Whether you need root canal treatment or just a dental filling depends on how far tooth decay as has progressed, which we can determine during a thorough dental examination.
ABOUT YOUR SHREWSBURY DENTISTS:
At Modern Dentistry, Todd A. Pizzi, DDS, and Luciana Messina, DDS, are dedicated to providing high-quality cosmetic, restorative, and preventive dentistry services to patients and families in Shrewsbury, Worcester, North and South Grafton, Westborough, Southborough, Northborough, Boylston, Hopkinton, Millbury, and all surrounding communities. To schedule your next appointment, contact our office by calling (508) 842-6356 today.
