Categories: Restorative Dentistry

How Decay Damages Your Nerves

For a number of individuals, the quality of their smiles is a top priority. This can include how bright it is, if it is even, and also how healthy it may be. Indeed, taking care of your oral health is a much more involved process than many individuals account for, and issues such as decay and infection become more likely. Fortunately, restorative dental treatment makes removing these issues and salvaging your natural teeth more effective. In today’s blog, your Houston, TX dentist discusses how decay can impact your inner tooth and cause damage to your nerves, as well as how a root canal treatment can help.

A Common Beginning

Just like many other oral health concerns, dental decay is a result of hyperactive oral bacteria wreaking havoc on your teeth. These bacteria thrive in-between teeth and near the gum line, making the back molars an ideal spot to set up camp. Here, they feed off of sugars and other foods we consume, causing them to secrete damaging acids that actively weaken your teeth. As this process continues, a small hole may form known as a cavity.

Decay does not stop at the cavity stage, however, and will continue to worsen the longer you go without treatment. The bacteria work their way down into the inner workings of a tooth, eventually striking gold in the form of your dental pulp and nerves.

Once your nerves have been damaged, you can expect to experience sharp pains and difficulty in function. Without care, you become more and more likely of losing a structure for good.

As Infection Spreads

To prevent your concern from getting any worse, your dentist may recommend the assistance of a root canal treatment. This process involves removing the infected portions of your dental pulp and cleaning the area, then filling your open canals with dental material. The process is complete once the canals have been filled, and a custom crown restoration is placed atop the serviced structure in order to promote proper healing and protection. To learn more about this process and how it may be your last chance to salvage a tooth, reach out to our team today.

How We Can Help

Dental decay is not a topic to be taken lightly. As a matter of fact, it impacts millions of individuals of all ages every year. What’s more, there are multiple stages with each one containing worse realities than the last. Indeed, staying on top of your health is a lifelong process, and our team is ready to help however we can.