Before and After Care for Root Canal Treatment
Your teeth are one of the most important parts of your body when it comes to your overall health. All the food you eat enters your body via your mouth and is chewed by your teeth. Although you may think your teeth are only important for you to enjoy your meals, they also help you speak better, and also are responsible for how your face looks!
Dental cavities or dental caries are one of the most common chronic diseases affecting persona all around the globe. The best way to prevent cavities to by maintaining good oral hygiene, healthy eating habits and regular visits to your family dental clinic. Small cavities, when detected early on by the dentist, can be treated with a simple dental filling.
Cavities start as tiny black or brown that do not go away with brushing. Acids secreted from the food you eat sticks to your tooth and causes the tooth structure to break down and with time the cavity can be big enough to reach your tooth nerve and give you severe pain. Such a tooth becomes dead and requires advanced dental care such as root canal treatment or removal of the tooth.
A lot of patients get very anxious when they are told they will be needing a root canal. To explain in simple words, a root canal treatment cleans your irreversibly damaged tooth nerve and restores the bulk of the tooth with a filling. Here’s a few pointers for before and after care if you are scheduled for a root canal procedure:
1. Before a root canal:
• Please speak to your dentist on whether you need to take any medication prior to your root canal. Inform your dentist about any medical conditions you may be suffering from or any medicines you take.
• Speak to the dentist to understand the number of visits you would require and the treatment schedule.
• Eat soft foods and avoid biting onto hard food with the painful tooth.
• Discuss with your dentist about any upcoming social event you may have to attend, especially if your front tooth needs a root canal.
• Eat a good meal half an hour prior to your appointment
2. After a root canal:
• Though most of the root canal procedures we perform are completed in 1 appointment, some root canal therapies may take more than 1 appointment to complete.
• Between appointments, a temporary filling is placed to protect the tooth. It is common (and not a problem) for a small portion of your temporary filling to wear away or break off. If the entire filling falls out, please call the clinic and set up an appointment to come in and have it replaced.
• To protect the tooth and keep the temporary filling in place, avoid eating hard or sticky food (such as gum), and try to chew on the other side of your mouth. Continue to brush and floss normally.
• Usually, the last step in a root canal is the placement of a crown or permanent filling in the tooth. If a lot of your tooth structure was damaged due to the cavity, a crown is a must to strengthen and hold together the residual tooth structure. This prevents fracture of your root canal treated tooth under chewing forces.
• Sensitivity to cold and heat, as well as any soreness, should go away in a few days.
• Be careful not to bite your lips, cheeks or scrape your gums till the effect of the numbing medicine wears off. Children should be watched carefully to make sure they don’t do this. It will damage soft tissues and result in pain.
• Take your prescribed medication as directed.
If you have a tooth with a deep cavity, or a painful tooth, you may need a root canal. To know more please feel free to get in touch with our doctors at The Maxfac Clinic. We are a family dental clinic providing advanced dental care in Mumbai.