What is Tooth Decay?

Acid is released as a result of the bacteria in the mouth metabolizing especially carbohydrate-containing food residues. These acids dissolve the mineral tissue of the teeth, causing destruction in the hard tissue of the tooth, and as a result, tooth decay occurs.

How Can I Tell If My Teeth Have Caries?

There are no nerves in the enamel tissue, which is the outermost layer of the tooth, so we are not disturbed by external stimuli, but the feeling increases as the caries progresses in the dentin tissue under the enamel layer. Caries symptoms are individual and depend on the size and location of the caries. If the tooth feels hot-cold sensitivity, sweet sensitivity, increased pain, and a gap on the tooth surface, the dentist should be consulted for an examination without delay.

How Is Tooth Decay Treated?

Caries that are intervened on time are treated with filling application. However, as the decay progresses, the pulp tissue of the tooth, rich in veins and nerves, is affected by caries and causes an infection in the pulp. In this case, root canal treatment is required.

Is there any  Pain Feeling While Filling?

Before the application, local anesthesia is applied to the relevant tooth, no pain is felt with the effect of anesthesia.

What Are Dental Filling Materials?

In developing dentistry, many filling materials are used; gold, porcelain, amalgam or tooth-colored composite filling materials. In the selection of the filling material, the localization, size of the decay and the oral hygiene of the patient are taken into consideration.

What is the Difference Between Composite and Amalgam Fillings?

Composite filler is a plastic mixture containing silicon dioxide particles. It is not noticeable on the teeth with various color options and is also called aesthetic-white filling. Using a special binding agent, the filling material placed on the tooth is hardened with a light device and polished in the same session. Amalgam filling is made by mixing silver, tin and copper alloy with 45-50% mercury. After filling the cavity cleaned of decay with amalgam filling material, it is recommended not to use that area for two hours and not to chew anything hard for 24 hours. The filling, whose expansion is completed at the end of 24 hours, is polished.

The most important difference between the two filling materials is that amalgam fillings contain mercury. Since composite fillings are tooth-colored, they are more aesthetic compared to amalgam fillings. Composite fillings are chemically bonded with the tooth, and amalgam fillings are mechanically attached to the tooth. Thanks to this advantage of composite fillings, weakened tooth tissues are supported. In addition, the risk of breaking amalgam fillings and creating cracks in dental tissue is high. Amalgam fillings are quickly affected by temperature changes and there is a high risk of fracture in the lower tooth during expansion and contraction. Composite fillings are not affected by temperature changes. In addition, some people can cause amalgam allergy.

What Should Be Considered After The Application?

There is no restriction if anesthesia is not performed after the filling procedure. However, when anesthesia is applied, the numb area can be bitten and injured due to numbness, so you should not eat anything until the anesthesia effect is over. It is quite wrong to bite the lip or tongue to check whether the effect of the anesthesia has passed. This is because bites that seem mild during numbness can be stronger. It is normal to have pain and sensitivity after filling. However, if this pain and sensitivity continues after twenty days or a month, root canal treatment should be applied to the tooth.

To prevent caries;

• Do regular tooth brushing and floss twice a day after breakfast and before going to bed in the evening.
• Eat a balanced diet, stay away from sugary and acidic foods.
• Have your routine dental exams twice a year, regular dentist visit is the best way to prevent and early treatment of possible dental diseases.
• The use of fluoride toothpastes that strengthen teeth, fluoride treatments that your dentist will apply, and fluoride supplements that your dentist recommends to help prevent caries.

What is Root Canal Treatment?

Root canal treatment; It is the process of removing pulp tissue rich from the damaged veins and nerves in the root canal of the tooth due to various reasons (caries, trauma ...), shaping the root canal, cleaning and then filling the canal with filling materials.

How make is root treatment?

First, local anesthesia is applied to the relevant area for the tooth to be treated, so that you do not feel pain, then if there is decay, it is cleaned and the area where the tooth's nerves are reached. The contents of the root canals (pulp tissue) are removed and cleaned, and the root canals are shaped using various hand tools and rotary tools. With the help of suitable solutions, the root canals are disinfected, that is, they are purified from bacteria, and the canals are filled with a biocompatible filling material in a sealed manner. Canal treatment can be completed in one or more sessions depending on the condition of the tooth.

Antibiotic Use in Root Canal Treatment

In advanced infectious cases, the use of antibiotics may be required along with root canal treatment. In some cases, the use of antibiotics can suppress the pain in chewing before treatment and the pain that occurs after treatment. However, since antibiotics do not treat root canal infection, they do not eliminate your need for root canal treatment. The use of antibiotics is not an alternative to root canal treatment, it supports root canal treatment.

Is There Any Pain After Root Canal Treatment? What Should Be Considered?

• After the treatment, there may be mild pain and sensitivity in the tooth, but this situation is temporary. It will be seen that the sensitivity disappears after a short time.
• In addition, it is recommended to be careful in the consumption of hard foods and teeth whose root canal treatment has been completed until the end of your filling or coating process. A canal-treated tooth can serve as an untreated tooth for years.
• Root canal treated teeth may have decay or fractures like any other tooth, and they may be problematic in terms of gums. After root canal treatment, attention should be paid to oral hygiene. You should regularly brush your teeth, use dental floss and go to your doctor for checkups.

What is the Advantage of Root Canal Treatment?

Root canal treatment allows teeth to be kept in the mouth, chewing and functioning aesthetically for many years. It is a great advantage that it is a much more economical treatment method compared to the bridge or implant treatment that may be needed after the loss of an untreated tooth. For this reason, it would be a huge mistake to consider extracting a tooth without having a chance to treat it.