What Is the Most Common Cause of Pupal Damage?
What Is Pupal Damage?
It is the inflammation of the dental pulp. The dental pulp is the central portion of a natural tooth that houses soft tissues like nerves, connective tissues, and the blood vessels for the blood supply of the tooth. In endodontics near you, pupal damage is called pulpitis. It is a condition that deters optimal functionality of the mouth by causing severe pain, swelling, and sensitivity to the damaged tooth and the surrounding tissues.
How Does the Damage Occur?
Pulpitis occurs when bacteria damage the external layers of a tooth significantly enough to breach the surface. Afterward, it allows the entry of bacteria into the pulp inside the tooth. Since the pulp is inside the tooth walls, the pressure and pain from the infection and swelling build-up intensely. The discomfort is severe enough to necessitate emergency dental care by a dentist near you.
What Causes Pupal Damage?
Unfortunately, pulpitis is a common condition in endodontics in Chaska. It is why modern dentistry has many endodontists who have specialized in diagnosing and treating damaged tooth pulps. The primary causes of pulpitis are:
- Dental injury – any traumatic force on your mouth can damage your tooth pulp. It is more evident if you notice a deep crack or breakage of your natural tooth.
- Dental decay – cavities are among the most prevalent dental problems in dentistry. Cavities damage both children’s and adults’ teeth. The only cases when dental cavities lead to pupal damage are when the patient delays seeking treatment for the target tooth.
- Repetitive trauma – is often caused by underlying dental problems like excessive teeth grinding at night, also called bruxism. Jaw misalignment can also lead to repetitive trauma that aggravates pupal damage.
Generally, how you lead your life can increase or decrease your chances of getting pupal damage. Some of the lifestyle choices that heighten the risk of pulpitis are:
- Smoking and other tobacco usages
- Poor oral hygiene
- Poor eating choices like eating too many sugary foods or refined carbohydrates.
- Intense high-contact physical activity without proper protection for your mouth.
- Not wearing a night guard to combat chronic teeth grinding at night.
Forms of Pulpitis
In endodontics, Pupal Damage occurs in two major forms:
- Reversible pulpitis – the damage is mild and moderate, so the pulp is salvageable.
- Irreversible pulpitis – the damage is extensive and the symptoms very severe that the pulp cannot be saved. For such, you would need drastic treatment protocols like a root canal procedure to preserve the tooth or tooth extraction to preserve your oral health.
Symptoms of Irreversible Pulpitis
If you need some pointers to determine the form of pulpitis, consider the following symptoms of irreversible pupal damage:
- Swelling around tooth and gums
- Persistent bad breath and a foul taste in your mouth
- Spontaneous excruciating pain
- Tenderness and pain when you tap the tooth
- Running a fever
- Heightened sensitivity to cold and heat that lasts more than 30 seconds
- Swollen lymph nodes
- Periapical abscess – also called an abscessed tooth. It is an infection that builds up at the roots of teeth, forming pockets filled with pus and other fluids.
Why You Need Urgent Treatment
At Town Dental Chaska, we encourage patients to seek treatment when they notice signs of cavity development on their teeth. Some reasons why you need to treat an inflamed and infected pulp are:
- To treat pain – over-the-counter pain medication is a temporary fix. Seek endodontic treatment to treat the source of pain and inflammation.
- Curb the spread of bacteria – the stakes are higher if you have an abscessed tooth. The pus at the root of your tooth can spread the bacteria to other parts of your body like the jaw, sinuses, and brain.
- Save your natural teeth – if you can seek endodontic treatment early, you may not have to lose your teeth. It spares you the costly treatment protocols for replacing teeth.
- Restore functionality – endodontic treatment helps save your tooth to restore optimal oral functionality.