Root canal therapy is a medically recognized procedure used to treat toothaches and infections. Although the procedure is often a scary one, sometimes getting root canal therapy might become a necessity. A dentist in Tampa, Florida, can help you decide whether the procedure should be performed.

With the rise of dental implants, root canal therapy is less necessary because implants can take care of infections better than root canals. However, root canal therapy may still be used during the treatment of a toothache if your doctor determines that there is an infection inside the tooth and the treatment for it may not work. Additionally, root canal therapy may also be needed if your teeth or gums are damaged and not able to heal without it.

Here are 3 main reasons to consider getting root canal therapy.

• A tooth decay that has reached the pulp

A toothache, gum disease, and tooth discoloration are signs that the dental pulp of your tooth is infected. In this case, root canal therapy may be needed to save the affected tooth. If your dentist finds that there is an infection inside the pulp, he may advise you to get root canal therapy to fix it and save the tooth from complete loss. In fact, your dentist may determine that it is necessary for you to get root canal therapy if the tooth has a pulp infection.

• An abscess or infection at the root tip or inside the tooth

If your dentist finds an abscess inside the tooth, he may recommend root canal therapy to save it. An abscess is a pus-filled cavity that contains bacteria. In this case, even if your tooth has an infection coming from another poorly-healed cavity at another area of the jaw, your dentist may opt for getting root canal therapy instead of any invasive and painful dental treatments.

• An injury or trauma to the tooth

An injury or trauma to the tooth may also prompt your dentist to suggest root canal therapy. The injury or trauma may make it harder for the tooth to heal even after being treated by your dentist. For example, if you have a broken tooth, your dentist may recommend that you get root canal therapy since the area surrounding the tooth may become infected and damaged. Root canal therapy will provide a safe, permanent solution to save the affected tooth from perishing.