Award Winning Houston Dentist, Jasmine Naderi, DDS Compares The Advantages and Disadvantages of Root Canal Therapy and Dental Implants
Dr. Jasmine Naderi, of Best Dental, Provides a Detailed Overview of the Advantages and Disadvantages of Root Canal Therapy and Dental Implant Treatment.
HOUSTON, March 6, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Dr. Jasmine Naderi, a cosmetic dentist in Houston, provides a wide range of dental procedures to help her patients reach the coveted goal of oral beauty combined with optimal function. For some of her patients, the question of whether one should get a root canal or have the tooth removed and replaced with a dental implant is a common concern. Dr. Naderi explains each treatment option and its pros and cons.
A root canal has been the treatment of choice for teeth whose crowns have been damaged by trauma or decay. A dentist will numb your tooth before creating an opening through the crown of your tooth to access the pulp chamber. Then, he or she will clean out the infection and remove any unhealthy and infected nerve tissue. A restoration material, usually made out of a material known as Gutta Percha, is placed into the tooth's canals to prevent future infection or contamination. You will get a temporary filling until a permanent one (called a crown) can be placed on your tooth to seal the opening.
Some dentists are recommending a dental implant to patients with damaged teeth. Rather than try to fix and restore the tooth, your dentist would simply remove it and replace the hole with an artificial dental implant. The implant is surgically inserted into your jawbone where it will embed and become part of the jaw. A crown is then placed into the implant after the implant has healed. Most dental implants will need a few months to heal before they are restored with a dental crown.
Dental implants have been lauded as one of the best modern advances in dentistry, in part because of how successful they are. Once placed, the risk of infection is minimal, not to mention that implants can last for decades since they are not susceptible to decay. There are some drawbacks, though. For one, the procedure requires surgery, meaning it is somewhat more invasive than a procedure such as a root canal. It also can be slightly more expensive than root canal therapy, though this cost can pay off in the long-run.
What about the advantages of having a root canal over a dental implant? The most obvious benefit is that it preserves your natural tooth, which has its benefits. It is also less invasive than dental implant surgery, and most times much less expensive. Unfortunately, root canal therapy can be unsuccessful at times. Root canals sometimes have to be re-done 5 to 10 years down the road, and if your root canal ends up failing, there's a chance that the tooth will have to be removed anyway.
Ultimately, the decision to have a root canal versus extracting your tooth and replacing it with an implant should be determined by you and your dentist. During your consultation visit, ask them what they think and come to a conclusion together.
SOURCE Best Dental
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