Treatment of decayed teeth

Dental Decay or Dental Caries is the most significant dental problem of the world. It is affecting almost 70% of world population. However due to an advancement in dentistry, now it is possible to prevent it as well as treat it effectively. The treatment of decayed teeth depends upon its extent into the tooth.
Normal tooth is composed of enamel, dentin and pulp on its outer aspect. When the decay has progressed to enamel or dentin only, generally there are no symptoms or only occasional sensitivity can be felt. As shown in figure, stage 1 and 2 processes are generally not painful. At this stage, it can be cured using dental fillings only.

Stage 3 shows that decay has reached the pulp. At this stage, severe throbbing pain occurs on taking hot, cold or sweet foods. Whereas in stage 4, decay has progressed further to reach root end, which causes pain even on biting on the tooth. When decay has progressed like in stage 3 or 4, the root canal treatment needs to be performed.
Normal tooth structure:

Stages of Dental Decay
Tooth Colored Fillings: Gone are the days when unsightly black mercury fillings known as dental amalgam were used. At Bhavna Dental Clinic, we are exclusively using a variety of teeth colored fillings for different situations.

Dental Composite: It is the best material for esthetic, high strength dental fillings. We are using very high quality latest generation, nano composites by 3M, which is considered as the best material in the world. Resin- Glass ionomer cements: These are high fluoride fillings used, where person has an increased tendency for decay and also in children. These are having less strength than composite fillings but are advisable in some situations.

Root Canal Treatment
When decay progresses to pulp, it becomes infected and needs to be removed as a whole. In root canal treatment, some crown portion is removed to open the canal in roots. After suitable access, an infected pulp is removed with instruments called as a File and various solutions are used to disinfect the canal. After that rubber like material gutta-percha is filled inside the roots. In the crown portion, the high strength materials are filled to support the tooth structure. At Bhavna Dental Clinic, we use modern dental equipments like, apex locators (root ZX- world no. 1), radio videography (care stream 6100- world no. 1) and motorized endodontic system to perfect the treatment
What if my decay has progressed too much and most crown portion is lost?
Currently, with the discovery of high strength materials, it is possible to save those teeth using post and core treatment.
Post and Core Treatment:
Post is made up of materials like fiber and steel and inserted in the roots treated with root canal. After post is fixed, the crown portion is filled with core material. After that suitable crown is placed on the tooth, it would function like natural tooth.