The unique nature of your teeth and oral tissues means that the concerns you may face with your oral health can be unique, as well. However, one of the most common concerns for healthy teeth is the development of tooth decay, which results from excessive bacteria buildup on your teeth and the harmful substances they can produce. Fortunately, tooth decay is often treated as soon as people start to feel the symptoms of it, including increasingly worse discomfort in the tooth. This may also be why tooth decay doesn’t seem like such a serious problem to many people, until they have to deal with tooth decay that has progressed significantly.
What decay means for healthy tooth structure
The nature of tooth decay isn’t always as widely understood as it should be. It’s most commonly known and recognized by the cavities that it causes, which are holes that form in your tooth structure. The process of a tooth decaying involves first the erosion of its healthy enamel, which protects the main tooth structure from harmful bacteria and more. Once this layer is compromised, oral bacteria can infect the tooth’s main structure, known as dentin, and erode more and more of the structure until it’s treated.
Why it doesn’t always seem like such a problem
The reason tooth decay doesn’t always seem like a problem is because the most common treatment for it is a conservative tooth filling, which isn’t an extensive procedure. This involves cleaning the cavity that has formed in your tooth’s dentin to remove any harmful oral bacteria and infected tooth structure. For many people, the filling is made from tooth-colored composite resin, which is designed to blend in with their natural tooth structure. It isn’t until tooth decay reaches beyond the dentin and infects the tooth inner chambers that the condition becomes more obviously serious, and the appropriate treatment for it can be more extensive than a tooth filling.
When tooth decay becomes seriously problematic
When tooth decay reaches the inner pulp chamber of your tooth, it infects the tooth’s nerves and tissues that are housed within the chamber. These tissues also run through the tooth’s root canal, which supports the tooth and is connected to the jawbone structure. Dealing with internal tooth decay means removing these infected tissues before they can cause more harm to your oral health and restoring the rest of your healthy tooth structure.
Find out how to deal with your tooth decay problem
Tooth decay is often treated in its mild to moderate stages, but if it’s allowed to progress, it can become a much bigger problem than you might’ve expected. To learn more, schedule an appointment with us by calling Dreem Dentistry in Leawood, KS, today at 913-681-5500. We also serve patients who live in Overland Park and all surrounding communities.
