Your tooth throbs, and your jaw feels puffy. Could you have a dental abscess? Dr. John Chu and Dr. Mary Lin perform root canal procedures (endodontic therapy) in their South Pasadena office. Clearing infection and preserving the tooth, this dependable procedure could be just what you need.

What is a root canal?

A root canal is a narrow chamber inside each tooth root. It contains highly innervated and vascularized soft tissue, or pulp. When damaged through injury, decay or other circumstance, a root canal can become infected, causing symptoms such as:

• Toothache pain which may refer to other parts of the face
• Pimples (fistulas) on the gums
• Persistent dental sensitivity to pressure, cold, heat and sugary foods
• Discolored and/or cracked tooth enamel
• Foul-smelling drainage and bad breath

Additionally, bone loss around an infected tooth shows up on X-ray. If this is your situation, your South Pasadena dentist will want to perform a root canal treatment to extract the dead pulp, clean the canals, and seal each with a rubbery paste. Dr. Lin or Dr. Chu will cover and safeguard your tooth with a true to life porcelain crown.

Contrary to what you may have heard, root canal procedures are painless. Your dentist will use a local anesthetic to numb your tooth, and afterwards, any residual soreness resolves with over the counter ibuprofen or acetaminophen.

Life with a fully restored tooth

Undergoing root canal therapy offers several advantages:

1. You can keep your tooth instead of extracting it. Failing teeth challenge both your oral and your systemic health. Root canal therapy, however, usually involves some antibiotic therapy to resolve any harmful infection.
2. It relieves pain. Patients remark that they feel much better after endodontic treatment.
3. The restored tooth is strong and lifelike in appearance.
4. You brush and floss your restored tooth every day and see Dr. Chu or Dr. Lin for your usual cleaning and check-up twice a year.

Don't wait on those symptoms

Please call Dr. John Chu or Dr. Mary Lin at the first sign of dental trouble. Contact us at (626) 799-0852.