Tooth pulpitis: causes, symptoms, treatment and dangerous consequences

Toothache – one of the most unpleasant and excruciating types of pain that a person encounters throughout life. Despite the fact that nerve endings and vessels – part of the dental pulp – Protected by a layer of dentin and enamel, which is the most durable material in our body, every fifth person develops inflammation in this part of the tooth. The inflammatory process that affects the nerves and blood vessels of the tooth is called pulpitis. Why it occurs, how to recognize it and how tooth pulpitis is treated, estet-portal.com will tell in this article.

What causes tooth pulpitis to develop?

Tooth pulpitis treatment consists of several stages, which we will discuss after considering the main causes that lead to pulp inflammation. Since it is the elimination of the cause and the prevention of its re-exposure that is the key to the successful treatment of any disease, including teeth, every potential dentist patient needs to know what is the source of the problem.

Causes of tooth pulpitis:

1. Caries

Perhaps the most common cause of tooth pulpitis is the untimely treatment of caries (or its complete absence). As the carious cavity deepens in the destroyed enamel, bacteria penetrate deeper into the tooth, eventually leading to inflammation of the pulp.

2. Poor quality treatment

Much less often than caries, poor-quality dental treatment leads to the development of dental pulpitis: insufficient cleaning of the tooth before placing a filling, improper grinding of the tooth, doctor’s mistakes during surgical interventions, poor quality of the filling, etc.

The main causes of pulpitis: caries, errors in the treatment and prosthetics of teeth, trauma, periodontitis.

3. Injuries

Not only caries can break the integrity of the enamel and other components of the tooth. Various types of trauma also open access to the pulp for bacteria, so infection can be observed within a few hours after injury.

4. Periodontitis

Periodontal pockets can also serve as a pathway for infection into the pulp. However, in this case, unlike a carious lesion, the infection moves from the bottom up, that is, the inflammation starts from the root.

Next we will look at:

• symptoms of pulpitis;
• treatment of pulpitis.

How to recognize pulp inflammation: symptoms of tooth pulpitis

You can determine that you need treatment for dental pulpitis by the characteristic symptoms of this disease. There are two main forms of pulpitis: acute and chronic.

Symptoms of acute pulpitis:

• the first and main sign of pulp damage is acute pain, which is paroxysmal in nature and worsens towards the end of the day;
• exposure to low or high temperatures can also provoke the appearance of pain in acute pulpitis, while pain does not disappear for 10-15 minutes after the removal of the stimulus;
• very often patients complain of pain in the entire jaw, due to which they cannot accurately identify the affected tooth;
• as the inflammatory process intensifies, the pain intensifies, and the intervals between attacks shorten.

Any pain in the area of ​​the teeth and jaw is the reason for going to the dentist.

Symptoms of chronic pulpitis:

• often chronic pulpitis is asymptomatic;
• in some cases, this form of the disease is indicated by the presence of aching (but not sharp) pains;
• when chronic pulpitis develops into acute, the symptoms described above appear.

Taking into account the symptoms of tooth pulpitis, we can conclude that any pain in the area of ​​​​the teeth and jaw is the basis for contacting a dentist.

Treatment of tooth pulpitis: when should you see a doctor and can you manage it yourself?

Taking into account the methods of treatment of tooth pulpitis, which dentists resort to, we can safely say that self-treatment of pulpitis at home using folk remedies – not only inefficient, but also dangerous. Why?

Inadequate treatment of pulpitis is fraught with serious complications, which eventually lead the patient to the dentist and require more expensive and complex treatment. These include:

• periodontitis;
• periostitis;
• abscesses;
• tooth loss;
• face phlegmon;
• blood poisoning;
• purulent inflammation of the bone marrow.

The patient is primarily interested in timely access to the dentist, because in some cases, the treatment of pulpitis of the tooth can save the pulp.

Pulpitis treatment methods:

1. Biological

It is this method of treating tooth pulpitis that allows you to eliminate inflammation without resorting to the removal of the nerve. It consists in treating the pulp with an antiseptic, applying a bandage with calcium hydroxide, and then filling the tooth. Biological treatment of pulpitis is not always used: the expediency is determined by the age of the patient and his state of health, which determines the likelihood of re-inflammation.

However, many patients deprive themselves of the possibility of a sparing treatment, because they turn to the dentist too late, when it is not possible to do without surgical intervention.

2. Surgical

In this case, we are talking about partial or complete removal of the pulp. Removal is carried out under local anesthesia, and the choice of method and technique of surgical intervention remains with the doctor. It should be noted that surgical treatment of tooth pulpitis is more common in practice than biological.

It is important to understand that compliance with all stages and rules of working with teeth affected by pulpitis is necessary to ensure effective therapy and reduce the risk of complications, therefore the task of the patient – choose a good clinic and a qualified specialist. And of course, in case of pain, in no case should you delay going to the doctor – such an attitude towards one's own health can lead not only to additional costs, but also to serious complications.