The Department of Endodontics bears on the basic sciences and clinical studies related to the physiological and pathological environment of the pulp and surrounding tissues.
The pulp is a soft tissue, located in the innermost layer of the tooth with a vascular nerve bundle which makes the tooth vital and is in contact with the whole body.
The endodontics is based on preserving the vitality of dental pulp as much as possible (vital pulp therapies), but in case of an irreversible inflammation, removing the entire pulp and filling the cavity so that they are not infected again (root canal treatment). Root canal treatment is necessary when the dental pulp is irreversibly damaged up to the root end due to caries, trauma, chemical injuries.
Before the root canal treatment, diagnosis and treatment plan is made following the clinical and radiographic examinations and the patient consent is obtained for treatment. Local anesthesia is applied if necessary in order to eliminate the pain during the process. The tooth to be treated is then isolated using a rubber dam to prevent the contamination with saliva and also to protect it from the disinfecting solutions used during treatment. The root canal treatment procedure is usually performed in single or more appointments. In root canal treatment, the following steps are applied after the caries, if any, is cleaned:
Expectations from this treatment are relief of pain, protection of periapical tissues, maintenance of aesthetic and enhancement of speech and chewing functions of the tooth.
If the recommended treatment is not applied, the infection in the tooth can reach the surrounding soft and hard tissues and more invasive treatments or tooth extraction may be necessary.
Possible Risks: This treatment may rarely fail for reasons such as anatomical variations of tooth and the lack of cooperation of the patient. Canal instrument fracture may occur within the root. If it cannot be removed and does not cause tissue injury, it can be left in place and followed. Allergic or irritable pain may develop against irrigating solutions. In case of discoloration the causing factors should be eliminated, or bleaching treatment should be planned. If the rubber dam is not used, there is a risk of swallowing small canal instruments. In unsuccessful root canal treatments, retreatment and/or surgical treatments may be recommended to maintain the function of the tooth. Tooth extraction is planned in case of failure of all these procedures.
Things to Consider After Treatment: Patients can eat food once the effect of anesthesia (numbness) is over. They may experience minor pain that gradually decreases within the first week. In cases where the treatment takes more than one session, the temporary filling applied may fall or chip between the appointments. In such cases, the patient should reapply to the clinic. One year follow-ups are recommended after root canal treatment.
In the last 20 years, there have been revolutionary biological and technological developments in the field of endodontics. The root canal treatment has become a procedure enabling the tooth remaining in the mouth for many years with the use of rotary systems (motorized special-alloy canal instruments), imaging techniques (CBCT), regenerative treatments, indirect restorations with digital techniques (CAD-CAM), recent irrigating methods (sonic-ultrasonic washing), root canal filling techniques (hot injectable filling), magnification systems (dental loupes and microscopes), and three-dimensional sealed filling. Today, the success rate is reported between 95-100% in the cases treated with such technology.
Procedures such as deep caries, tooth fractures, treatment of pulp-related pain at night, traumatic pulpal injuries, treatment of discolored teeth, and strengthening the root and restoring function are performed in our clinic with these up-to-date and innovative methods.
