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Written By: Editorial Team | Updated : June 1, 2014 8:06 PM IST
Anyone who has had a root canal done knows how painful the procedure can be. But a dental condition that may require one to undergo root canal may no longer give patients sleepless nights.
According to a study that appeared in the journal Science, exposing cells on the inside of a tooth to weak laser light stimulates the growth of dentin - the substance that makes up much of a tooth's structure. Low-power light could trigger stem cells inside the body to regenerate tissue, the study said. 'Our treatment modality does not introduce anything new to the body, and lasers are routinely used in medicine and dentistry, so the barriers to clinical translation are low,' said David Mooney, a professor at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) in the US.
So far, experiments have been done on rats and mice but the researchers have tested the technique on human cells in culture, and it seems to work, said Priveen Arany, an assistant clinical investigator at the National Institutes of Health. Researchers took rodents to the laboratory version of a dentist's office to drill holes in their molars, treat the tooth pulp that contains adult dental stem cells with low-dose laser treatments, applied temporary caps, and kept the animals comfortable and healthy.
After about 12 weeks, high-resolution x-ray imaging and microscopy confirmed that the laser treatments triggered the enhanced dentin formation. The new work marks the first time that scientists have gotten to the nub of how low-level laser treatments work on a molecular level, and lays the foundation for controlled treatment protocols.
What is root canal treatment?
Root canal treatment is one of the most well-known dental procedures mainly because they have gained a reputation of being painful. They are performed when the nerves and vessels of the teeth get infected due todental decay.
How does a teeth get infected?
Your teeth has root canals which contains blood vessels and nerves nourishing the teeth. When dental decay is caused due to unhealthy oral hygiene and left untreated, it can progress to infect these blood vessels and nerves causing them to die. Sometimes, this root canal gets filled with pus that causes a lot of pain and makes a visit to the dentist mandatory.
Is the treatment really painful?
With modern anaesthesia, painless root canals aren't a myth any more.
How is a root canal performed?
The procedure usually takes a long time. The dentist will first prescribe you some antibiotics to reduce the pain and infection. After a break of 3-4 days, he/she will then clean up your roots using instruments usually with local anaesthesia. Sometimes, the dentist may directly start with cleaning up your roots. Once this is done, the dentist will then place some sealant material to prevent the tooth from getting reinfected. After this, the tooth is rebuilt using dental material like composite and a cap is placed over the repaired teeth.
It is important that you treat cavities early, to avoid root canal treatments. In case a root canal has to be performed the earlier it is done, the better it is.
With inputs from IANS
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