What’s An Apicoectomy?
Explaining common dental technical terms.
A lot of medical procedures and treatments can sound much more complex than they actually are, simply because of complex names and descriptions. ‘Apicoectomy’ certainly falls under that umbrella, and many people haven’t even heard the word before.
If you have been told you need an apicoectomy, then you’ll no doubt want to know what it means, what the process of having one is, and what the result will be. So in our quest to provide ongoing education for our St John’s Wood dental patients, here is a brief description to help:
What Is An Apicoectomy?
An apicoectomy is a treatment used for a patient who has an infection in their tooth root. It is not the same as a root canal treatment, which is usually the type of treatment used to deal with a tooth root infection. Root canal treatment involves a deep clean inside the tooth root to get rid of any bacteria causing infection, pain and problems. This treatment is usually more than enough to cure the infection, but sometimes it isn’t enough to keep the infection away. When this happens, your dentist might try another root canal treatment, particularly if the secondary infection has been caught early.
However, in some instances the infection might be deeper and more advanced, in which case an apicoectomy could be recommended to you. In some instances the tooth might need to be extracted, but some dentists may choose to try an apicoectomy in order to try and save the tooth. The decision as to which to do may only be decided once your dentist can see the root itself. It might well be that the root is in such a bad condition that the procedure is not practical and the tooth needs removing. However, if the dentist can attempt an apicoectomy they will, because their goal is to save your tooth.
The procedure
A dentist is unlikely to go into an apicoectomy straight away. After your teeth and gums are numb, your dentist will evaluate the level of the infection and at this point they will consider whether or not to do root canal, tooth extraction or an apicoectomy. If the root still looks saveable, then an apicoectomy is a good choice. If this is the chosen procedure, the dentist will clean away the infection around the root, and then proceed to slice the tip off the root. This is to completely get rid of the infection, and to protect the area from infection in the future. Once the tip is removed, the remaining tooth root is cleaned and sealed so infection is much less likely in the future.
Success Rate
An apicoectomy does not guarantee your tooth will remain infection free and you may wish to consider it as ‘the last chance saloon’ for your tooth root. Infection may well return in future, in which case you might need your tooth removed.
Register With Abbey Road Dental
Ideally, you will be able to avoid tooth infections and tooth issues by following a great dental hygiene regime, which includes visiting your friendly Abbey Road dentist in NW8 regularly. If you aren’t currently registered with your local NW8 dentist, please call us on 02076241603 and we will be pleased to help you.
