The Basics: Endodontist Definition
An endodontist is a medical professional who works in a specialized area of tooth care. Endodontists treat diseases that attack the pulp of the teeth. Like all dentists, they attend dental school for at least four years. After completing dental school, these specialists complete two to three further years of training to perfect their art.
What Is An Endodontist And Who Are Their Patients?
As mentioned above, an endodontist is a dental professional with advanced training. Endodontists focus on diseases which attack teeth at the pulp. They take care of procedures that a regular dentist is unable to perform. Individuals who need to have root canals or other complex treatments of their tooth’s pulp are sent to endodontists.
Procedures in this field of dentistry have been vastly improved over the last decade. Many dedicated endodontists have worked hard to improve patient experiences with daunting and complex dental procedures. In addition to extensive dental training, many professionals in this field are familiar with contemporary sedation techniques and provide dental treatment that is nearly painless.
Endodontist Job Duties
Endodontists carry a number of job duties related to the overall health of the tooth’s pulp. Many individuals working in this dental specialty focus on providing diagnoses to patients who are suffering from dental diseases. They perform examinations and assess risks that might affect their patients. They recommend a course of action and generally complete any dental procedures needed.
The most well-known endodontic procedure is the root canal. When performing a root canal, an endodontist cleans away an infection that is seriously threatening tooth health. Completing this procedures requires sedating the patient or deadening the nerves of the tooth which will be repaired. An endodontist conducts follow-up visits with patients to make sure that infection is not returning. If infection does return to the tooth, the endodontist will perform a second procedure in an attempt to save the tooth.
Endodontists perform several other types of tooth surgery as well. If the cause of a patient’s tooth pain cannot be determined by X-rays and other conventional methods, these dental professionals perform exploratory surgery to determine the cause of tooth distress. They may also repair damaged tooth nerves and can remove problematic roots. Occasionally, they will need to section a tooth into two pieces to complete procedures or to prepare the tooth for procedures performed by another dental specialist. Many endodontists now use lasers as a part of their surgical routine.
