By Swain Thorne
While it’s easy to confuse endodontics and dentists, it pays to choose the professional with the right specialization when it comes to teeth problems. While all endodontics come under the broad category of dentists, not all dentists acquire this specialization. To help you understand the professional and functional differences between endodontics and dentists, we have come up with this post.
Tooth problems can be painful, and you would be looking for an established dental clinic to address your issue. When you understand what exactly an endodontic does, you would be able to reach out to the right professional.
What specialization does an endodontic have?
Within the different specializations in medicine, endodontists come within the ambit of dentists. However, these professionals have additional experience and training after accomplishing the general dental school education. Endodontists acquire specialized training to carry out root canal treatments. In case you have teeth with complicated anatomy, you need to reach out to an endodontic rather than a dentist.
These professionals carry adequate knowledge to carry out different procedures like root canal retreatments and treatments. Here are some of the operations that endodontists generally perform.
- Traumatic teeth injury treatment: Following accidents or falls, you might end up damaging or cracking your teeth. Endodontics take care of patients with similar dental conditions.
- Apicoectomy: In case a root canal surgery doesn’t prove to be the right solution, endodontists recommend apicoectomy. This is another surgery that might help you in these conditions. During this process, the dentist removes the root’s top, so that progressive infection doesn’t affect the rest of the tooth.
- Dental bleaching: In case you are experiencing dental discoloration due to root canal therapy, endodontists perform root canal bleaching. This restores the actual color of your tooth.
When does a dentist refer you to an endodontist?
The end goal of a dentist and an endodontist is the same: to provide proper treatment to patients. Often, when you visit reputed dental clinics, you would find these two professionals working in close coordination. Eventually, they address the pain points of the patients. Initially, the dentist might examine your teeth. When he/she realizes that you need specialized care, you might be referred to an endodontist. These professionals have undergone intensive training to address serious dental problems. Therefore, it makes sense to seek specialized care from an endodontist.
In established dental clinics, dentists want their patients to receive the best quality of treatments. Therefore, they might refer you to someone specializing in root canal therapy.
What makes an endodontist ideal for performing root canal surgeries?
When it comes to regular tooth care and cleaning, you can work with your dentist. However, root canal treatments call for specialized training and experience. This is where you need to reach out to an endodontist and not a dentist.
- An endodontist holds expertise in carrying out the respective procedures.
- These professionals are trained to handle advanced techniques like operating microscopes
- Depending on your condition, they can diplomatically switch strategies to add to your comfort
Get advanced care from endodontists for pain management
The specialized techniques that endodontists use during the treatment procedures ensure that the patients remain comfortable. Since they have specialized training in administering numbing medicines, you can reach out to endodontists for pain management. Particularly, some patients have trouble staying numb during operational procedures. So, besides treating you for the respective condition, endodontists ensure you a fast relief from tooth pain after the procedure.
It would be a logical decision for you to reach out to an established dental care clinic, where you can avail the services of both dentists and endodontists. This way, a coordinated treatment approach from the professionals would help you negotiate dental conditions and pain.
