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Tooth Decay

Too chosen: Cavities, Dental caries

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Summary

What is molar decay?

Tooth disuse is damage to a tooth'southward surface, or enamel. It happens when bacteria in your oral fissure brand acids that attack the enamel. Tooth decay can lead to cavities (dental caries), which are holes in your teeth. If tooth decay is not treated, it can cause pain, infection, and even molar loss.

What causes molar decay?

Our mouths are full of bacteria. Some leaner are helpful. But some can be harmful, including the ones that play a role in molar decay. These bacteria combine with food to class a soft, sticky film called plaque. The bacteria in plaque use the sugar and starch in what yous swallow and drink to make acids. The acids begin to eat away at the minerals on your enamel. Over fourth dimension, the plaque tin harden into tartar. Besides damaging your teeth, plaque and tartar tin likewise irritate your gums and cause glue disease.

You get fluoride from toothpaste, water, and other sources. This fluoride, along with your salvia, helps the enamel repair itself by replacing the minerals. Your teeth go through this natural process of losing minerals and regaining minerals all day long. But if y'all don't take care of your teeth and/or you consume and beverage lots of sugary or starchy things, your enamel will keep losing minerals. This leads to molar decay.

A white spot may appear where minerals take been lost. This is an early sign of tooth decay. You lot may be able to cease or reverse the decay at this point. Your enamel can still repair itself, if y'all accept better care of your teeth and limit sugary/starchy foods and drinks.

But if the molar decay procedure continues, more minerals are lost. Over time, the enamel is weakened and destroyed, forming a crenel. A cavity is a hole in your tooth. It is permanent damage that a dentist has to repair with a filling.

Who is at adventure for molar decay?

The chief take a chance factors for tooth decay are non taking intendance of your teeth and having too many sugary or starchy foods and drinks.

Some people have a college risk of tooth decay, including people who:

• Don't have enough saliva, considering of medicines, certain diseases, or some cancer treatments
• Don't get plenty fluoride
• Are very young. Babies and toddlers who drinkable from bottles are at risk, especially if they are given juice or get bottles at bedtime. This exposes their teeth to sugars for long periods of fourth dimension.
• Are older. Many older adults take receding gums and more wear on their teeth. These enhance the risk of decay on the exposed root surfaces of their teeth.

What are the symptoms of tooth decay and cavities?

In early tooth decay, you unremarkably don't accept symptoms. As tooth decay gets worse, information technology tin can cause:

• A toothache (tooth pain)
• Tooth sensitivity to sweets, hot, or cold
• White or brown stains on the surface of a tooth
• A cavity
• An infection, which can pb to an abscess (pocket of pus) forming. The abscess tin can cause pain, facial swelling, and fever.

How are molar decay and cavities diagnosed?

Dentists unremarkably find tooth decay and cavities by looking at your teeth and probing them with dental instruments. Your dentist will besides ask if y'all have any symptoms. Sometimes you may need a dental ten-ray.

What are the treatments for tooth decay and cavities?

There are several treatments for tooth decay and cavities. Which treatment you get depends on how bad the trouble is:

• Fluoride treatments. If you have early tooth disuse, a fluoride handling can assistance the enamel to repair itself.
• Fillings. If you accept a typical cavity, your dentist volition remove the rust-covered tooth tissue and so restore the molar by filling it with a filling material.
• Root canal. If the damage to the molar and/or an infection spreads to the pulp (inside of the molar), you might need a root canal. Your dentist will remove the decayed lurid and clean inside the molar and root. The adjacent step is to fill the molar with a temporary filling. So you will need to come back to get a permanent filling or a crown (a cover on the tooth).
• Extraction (pulling the tooth). In the most severe cases, when the damage to the pulp cannot be fixed, your dentist may pull the tooth. Your dentist will suggest that you get a bridge or implant to supplant the missing tooth. Otherwise, the teeth side by side to the gap may move over and change your bite.

Tin can tooth disuse exist prevented?

At that place are steps that yous can accept to forbid tooth decay:

• Make sure that yous get enough fluoride by
  • Brushing with a fluoride toothpaste
  • Drinking tap h2o with fluoride. Most bottled h2o does non comprise fluoride.
  • Using fluoride mouth rinse
• Practice practiced oral wellness by brushing your teeth twice a mean solar day with a fluoride toothpaste and regularly flossing your teeth
• Brand smart food choices by limiting foods and drinks that are loftier in sugars and starches. Eat nutritious, counterbalanced meals and limit snacking.
• Do not use tobacco products, including smokeless tobacco. If you currently utilize tobacco, consider quitting.
• See a dentist for regular check-ups and professional cleanings
• Brand certain that your children get sealants on their teeth. Dental sealants are thin plastic coatings that protect the chewing surfaces of the dorsum teeth. Children should go sealants on their dorsum teeth as presently every bit they come in, before disuse can assail the teeth.

NIH: National Plant of Dental and Craniofacial Enquiry

• Dental Test (National Library of Medicine) Besides in Spanish

• Fluoridation Basics (Centers for Illness Control and Prevention)
• Other Fluoride Products (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Plaque: What It Is and How to Get Rid of It (National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research) - PDF

• Dental Amalgam Fillings (Food and Drug Assistants)

• Toothache: Commencement Assistance (Mayo Foundation for Medical Teaching and Inquiry) Also in Spanish

• Glossary of Dental Terms (University of General Dentistry)
• Oral Health Glossary (Academy of Full general Dentistry)

• Cavities (Merck & Co., Inc.) Also in Spanish

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Source: https://medlineplus.gov/toothdecay.html

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