Understanding Your Dental Cavities
Having a dental cavity can be very painful or you can go months without even knowing you have a cavity. Whichever is the case, cavities weaken teeth and if not treated can avoidable pain.
Understanding what a cavity is, where they come from, how they can be avoided and how they are treated will help as you strive for good oral health. Oral health is key to our well being and often times our confidence and taking the time to be educated about the processes that happen in our mouths will definitely pay off in the long run.
A cavity occurs when bacterial processes damage the hard tooth structures. These structures are the enamel, dentin and cementum.
The bacteria progressively break down the tissues on the tooth, producing dental cavities. The way that the decay manifests itself can vary greatly from case to case.
Sometimes when a cavity is in its early states it will look like a small chalky area. Sometimes the decay is directly visible and other times it is necessary to use a radiograph to judge the extent of the damage.
The spots on tooth that experience the decay are classified by location, etiology, rate of progression and affected hard tissues. These classifications help us to accurately represent the condition to others and indicate how severe the problem is.
Location is divided into two different areas of the tooth. Some cavities will appear on smooth surfaces and others will appear in pits and fissures.
The process of decay is different on the smooth surface than it is in the fissures or the pits. In the dental world pit and fissure cavities are indicated as Class I cavities will smooth surface are divided in Class II, Class III, Class IV, Class V and Class VI.
The pit of the tooth is the part of the tooth where the enamel folds inward. The fissures of teeth are formed during the development of grooves, but the enamel in the area is not fully fused.
Without the fusion completed, a groove forms on the enamel’s surface, this forms a location for the cavities to develop and flourish.
The pit and fissure cavities are very common among children, they represent 90% of all dental cavities. This can prove to be very problematic because this type of decay can be very hard for a dentist to detect.
If the decay goes undetected it will continue to spread and gradually grow deeper. Once it has reached the dentin at the dentino-enamel junction it is then very easy for the decay to spread laterally.
If decay goes unnoticed for too long, it can reach the pulp of a tooth. If this happens the individual with the cavity will experience excruciating amounts of pain.
When talking about the decay that happens on the smooth surfaces of a tooth, there are three types of cavities. Proximal or interproximal cavities form on the smooth surfaces between two adjacent teeth.
This type of decay is the most difficult to detect. These cavities, often times, cannot be detected visually or manually.
To detect this kind of decay it is often necessary for a radiograph to be taken of the tooth. If a radiograph is not taken it may not be until the cavity is very large that it is detected.
When there is decay occurring on the root surface of the tooth, it is simply called a root cavity. They are the third most common type of decay and most often times occur when the root has been exposed as the gums recede.
When a root is exposed to bacteria it is much quicker to decay. At the same time, these cavities are often times easy to detect.
If the cavity can be detected early and taken care of promptly, it usually will not cause much pain or will not be difficult to take care of. It is only when these cavities are left uncared for that they become extremely expensive and painful.
It is very possible to have lesions on other smooth surfaces of the tooth. When decay occurs on any of these other surfaces they are usually fairly easy to locate and to treat.
If you are getting cavities on the smooth surfaces of your teeth you may want to consider changing your diet or oral hygiene practices. Straying from highly processed foods and always remembering to brush and floss can keep you out of your dentist’s chair.
If you are feeling pain in your tooth, it is important to find a dentist that you trust and get it taken care of immediately.
About the author
Terry Daniels is a former dental assistant and has authored hundreds of articles relating to oral health. He worked for a cosemtic dentist in Fort Lauderdale before becoming a guest dental lecturer for the past 15 years. Contact Info: Terry Daniels TerryDaniels09@gmail.com http://www.confidentsmiledesigns.comDistributed by Content Crooner
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