Question:
Would having a root canal do anything to help a pocket with an infection? Will
it clear that up, or are they two separate things?
Answer:
Do we need to discuss the perio-endo lesion as compared to the strictly endo
and strictly perio lesions?
First, some SMD trivia. How did your PerioChip therapy work out at
NYU/Columbia? This perhaps is related. You see, an acute periapical abscess
(infection around the root tip) eventually "points" or exits through soft
tissue. This is through the area of least resistance. There are several
possibilities:
a. Fistula or gum boil. This is an opening around one inch above the gumline
directly through the gum. A fistula is literally a hole. This is accompanied
by pus that occasionally exudes out. Okay. I'll call it an
exudate/fistulation.
b. An abcess can alternatively, exit through the periodontal membrane.
See the connection? However, these are two distinct processes, two diseases,
two diagnoses and two treatments. Patients and sometime doctors confuse the
two.
Please be ware that there are three miles of root canal tubing in the body. It
can ALL be infected. If you already have an infection
getting a root canal could be the very worst thing to have done!
While mercury is toxic and can do terrible things to nerve tissue, it does
it slowly over decades. The treatment that can have the biggest and fastest
impact on the body is root canal therapy. The idea of keeping a dead, infected
organ in the body is only thought to be a good idea by dentists. A root
canal-treated tooth always negatively affects your immune system.
