What does a deep cavity mean, exactly?

Question

when i went to get my wisdom teeth pulled out last week, my dentist told me i had a deep cavity. he said it was a good thing he caught it when he did because it was DEEP. he drilled it a bit (from what i could tell) and put in a temporary filling. it looked like a biggish black spot on my tooth when he first saw it.

the thing is, i never felt any pain in the area. he said if i do feel pain, i should contact him immediately. i may need nerve treatment, he said.

what exactly is nerve treatment? is there any chance i may need a root canal.

it's been pain-free so far, but today i ate some tator tots. i tried to be carfeul and chew only with my front teeth, but for a little while, a numbness came and went in the area. should i be worried?

Answer 1

Hi,

"Deep cavity" means the decay has involved significant amount of the tooth structure and has almost reached the nerve.

"Nerve treatment" is the general term used for "Root Canal Treatment".

Many teeth that require the nerve treatment may not even hurt because the nerve (pulp) is PROBABLY already dead (necrosed). However, there MAYBE an infection brewing in there which can, if not treated soon result in a fill blown abscess. Only the root canal treatment (followed by a build up and crown placement) can get the condition under control and restore that tooth to full function.

The good news is that you have mentioned that the tooth hasn't hurt since the temporary filling was placed. It is possible that you may not even need the root canal treatment and can just get a permanent filling placed in there.

I am sure your dentist is scheduled to see you to make that determination the next visit.

Just in case if you need the Root Canal Treatment, don't get stressed out. Just remember that it is designed to get you out of pain by taking the infected tissue out of the tooth. Sounds too involved, but actually it is not. You can read the following article which explains step-by-step what to expect during a RCT procedure. Hope this helps. Good luck !

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article...

The following link will also provide you with the diagrams for the procedure. It will show you how a "deep cavity" involves the nerve (pulp) :

http://www.colgate.com/app/Colgate/US/OC...

Answer 2

It means that your tooth rotted from the inside out. :(

Answer 3

If your dentist told you you had a deep cavity, it probably means that the decay was extensive, and may be close to the nerve of the tooth.  The nerves of the tooth are in the center of the tooth, and decay normally starts from the outside of the tooth and moves towards the center.  If it gets close to the center, it is normally described as being "deep".

If the decay gets to the nerve area of the tooth, you will need a root canal (nerve treatment).  This is when the dentist removes the nerves from the tooth, cleans out the canals that confine the nerves, and fill them up so they don't get reinfected.  The tooth will normally need to be crowned after this (if it is a back tooth) because after teeth have had root canals, they are much more brittle and are at a much higher risk of fracture.

The absence of pain does not really mean anything.  It is common for teeth to need root canals even if there aren't any symptoms.  If the tooth does start to hurt, you most likely will need a root canal.  

You don't really need to worry about it; if it hurts, you'll need to go in, if it doesn't you may not.  Although, if you just have a temporary filling in, you will probably need a regular filling done fairly soon.  

Hope that helps!