Pulpectomy

Pulpectomy is a dental treatment that involves complete removal of pulp tissue from a baby tooth.

As you might have guessed by the name, pulpectomy is a procedure that requires the total removal of all the pulp tissue within a baby tooth because it is infected.  ‘Pulp’ indicates the dental live tissue at the heart of the tooth.  And ‘ectomy’ means the removal of.  Appendectomy is a close example of this type of medical language.

The primary objection that parents voice about the pulpectomy is giving a concentrated amount of attention to a baby or primary tooth.  Parents cannot resist telling us this tooth is going to fall out anyway.  Yes, we say, we know, but we want it to fall out at the proper time. 

Until then it can protect the precious bud of the permanent tooth under it and hold a proper space for it to grow into. The spacing of your child’s teeth and the position they occupy in the mouth are important to the development of the permanent teeth. After the pulpectomy, your child’s tooth will be structurally sound and still be shed normally when it is the proper time.

Often there is pain and swelling within the gum tissues or even the cheek, the classic “tooth-ache” profile.  Your dentist will attend to this issue first before proceeding with the pulpectomy.  Likewise, he will review the child’s health and dental history and make an extensive examination.

That being said, you should know this is the most serious, last-ditch effort to save the structure of the tooth.

With the use of local anaesthesia, and with your calm confidence, your child will be ready for the dentist to work on his or her sore tooth.