I have a tooth decay and it hurts so much that I can't sleep.

People don't pay attention when eating, and eat sour, spicy, and oily food without restraint. In addition, they don't pay attention to oral hygiene. Therefore, many people nowadays need to go to the hospital to see a dentist from time to time. Most of them will find that their teeth may hurt a little at first, but if they don’t pay attention and lick their teeth for a long time, the holes in their teeth will become bigger and the pain will become stronger. What should they do at this time?

In the eyes of ordinary patients, when a tooth has a cavity and the doctor fills it with materials, it is all called "filling". In fact, the severity of tooth decay varies, and the treatment methods are also different, not just "filling" as most people understand.

From the perspective of tooth structure, teeth are composed of three layers from the outside to the inside: enamel, dentin and pulp. Tooth enamel, commonly known as enamel, is the outermost layer of the tooth and is a translucent white hard tissue. Dentin constitutes the main body of the tooth, is located in the inner layer of the enamel, and is light yellow in color. When dentin is exposed, it can sense external stimuli such as cold, hot, sour, and sweet, causing pain.

There is a cavity inside it, which is filled with pulp tissue composed of blood vessels, nerves and lymph. Therefore, the tooth is not "solid". There is a cavity inside, which contains nerves, blood vessels and other tissues. We call this cavity the "pulp cavity".

When the lesions of tooth decay only reach the enamel layer or dentin layer, it is called "caries" and can usually be repaired in one time. Sometimes it is too deep and needs "soothing treatment" once or twice to be repaired. This is what is generally referred to as "filling a tooth".

If carious teeth are not treated in time, the lesions will progress downwards and affect the pulp, causing pulpitis. If pulpitis develops further and the lesions penetrate into the tooth root and surrounding tissues, apical periodontitis will occur. If the affected tooth has developed to the stage of pulpitis and apical periodontitis, the first visit to the doctor requires pulp inactivation or pulp removal, commonly known as "rotten nerve" or "nerve extraction."

When visiting the doctor again, the root canal needs to be enlarged mechanically to completely remove the pulp and infected dentin. Because the canal leading to the root apex inside the tooth is very small, it is not easy to completely kill the bacteria in one go even through mechanical treatment and drug flushing. Drugs need to be sealed in the root canal for thorough disinfection. Each time takes about a week. Those with more severe inflammation need to be sealed with drugs several times until the symptoms are completely controlled before the final "filling" can be performed.

Therefore, not all "tooth fillings" can be completed in one go. Patients with pulpitis or apical periodontitis often need to go back and forth several times. Patients are required to actively cooperate and see the doctor on time in order to cure the affected teeth as soon as possible.