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| Dental ice to spray on a cotton swab. A normal healthy tooth will become uncomfortable after a short time w/ this "cold stick" in direct contact w/ the enamel but the discomfort disappears immediately after the cold is removed. An abscessed tooth will often become extremely painful and the pain will linger for minutes afterward. |
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| A small amount of toothpaste is applied to the tip of the instrument to insure good contact w/ the enamel. The tip is then placed on the facial of the tooth and the dial is very SLOWLY rotated from zero to 10. When the patient begins to feel the pulsing, the dial number is recorded in the chart. Normal teeth respond in the 2-3 range. Teeth which are necrotic or "dead" don't feel anything even at a TEN reading. |
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| A plastic "bite stick" is often used to determine if the tooth pain is the result of a "cracked" tooth. Teeth can fracture thru the roots c/c of trauma or excess biting pressure and this crack can allow bacteria to enter the pulp of the tooth and cause an abscess. By using this device, the patient can bite on one tooth cusp at a time. That cusp which is fractured will be painful to bite on while the rest will feel normal. |
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| Sometimes used to place the root canal medicine in the pulp chamber and keep the temporary filling material from going down the canals. |
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| a butane torch is sometimes used to heat the instruments so that the rubberized gutta percha filling material may be softened and compacted in the root canal. |
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| The temporary cement used to fill the opening after a root canal visit. It does not have to be mixed, it comes right from the tube and the moisture from the mouth causes it to harden. |
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| Sodium Hypochlorite (Clorox) |
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| This material is used to disinfect the pulp canals and dissolve necrotic tissue. It can be used full strength or diluted 50-50 w/ water. This solution is often disposable syringe. The blunt needle is inserted into the canal and the solution is dispensed to rinse out debris and help disinfect the tooth. |
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| A chemical sometimes used between visits in endodontic treatment which is not completed on the same day. It is dripped onto a small cotton pellet. The pellet is then placed in the pulp chamber prior to the temporary being placed. The purpose is to continue the disinfect the inside of the tooth after the patient leaves the office. |
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| The natural rubber material which is shaped into fine, needle-like points and is used to seal the canals. The numbered master points are equal in size to the same numbered file. Usually, the size (#) used in the canal. To fill up remaining gaps in the canal, auxilliary gutta percha points are used. These are NOT numbered but labeled "fine", "medium", etc. |
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| A sharp needle-like instrument with a plastic handle and barb-like hooks on the shaft. It is used as one of the first instruments to enter the canal to snag and remove the intact nerve if present. If magnified, the broach resembles a piece of barbed wire. These instruments are impossible to clean and are discarded after using once. They are usually packaged in foil packets. |
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| A sharp needle-like instrument w/ a plastic handle and a shaft w/ twisted ridges resembling a wood screw. Files are used to clean, shape, and enlarge the canals. Files are color coded and numbered as #10, 15 26 25....40, 45,50, etc, As the numbers increase the diameter of the file increases. |
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| It is worn like a ring on the dentist's finger while performing the endodontic treatment. The files are measured by the dentist using the small ruler on the EndoRing. |
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| Is moved in an up and down motion to scrape and remove debris from the canal. Irrigating solution (Clorox) is occassionally flushed into the pulp chamber to flush out the debris. |
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| They are shaped and sized like gutta percha points except they are made of rolled paper and are used to soak up the water within the canal. The air syringe cannot blow the canal dry as teh air stream will not penetrate very far into the canal. Therefore these paper points are used to dry the canals prior to filling and sealing with gutta percha. |
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| Used to coat the gutta percha points before they are inserted into the canal. This cement fills up the small ga[s between the gutta percha and the canal wall. The brand near right, consists of a powder and liquid which must be mixed by the assistant to the thickness preferred by the dentist. |
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Differs from a regular explorer.
It is straight and longer than the regular explorer used for examinations. |
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| Instrument looks like a large endo explorer and differs from a plugger in that a spreader has a pointed, very sharp end. The spreader and endo explorer are often confused. |
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Instrument works like an amalgam plugger, but in this case, it packs gutta percha. The tip of if is flat ended like an amalgam plugger.
Packs the gutta percha in the canal using its FLAT END. It sometimes heated to melt and seal the guta percha at the opening of the canal. |
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| These are used in the slow speed handpiece to enlarge the canals for steel post placement. Note that the # of rings determines the size. The cutting edges are much longer than the Gates Glidden drills. |
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| Used in a slow handpiece to enlarge the canals during a root canal. |
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| Specialized cotton pliers w/ a locking latch to hold gutta percha and paper points for passing from assistant to dentist. |
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| Like all spoon excavators, it is shaped like a scoop or spoon at the end. The endo spoon excavators are usually longer and small than the ones used for decay removal as they have to extend down into pulp chambers. |
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| A ruler device with measurements in millimeters. It is used to measure and position the rubber stops on the FILE to the determined length of the canal. |
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| Is cemented or bonded directly to each tooth. It exerts the force on the tooth to cause it to become straight. The forces on the brackets come from the archwire, springs, ligatures, hooks, or elastics. The bracket is cemented in the exact middle of the facial surface of the tooth. |
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