If you have had braces or a retainer as a child, teenager, or adult, you likely know what an orthodontist does from your own personal experiences as a patient. However, many patients come to our practice having never visited an endodontist and are unaware of how this advanced specialist in oral health differs from an orthodontist and how they can help you improve or regain your oral health.
Orthodontists: Improvements to the Alignment of Your Jaw and Teeth
For patients suffering from common issues with the alignment of their teeth and jaws, known as malocclusions, an orthodontist can create a treatment plan to improve the overall alignment of their teeth, bite, and jaw. The most common treatment plan used by orthodontists is braces to straighten teeth, improve overbites or underbites, and relieve overcrowded teeth. Orthodontists also can work with pediatric patients in need of specialized care due to cleft palates or other craniofacial issues.
Endodontists: Improvements to the Health of Your Dental Nerves and Dental Pulp
A toothache can often be more than just a simple cavity on the surface of the tooth enamel. Chronic tooth pain that runs deep into the jaw is a sign of disease of the dental pulp, also known as the root of your tooth. Endodontists commonly treat patients in need of a root canal, addressing the infected nerve and removing any diseased dental pulp in order to eliminate the pain as well as to keep the infection from spreading within the jaw.
Orthodontists and Endodontists: Advanced Specialists in Oral Health
An orthodontist and an endodontist both begin their training by completing a doctorate in dentistry after receiving their undergraduate degree. Once they have achieved their doctorate in dentistry, they each continue on for further education in their specialty of orthodontics or endodontics. This further specialized training lasts an additional two years after they receive a doctorate in dentistry.
Often, an endodontist may also be referred to as an oral surgeon but these two terms and professions can be easily mistaken. An oral surgeon is educated and trained as a medical doctor, then a surgeon, specializing in structures of the face and mouth. Endodontists are educated and trained as dentists, with further training to treat the disease of the dental pulp, root, and dental nerves, primarily through root canals.
Long Island Endodontics is Here to Help Relieve Your Pain
If you have struggled with tooth pain, jaw pain, or are suffering from infections in the nerve or dental pulp or root of your tooth, the professionals at Long Island Endodontics are ready to help. With our advanced training, state-of-the-art technology, and years of experience, we will create a treatment plan to reduce your pain, eliminate infection, and conserve the structure of your teeth. Don’t suffer tooth pain needlessly and don’t wait until it’s too late to save your tooth from being pulled. Contact our Endodontics in Long Island today for a consultation and begin your journey to better oral health.
