Toothaches have been the topic of much debate for thousands of years. Ancient civilizations believed worms living in teeth caused toothaches, ancient Egyptians recommended holding a dead mouse on aching teeth, their Chinese contemporaries wrapped parchment around teeth with prayers for relief written on them, and Germans in the middle ages recommended kissing a donkey for toothache relief. On February 9^th, the feast of St. Apollonia is celebrated. This is also known as toothache day since St. Apollonia was severely beaten by and lost all of her teeth before succumbing to her wounds, and is the patroness of dentists and dental pain. Luckily, modern dentistry provides better solutions for toothaches than kissing livestock or praying to saints. One of the most severe toothaches patients will experience is caused by root canal infection. Root canal infection is actually infection of the inner, pulp, layer of the tooth not necessarily confined to the root canal. All of the nerves in teeth are found in the pulp, so it’s no surprise that these infections are painful. At Premier Family Dental, we offer painless root canal therapy to restore patients’ smiles.
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