Abscess: Acute or chronic, localized inflammation, with a collection of pus, associated with tissue destruction and frequent swelling usually secondary to infection.
Periapical abscess: Acute or chronic inflammation and pus formation at the end of a tooth root in the alveolar bone, secondary to infection.
Apicoectomy: Amputation of the apex of a tooth
Apex: the tip or end of the tooth root
Canal: a relatively narrow tubular passage or channel:
Root canal: space inside the root portion of a tooth containing pulp tissue
Cementum: hard connective tissue covering the tooth root
Periapical cyst: cyst at the apex of the tooth with a non-vital pulp
Decay: the lay term for carious lesions in a tooth; also known as a cavity
Dentin: the part of the tooth that is beneath enamel and cementum
Direct pulp cap: procedure in which the exposed pulp is covered with a dressing or cement with the aim of maintaining pulp vitality
Enamel: hard calcified tissue covering dentin of the crown of tooth
Furcation: the anatomic area of a multi-rooted tooth where the roots diverge
Hemisection: surgical separation of a multi-rooted tooth
Indirect pulp cap: procedure in which the nearly exposed pulp is covered with a protective dressing to protect the pulp from additional injury and to promote healing and repair via formation of secondary dentin
Palliative: action that relives pain but is not curative.
Periapical: the area surrounding the end of the tooth root
Pulp: connective tissue that contains blood vessels and nerve tissue which occupies the pulp cavity of a tooth
Pulp cavity: the space within a tooth which contains the pulp
Pulpectomy: complete removal of vital and non vital pulp tissue from the root canal space
Pulpitis: inflammation of the dental pulp
Pulpotomy: surgical removal of a portion of the pulp with the aim of maintaining the vitality of the remaining portion by means of an adequate dressing.
Radicular: pertaining to the root
Retrograde filling: a method of sealing the root canal by preparing and filling it from the root apex
Root: the anatomic portion of the tooth that is covered by cementum and is located in the alveolus (socket) where it is attached by the periodontal ligaments.
Residual root: the remaining root structure following the loss of the major portion (over 75%) of the crown of the tooth
Root canal: the portion of the pulp cavity inside the root of a tooth; the chamber within the root of the tooth that stores the pulp
Root canal therapy: the removal of the pulp designed to treat the disease and injuries of the pulp and associated periradicular conditions
