Apicoectomy is an oral-surgery procedure that includes removing the tip of the root, in order to save the tooth in the mouth. Along with the tip, the pathological process, ie infection, granuloma, cyst, is also removed. Infection usually occurs from untreated caries, which continues in the pulpitis( infection of the nerve of the tooth), which leads into periodontitis ( infection that goes beyond the root,in the surrounding bone. In many cases, if the infection is smaller, first choice for treating and preserving the tooth in the mouth (which is the primary objective) is endodontic treatment, which includes cleaning the root canal, application of medication and sealing definitely. However, sometimes despite of the endodontic treatment, the infection can still be present in the surrounding bone tissue,so the treatment of choice is apicoectomy and surgical cleaning of the bone infection.
What is the procedure ?
First before we start any intervention, we need to have X-ray image of the tooth and the surrounding bone tissue. Then, we put local anesthetic to eliminate any pain during the intervention. Next step is making the incision in the gums over the tooth, then raising the mucoperiostal flap. After that we access the top of the root and the pathological process and it is cleaned completely, with subsequently performing resection (cutting) off the tip of the root few millimeters. Once we are sure that the process is fully cleaned, we close everything and suture it with a few stitches.