Diagnosis: How do you recognize an inflammation of the tooth root on the X-ray?
Is it possible to tell already on an X-ray in the dental office that it is an inflammation of the tooth root? Yes, this is possible if the inflammation in the area of the root apex has existed for some time. However, if the inflammation of the tooth root is still in its early stages and the bone is not affected, the X-ray is completely inconspicuous.
Only after the dentist has identified the affected tooth by tapping on it (percussion test) and by means of a cold test (vitality test), does he or she take a small X-ray image of the tooth, which also shows the complete root and surrounding tissue. The characteristic feature on an x-ray image in the case of an inflammation of the root of a tooth is a dark round shadow below the tip of the root. This may also be of interest to you: X-ray of the teeth The X-ray image is a composition of different gray values, each of which is created by the penetration of the rays through the tissue and thus characterizes each area.
Metal dense structures (e.g. a gold crown) hardly let any radiation through and therefore appear white, while structures such as bone and tooth let more radiation through and appear grey. If there is a shadow below the root tip, where bone should be, this indicates inflammatory tissue.This is soft tissue that allows X-rays to pass almost unhindered and therefore appears almost black. This inflammatory tissue can penetrate and break down the surrounding bone (in which case the inflammation of the tooth root has already caused osteomyelitis). If not treated, the bacteria causing the inflammation can enter the bloodstream and lead to diseases such as endocarditis or heart attack. You can find out how the dentist proceeds here: Treatment of an inflammation of the tooth root
