What is dental pulp?
Under the white enamel and a hard layer called the dentin, at the centre of each tooth is a soft tissue known as “dental pulp.” This pulp, which is made up of blood vessels, nerves, and connective tissue, helps nourish the tooth. The dental pulp is complicated non-calcified tissue, extending to the tip of the roots where it connects to the tissues around the root. The pulp plays important role during a tooth’s growth and development. However, once a tooth is completely mature, it can survive without the pulp support, because it can continue to be nourished by the tissues surrounding it.
Dental pulp structure varies according to the age, tooth position.
Functions of Tooth Pulp
In spite of main task to form dentin, the pulp has several crucial functions which include:
- Sensory/ Protective Function – Pulp is the center perceiving thermal irritation, pain from trauma, pressure and other stimulation
- Dentin formation – The pulp is responsible for the formation of dentin In response to trauma, the pulp forms secondary dentin, also known as reparative dentin
- Nourishment – The pulp contains blood vessels that help to prevent the tooth from becoming brittle by keeping it moisturized and nourished.
