pulpo-, pulp-, pulpi- +

1. A soft, fleshy inner part of a plant or animal; such as, that within a tooth, the spleen, or a fruit.
2. Soft or fleshy plant tissue; such as, the inner part of a fruit or vegetable.
3. The pith inside a plant stem.
4. A soft or soggy mass.
5. Pulverized animal or vegetable matter.
6. The sensitive tissue at the center of a tooth, consisting of nerves and blood vessels.
7. A mass of partly digested food passed from the stomach to the duodenum; chyme.
8. Crushed wood or other materials that are used to make paper.
9. Thrilling novels and magazines produced on cheap paper; especially, crime, horror, or science fiction stories: "He had a prize collection of classic pulp fiction."
10. Mining ore that has been mined and pulverized, especially when mixed with water.

A reference to to the pulp, especially that of a tooth.

Toothache, sensitivity, or pain of the dental pulp: The dentist, Dr. Stang, told Jim that bacteria irritating the dental pulp because of tooth decay was causing the condition of pulpalgia.

The act or process of reducing to a pulp.

A kind of delicate confectionery or cake, perhaps made from the pulp of fruit.

The surgical removal of all or part of the coronal pulp of a tooth, leaving the radicular pulp.

Conversion into a pulpy substance.

In a post mortem report about the deaths of two Afghanistani prisoners at the Bagram, Afghanistan, prison (controlled by the U.S. military); a short autopsy report about one of the prisoners stated: "He had had some coronary artery disease", the medical examiner reported, but what caused his heart to fail was "blunt force injuries to the lower extremities".

One of the coroners later translated the assessment at a pre-trial hearing, saying the tissue in the young man's legs "had basically been pulpified. I've seen similar injuries in an individual run over by a bus," added the coroner.

The procedure was described as a "common peroneal strike" or a potentially disabling blow to the side of the leg, just above the knee. The U.S. interrogators did this so often to certain prisoners within a short period of time that they developed blood clots from the injuries and died. The tissue on their legs, and again, as the coroner described it, "had basically been pulpified."

Referring to two of the prisoners, it was reported that "Dilawar died from blunt force trauma to the lower extremities complicating coronary artery disease" and "Habibullah died of a pulmonary embolism apparently formed in his legs from the beatings". The tortures took place during January and February, 2004.

Having the shape of a dental pulp.

Inflammation of the dental pulp. It is the most common cause of dental pain; endodontitis.

Being without a pulp; said of a nonvital tooth.

A dental specialty concerned with keeping the dental pulp in a state of health and the treatment of the pulp cavity (pulp chamber and pulp canal); also, endodontia.

1. The branch of dentistry concerned with diagnosis, treatment, and the prevention of diseases of the dental pulp and its surrounding tissues.
2. The study of diseases of the dental pulp and their condition following the occurrence of a preceding disease; also endodontics.

Root canal treatment is also known as endodontic therapy. Having a root canal generally involves treatment of the tooth's pulpal tissue (or nerve).

In addition to nerve fibers, the pulpal tissue also contains arteries, veins, lymph vessels, and connective tissue.

Root canals are often the most feared procedure by regular visitors to the dentist's office, although it is claimed to be, in most cases, a fairly uncomplicated and low-pain treatment.

1. Pulp amputation.
2. The surgical removal of all or part of the coronal pulp of a tooth, leaving the radicular pulp.

Containing pulp; pulpy.