An abscess is an infection, commonly at the root of your tooth, and it can cause the tooth and surrounding gum tissue a lot of damage with the infection and the swelling. However, if you do not get it treated, the infection can also spread into your bloodstream.
Treating an Abscess Must Happen Quickly
Typically, when you do have an abscessed tooth, it will either need some type of root canal to extract the infection, or the tooth itself will have to be removed to stop the infection. This must happen quickly because an abscess has the potential to cause an infection in a few key areas of your body. Since so much blood flows near your jaw, you can easily get an infected bloodstream.This could spread the infection out to your face or neck, up to your brain, or down to your heart. If you are truly unlucky, your abscess could also become sepsis, which is a deadly infection that basically spreads throughout your entire body. This will require massive antibiotics during a hospital stay to treat, and can be fatal if you have other risk factors involved.
The moment that you have the symptoms of an abscess, such as tooth and jaw pain, a fever, and swelling in the area, you need to contact our office. He or she can take a look at your tooth and see if it can be saved.
If not, they can get the tooth out and let the healing begin. While dentists typically try to save a tooth whenever possible, in the extreme case of an abscess, they need to act just as quickly as you do.
