Dental Abscess

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Dental Abscess

A tooth infection is impossible to overlook or ignore. If you have mouth, jaw, or tooth pain, you could be suffering from a dental abscess. It’s essential to get treatment right away to avoid complications, further infection, or threats to your overall well-being. Contact Ingleside Family Dental in Ladson, SC, immediately for an emergency dental appointment.

Dental abscess diagnosis and treatment in Ladson SC

What Is A Dental Abscess?

A dental abscess is a painful tooth infection that begins in the tooth pulp and spreads to the tooth root. The bacteria that cause this infection multiply, spread, and eventually form an abscess, a swollen area filled with pus.

Untreated tooth decay is the most common cause of a dental abscess, but this bacterial infection can also stem from deteriorating dental work or a mouth injury. Anything that allows foreign particles to enter the tooth and cause problems can kickstart an abscess.

Signs Of A Dental Abscess

You may have never had an abscess before but when you get one, you’ll know it. The symptoms are clear and painful and include:

Pus build-up under the gumline
Swollen gum
Tenderness
Pain
Redness
Sensitivity
Fever or chills
Bad breath
Loose teeth

Some of these symptoms do mimic other oral health issues. No matter what’s going on, if you have a combination of these issues, contact your dentist immediately to be seen and treated.

Emergency Dental Care For A Dental Abscess

It can be tempting to try to pop your abscess to make the pain stop. Don’t do it. You may even think if it ruptures on its own your problems are over. Not so. An abscess is a major oral health problem inside and out and is a threat to the health of your teeth, gums, and overall well-being. You need your dentist’s help.

An abscess caused by bacteria is filled with bacteria, which means bacteria is filtering throughout your mouth and entire system. Your dentist’s job is to drain the abscess properly and carefully to prevent the spread of infection to the jaw, neck, head, or body. In the worst cases, an untreated dental abscess can cause life-threatening consequences.

Dental Abscess Treatments

A dental abscess will not go away on its own. Your dentist wants to make your pain go away as quickly as possible while preventing the problem from spreading. The first course of action is to drain the abscess and then wait for the wound to heal. This step is accompanied by a course of antibiotics.

The second step is to correct any dental damage that has been done. Depending on the severity of your abscess, you may need several treatments:

Root canal therapy: Since the bacterial infections that cause abscesses start within a tooth, root canal therapy is needed to clean out the roots and fill them to prevent further infection.
Porcelain crown: Teeth that undergo root canal therapy typically require a crown to complete the treatment and seal off the tooth from any additional problems.
Tooth-colored filling: If an abscess is small and the result of minor tooth decay, a tooth-colored filling may be the only restoration needed to fix the damaged tooth.
Tooth extraction: If a tooth is so damaged that there is no dental restoration that can save it, tooth extraction is necessary to protect the rest of your oral health.

Cost Factors For Repairing A Dental Abscess

There are many cost factors that affect how much treatment will be for your dental repair including:

Emergency dental visit
Location of abscess
Size and depth of abscess
Procedures needed to stop infection
Restorative dentistry needed
Sedation dentistry needed

Emergency Dentist Near Me In Ladson, SC

A dental abscess is a dental emergency that will not go away on its own. If you suspect an abscess or other problem, contact Ingleside Family Dental in Ladson, SC immediately for an emergency dental appointment.