What is a dental abscess?
A dental abscess is a purulent infection of the gums or oral mucosa. The probable causes of this infection are multiple. The dental abscess can be the result of an untreated periodontal disease, a crack, or a fracture of the root of the tooth, but also of a necrosis of the pulp or a badly carried out root canal treatment. In these last two cases, the abscess is located at the end of the root.
How to treat a tooth abscess? What to do to cure a dental abscess?
As soon as the first dental abscess symptom appears, grab your phone, and make an appointment with your dentist. If the abscess is in its early stages, you can wait until the day agreed by the specialist. But in the case of a more extensive infection, it is worth notifying the specialist that it is an emergency.
An extensive infection will be characterized by a high temperature and a swollen face. Emergency intervention may also be necessary if you are suffering from a disease or undergoing treatment that lowers your immunity. It could be diabetes, chemotherapy, immunosuppressive therapy, or HIV infection.
How to relieve a tooth abscess?
While waiting for the consultation with the specialist, there are various precautions you can take to relieve a dental abscess:
- Do not take any anti-inflammatory, at the risk of aggravating the infection.
- Take an over-the-counter painkiller.
- Apply an antiseptic gel to the painful area. Failing that, use cloves (directly, as an infusion or as an essential oil) to relieve pain.
- Use mouthwashes (one to two a day).
- Avoid using the sore side to chew food.
- Place a cloth on the painful cheek and then put an ice pack on it. Remove the bag every 10 minutes to avoid cold burn.
- Brush your teeth morning and evening using a very soft toothbrush.
These simple rules make it possible to calm a dental abscess until the intervention of the dentist.
What does the dentist do to treat an abscess in the mouth?
Depending on the origin of the dental abscess and to deflate it, the dentist proceeds:
1. A devitalization of the tooth
2. An incision in the gum to evacuate the pus in case of periodontal abscess
3. Extraction of the tooth if it has a root fracture
This extraction can be postponed to a later session in case of too much infection. The dentist then makes an incision on the day of the emergency to drain the abscess first and relieve you of the pain. He will prescribe you a prescription for antibiotics, analgesics, and antiseptics. The extraction will be done at a later session when the abscess has “cooled down”.
A radiological examination makes it possible to assess the degree of complexity of the extraction and to determine the type of procedure to be considered for removing the tooth.
Simple dental extraction (exodontia) concerns visible teeth that present no risk of complications. Surgical dental extraction (odontectomy) is performed in the case of devitalized teeth (molars in general), badly damaged by caries, impacted or difficult to access.
The stages of a dental extraction
After having sanitized his office and sterilized their instruments, the practitioner performs several technical gestures essential to the smooth running of the extraction of your tooth:
- oral disinfection using an antiseptic solution;
- local anesthesia to numb the nerve of the tooth to be removed;
- syndesmotomy, that is to say the separation of the tooth from its epithelial attachments;
- subluxation, which consists of moving the tooth using an elevator positioned between the bone of the socket and the tooth;
- dislocation and avulsion, i.e., vertical traction performed with a hutch to dislodge and remove the tooth.
- In the case of a surgical extraction, an incision in the gum is necessary to extract the tooth. Once the tooth has been extracted, stitches are used to close the previously cleaned cavity.
After a tooth extraction, especially if there was an abscess, it is very important to take all antibiotics if they were prescribed and to follow the directions given by your dentist for aftercare.
