Dental Abscess

Dental abscess is a condition when pus is collected in the teeth and gums due to infection caused by bacteria. The source of the bacteria is plaque and is responsible for damaging the teeth and gums. The bacteria can quickly spread to soft tissues and gums and eventually form an abscess. Two forms of abscesses are periodontal abscesses and periapical abscesses. If treatment is not given the abscess will worsen and damage the bone. Dental abscesses are very painful and make the infected person feel ill. The general physician can give medicines for temporary relief and therefore it is advisable that the patient goes to a dentist for permanent relief.

Symptoms

The most noticeable symptom is extreme pain of the teeth affected. The pain also can spread to the jaw, neck and ears. Other symptoms include a feeling of being ill, fever, having trouble opening the mouth, having a disturbed sleep, having trouble swallowing , disagreeable taste present in the mouth, reactive to hot or cold food items and tenderness of the gum and teeth around the affected area

Causes

Periapical abscess is formed due to the infection of bacteria resulting from food particles accumulated on the decaying tooth. These “dental carries” break the hard outer layer of the tooth called the enamel, and the inner soft layer called the dentine and finally infects the core of the tooth called the pulp. This condition is called as pulpitis. This infection further penetrates into the bone that supports the tooth called the alveolar bone and in this reason the periapical abscess is formed.

Periodontal abscess is nothing but the infection of the gums. This condition is also called as periodontitis. A person suffering from periodontitis has inflammation of the gums and the tissues around the tooth separate to leave a gap. This gap, called the periodontal pocket, is difficult to keep clean and houses bacteria that will spread the infection and a periodontal abscess is formed. Other causes for periodontal abscess are dental procedures causing periodontal abscess by accident, use of antibiotics in an untreated periodontitis condition which camouflage the abscess and damage inflicted to the gums.

Diagnosis

The main symptom of a dental abscess is extreme pain and difficulty in eating and swallowing. The general practitioner may advice treatment in a hospital if the patient with dental abscess experiences fever, heavy breathing and high pulse rate. Painkillers mostly render useless. It also leads to facial infection and a weak immune system.

Treatment

Dental treatment is the only way one could cure a dental abscess. The dentist may either use a dental procedure for normal cases or a surgery for extreme cases. The most important thing to do for the dentist would be to cut the affected areas and remove the pus. The dentist will use local anaesthesia

For treating periapical abscess the root canal treatment is used to remove the abscess. The pus is removed after drilling into the tooth and a filling is made to avoid the spread of the infection.

For treating periodontal the pus is removed first and then the periodontal pockets are cleaned and the root surface is made smooth.