Category Archives: Emergency Dentist

Emergency Dentist

Death from Tooth Infection

I have a toothache and went to see the dentist. He told me I had a tooth infection and needed a root canal treatment. I’m quite busy at the moment. I’ve had other infections, such as a sinus infection that I just sort of put up with and it eventually healed itself. I suggested this to my dentist and he said, and I quote, “That’s a good way to die.” Seriously?! Is he serious or just trying to scare me into getting the treatment?

Andrew

Dear Andrew,

Woman holding her jaw from a toothache

I am glad you wrote. I know it would be easy to feel like your dentist is using scare tactics to get your business. In this case, however, he is right. A tooth infection is different from other types of infections. With a tooth infection, the pulp inside the tooth dies. When that happens, even antibiotics won’t help because there is no longer any blood flow to get the medicine there.

In the meantime, the infection continues to spread. Your jaw is quite close to your heart, lungs, throat, and even brain. You do not want the infection reaching there. Each year, there are between six to ten deaths from untreated tooth infections.

The only way to get rid of an infected tooth is for a dentist to physically remove the infected pulp. That can be done with either a root canal treatment or tooth extraction. A root canal treatment will save the tooth. If you end up having to extract the tooth, then you’ll need to replace it. This is just for the sake of your appearance. It’s because the adjacent teeth will shift or tip into the empty space.

If you do end up needing a tooth replacement, I recommend a dental implant. It is the closest thing to a healthy natural tooth. However, if you get treatment soon enough, you should be able to just get a root canal treatment and not have to worry about that.

This blog is brought to you by Gilbert Dentist Dr. Matt Roper.

Emergency Dentist

Does a Tooth Infection HAVE to be Treated?

I have a tooth infection and my jaw is a bit swollen. Everyone is saying that I need to go to the dentist, but even though it hurts, I feel confident it will go away. I get sinus infections all the time and they go away with antibiotics. I have some left over that I’m taking, but my sister is driving me crazy about this and keeps telling me what I’m doing is dangerous. Can you tell her that it will be fine and will work itself out?

Murray

Dear Murray,

Man in pain, grabbing his cheek in need of emergency dental care.

Tooth infections are a bit different because at some point the pulp inside the tooth dies and then the antibiotics can not get to the infected part of the tooth. That infection spills out to other parts of the body. A dentist has to physically remove the infected pulp. There are only two ways to fully treat a tooth infection. The first is with a root canal treatment, which is ideal because it saves your tooth. The second is to extract the tooth.

While the antibiotics may help you feel better for a bit and hold the infection at bay, once they run out the infection will flair back up. People die every year from untreated tooth infections because they mistakenly believe it is no big deal.

If your jaw is swollen then yours is already spreading and you have a dental emergency. I do think that you need to see a dentist. Hopefully, a root canal treatment will be sufficient. If not, then you’ll need to extract the tooth. It will also be important that you replace the tooth as well. Otherwise the adjacent teeth will shift or tip into the empty space, which will end up causing your bite to be thrown off. If you do need to replace the tooth, I recommend a dental implant. It is the closest thing to having a healthy natural tooth.

This blog is brought to you by Gilbert Dentist Dr. Matt Roper.

Emergency Dentist

Tooth Trauma Delay

A few years ago, while hiking, I tripped and damaged a tooth by breaking a part of a front tooth. I was out of town when it happened but did get an emergency root canal treatment with a dentist I didn’t really know. Once I returned home, my regular dentist checked it out and thought the work was good, but added a dental crown to it. Fast forward two years and the crowned tooth really started to bother me. It became sensitive to hot and cold. My dentist referred me to an endodontic specialist. He thought the problem was actually coming from the tooth next to the one with the dental crown because I have been clenching it in my sleep. Eventually, it stopped hurting, but now it is hurting again. They say there is nothing on the x-rays. I don’t know what to do. If something happened, is it normal for an adjacent tooth to have a problem a year or two later? What do I do?

Sammie

Dear Sammie,

A woman grabbing her jaw in need of an emergency dentist

I think I can help you here. First, once the root canal treatment was done on your tooth, the nerve was removed. So that means the tooth with the crown could not be the one sensitive to hot or cold unless the root canal wasn’t done or if it failed. This was an upper front tooth, which are the easiest root canals to do, so I don’t think it failed. Plus, your dentist checked it out and said it was fine.

I’m not shocked that they didn’t see anything on the x-ray. Until it progresses to an infection it might not be visible. It is also not unusual for a tooth to have trauma but not show problems for a year or so. I don’t know why your dentists are having trouble with this. My suggestion, if it is no longer bothering you, is to follow up with this and have an x-ray every year or so to check for a developing infection. It may never develop.

If you do have pain blow up before your yearly x-ray, get an emergency dental appointment because you want to stay on top of it.

This blog is brought to you by Gilbert Dentist Dr. Matt Roper.
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Emergency Dentist

A Tooth Infection is Dangerous

I had a molar break about a month and a half ago. I did not have money to deal with it. Recently, I’ve been having pains in my cheeks, sinuses and temple on the side of the mouth with the broken tooth. This morning I woke up with pain in my neck, also on the side of the tooth. Do you think this is related? My sister thinks it is an infection. Is this dangerous? I tend to avoid dentists both because of the cost and the fact that I have never had a pleasant experience at the dentist. So, if there is an antibiotic I can use, I’d rather go that route.

Analisa

Dear Analisa,

Woman holding her jaw from a toothache

I am sorry this is happening to you. Before I talk about your tooth infection, I want to let you know ahead of time that I do have a solution for your negative experiences at the dentist. I want you aware of that so you do not panic.

Yes, you do have a tooth infection and it is spreading. It is dangerous. Yours has already spread up to your temple and your neck. Here are some things that can happen if it is not treated, all of which are life-threatening. It can spread to your brain. Your neck can swell up closing your breathing passage. It can continue past your neck and spread to your heart. I know it sounds crazy, but people die every year from an untreated tooth infection.

Unfortunately, an antibiotic won’t help. The most it can do is temporarily stave off the infection. It will not cure it. This is because it can only reach the part of the infection that has spilled out of your tooth. The only way to treat this is either with a root canal treatment or a tooth extraction.

Both of those probably sound very scary to you. I am going to recommend, especially because of your history, that you see a sedation dentist. They can provide you with a pill that will completely relax you during your treatment. In fact, many people call it sleep dentistry because you can sleep through your treatment if you want to.

Please don’t put off getting this tooth treated. It is a dental emergency and I do not want you turning into another statistic.

This blog is brought to you by Gilbert Dentist Dr. Matt Roper.

Emergency Dentist

Am I Too Old To Remove Wisdom Teeth?

I am 35 years old. About 8 years ago I had a wisdom tooth removed, but they never told me that the others can be a problem. Now I have another wisdom tooth bothering me. My dentist is saying I need to have it out but is warning me that there are dangers at my age. I looked up some of the complications of wisdom tooth removal and it looks like my jaw can break. Am I too old to have this wisdom tooth removed? Should I just deal with the tooth bothering me? If I have to take the tooth out, should I get all of them done?

Hailey

Dear Hailey,

Woman holding her jaw from a toothache

While it would have been better to have all your wisdom teeth out eight years ago, you are not too old to have them removed now. Yes, these is a slight increased risk of complications at your age, but when I really start worrying about that issue is when someone hits 40 years old.

However, even if you were 40, if your wisdom tooth is bothering you, then there is a good chance it is infected. If the tooth is infected, then you have to have it out regardless of your age.

Yes, your dentist is going to tell you about scary risks. He’ll probably even give you a paper to sign that describes all types of horrible things that can happen. That is because we are a litigious society, so dentists do what they can to protect themselves.

I say get the tooth out now before it becomes a dental emergency. I do recommend you get them all out at the same time. This will prevent what you are dealing with now from happening ten years from now when you will be at a much higher risk for serious complications.

The good news is that this type of procedure is done with dental sedation, so you are not likely to even remember anything. You can sleep through the entire thing if you’d like.

This blog is brought to you by Gilbert Dentist Dr. Matt Roper.

Emergency Dentist

Tooth Infection and No Money

What do you do if you do not have money but you have a tooth infection? I’ve got a back tooth which has been bothering me and I suspected it was infected, but now my cheek is swollen up to the size of a golf ball. Is there anything I can do at home for this or is there an antibiotic my medical doctor can provide? Though I do not have dental insurance, I do have medical insurance.

Susan

Dear Susan,

A woman grabbing her jaw in need of an emergency dentist

I am sorry that you are going through this. It is discouraging when you need basic care and cannot afford it. I want to warn you about the concept of just using antibiotics as a means of dealing with a dental infection. This can actually end up end up placing you in a worse situation than you were in before taking the antibiotics. This is because the antibiotics will temporarily hold the infection at bay. Then, once the antibiotics are completed, the infection will flare back up stronger than before.

There are only two ways to truly get rid of a tooth infection: a root canal treatment or a tooth extraction. With a root canal treatment, you remove all the infected pulp in the tooth. This will enable you to save the tooth. If that is not a possibility, than you can extract the tooth. Ideally, you will want to replace that tooth. Otherwise, the other teeth will shift or tip into the space. This can lead to painful TMJ Disorder.

With your cheek swollen up, you have a dental emergency on your hands and need to be seen as soon as possible. When a tooth infection is left untreated, it will continue to spread, even outside of the tooth. People still die from tooth infections, but only if it is allowed to spread.

Many dentists are sympathetic to patients in your circumstance. I would call around and see who is willing to work with you by treating the infection and allowing your to pay out the treatment. You may want to start by calling around to dentists who advertise as affordable dentists.

This blog is brought to you by Gilbert Dentist Dr. Matt Roper.

Emergency Dentist

When a Dental Crown Feels Off

I had a root canal and dental crown put on a tooth a couple of years ago, but it has really been bugging me lately. It’s not pain, it just awkward. I know that makes absolutely no sense, but it is distracting. My dentist said he can replace it. I let him, but it did not really make a difference. I am not sure what to do. I feel like I’m going crazy. Have you encountered anything like this?

Andrew

Dear Andrew,

Man in pain, grabbing his cheek in need of emergency dental care.

When a dental crown is done correctly and nothing else is wrong that has been missed, you won’t notice the crown at all. It will just fit in with the rest of your teeth. That is not happening for you, so obviously, there is something amiss. You are not going crazy.

Believe it or not, I know a colleague, an advanced and experienced dentist himself, that went through something similar. He too was not being listened to by his dentist, so he switched. When he went in for his first appointment, he asked the hygienist to take a periapical x-ray in hopes of getting some more information. Boy did he!

It turned out that the tooth under his crown was halfway eaten from decay from the inside. He didn’t feel pain because that tooth had a root canal treatment done on it, just as yours did. It was a good thing he kept following up on this because that decay could have spread and caused a massive dental emergency with little warning.

The solution in his case was to have the tooth extracted and replaced with a dental implant. In your place, I would suggest that you go back to your dentist and ask for this same type of X-ray. Follow your gut and until you are comfortable, don’t back down. If he won’t follow up, find a different dentist.

This blog is brought to you by Gilbert Dentist Dr. Matt Roper.

Emergency Dentist

Can a Dental Infection Cause a Fever?

I tried to schedule an emergency dental appointment for my daughter with her pediatric dentist because she said her tooth hurt. Because she had a fever as well, I assumed there was a dental infection there. My pediatric office sort of dismissed me and said that dental infections don’t cause fevers. Maybe I am missing something, but I was under the impression that any infection can be present with a fever?

Carla

Dear Carla,

Young girl in a dental chair smiling

While, technically, any infection can cause a fever, it is not a common symptom of a dental infection. That being said, I don’t think your pediatric dentist should have just blown you off. You were obviously worried about your daughter and there were some legitimate reasons to wonder if it had to do with a dental issue.

You didn’t say if it was her upper or lower teeth. Sometimes, when upper teeth are hurting and there is a fever present, the thing to check would be for a sinus infection. Our upper teeth are close to our sinus cavity, so it is not unusual for the pain to radiate to the mouth and for it to feel like the teeth are hurting.

It was wise for you to call. Dental infections can quickly turn into dental emergencies rather quickly. If your child’s dentist isn’t taking your concerns as a parent seriously, it is time to find a new dentist for her. There are general dentists who are good with children. That may be an option for you.

This blog is brought to you by Gilbert Dentist Dr. Matt Roper.

Emergency Dentist

Is a Cracked Crown a Dental Emergency?

I have five porcelain crowns. They have served me well for just over 15 years. With one, there has been a slight defect in it from the beginning. It was never before visible, but could only be felt by my tongue. Lately, it has changed. I can now see it and it feels more like a crack. I am assuming I have to replace the crown, which I am fine with. I am just wondering if it requires an emergency appointment. I don’t want it to break in public.

Allie

Dear Allie,

Gilbert CEREC Crown

While I would not consider this a dental emergency, I would not put it off either. Based on the changes you described, I would expect it to go sometime soon. It has had a good life. Given the amount of time you’ve had all of these crowns, I would expect that others will start to show their age soon too. You have a couple of choices here. You could replace the dental crowns all at once, or you can just replace them one at a time. There are benefits to both.

If you get them done all at once, you will be done with it. Though, of course that is a bigger chunk of money at once. If you do them one at a time, you can pay a little at a time, but you will be making trips to the dentist more often, possibly at unexpected and inconvenient times. It really is six of one; half a dozen of the other. It’s just which inconvenience is the least problematic for you.

One thing to be aware of is that you don’t want a dentist saying you have to replace them all at the same time in order for them to match. That tells me the dentist does not have adequate cosmetic skill. Speaking of aesthetics. If you want to whiten your teeth, the time to do it is now before you have the new crown made. This way, the crown can be made to match the new whiter color. It is certainly not required. I just wanted you to be aware that teeth whitening only works on natural tooth structure so the crowns themselves will not whiten.

This blog is brought to you by Gilbert Dentist Dr. Matt Roper.

Emergency Dentist

Antibiotics and a Tooth Infection

I went to see a dentist because of serious pain I was having along with swelling in my cheek that went all the way up to my eye. He said I have a massive infection and gave me some antibiotics. I have been taking them. The infection seemed to be getting better but then got worse again. Now I am out of antibiotics. Do I just call to get a refill or is something else going on?

Morgan

Dear Morgan,

Man in pain, grabbing his cheek in need of emergency dental care.

Are you certain the dentist you went to didn’t tell you to make a follow-up appointment? Antibiotics alone do not cure a tooth infection the way they do with other types of bacterial infections. Instead, they just keep the infection from spreading. The reason tooth infections are different is because, at some point, the pulp inside the tooth dies. This means there is no longer any blood flow to get the antibiotic to the infected tissue.

This means while the infection will seem to improve for a bit, without completing the treatment the infection will return. When that happens, it is dangerous and considered a dental emergency. This is where you are now.

The Solution to a Tooth Infection

The only way to truly solve a tooth infection is to remove the infected pulp. A dentist can do this two ways. The first is a root canal treatment. This is what you want because it will save your tooth. If that doesn’t work or it is too late to save the tooth, your next option is a tooth extraction.

If you end up having to extract the tooth, you’ll also want to replace it. Because you lose the root of your tooth when you have an extraction, you will want to replace that root. The only tooth replacement that does this is a dental implant. Without replacing the root, the minerals in the jawbone where the tooth was will begin to resorb and the bone in that area begins to disappear.

Bottom line, this is serious. Get to a dentist right away and get this treated.
This blog is brought to you by Gilbert Dentist Dr. Matt Roper.