How an Endodontist Treats a Tooth Abscess

An endodontist is a dental professional to visit when you have a tooth abscess. This condition could be why you feel pain around your mouth and jaw, discomfort while chewing, and gum inflammation. These symptoms often occur because the pulp in the tooth's inner layer dies, gets inflamed, and remains untreated. The infection that develops in or around the tooth's root may or may not be painful, but it is still essential to visit the endodontist once the symptoms become apparent.

Diagnosing a dental abscess

By physically evaluating the tooth, an endodontist may be able to identify an abscessed tooth. They may lightly touch the patient's teeth to check how they respond. An abscessed tooth is typically sensitive to pressure and touch.

To see if the infection has spread to other parts of the mouth, the endodontist may suggest diagnostic procedures, including X-rays and CT scans. The latter are used to determine whether the illness has progressed to the patient's neck. The objective of tooth abscess treatment is to get rid of the infection. Doing so usually relieves any pain or discomfort.

Treatment for tooth abscess

To treat an abscess, the endodontist will first treat the infection that caused it. The endodontist will begin by draining any fluid from the region around the afflicted tooth. A saline solution is used to sterilize the part, and a rubber drain may be placed to keep the area draining until the inflammation subsides.

A root canal, or endodontic surgery, is the typical treatment that an endodontist performs for abscesses. It requires eliminating germs from the tooth’s canals, cleaning, shaping, filling the root canals, and closing the tooth.

After some time has passed to ensure that the procedure was effective, patients will return to the dental office so the dentist can place a crown or another restoration on the tooth to prevent further damage and infection and restore it to full functionality. The tooth can function naturally once the process is complete.

A tooth may develop an abscess if a cavity goes untreated for a long time. The decay will generally spread until it reaches the pulp chamber containing the tooth's connective tissues, blood vessels, and nerves.

The endodontist may be able to salvage the tooth in many situations by doing root canal treatment. It is never a good idea to ignore an abscess, as the infection can spread to other areas of the body, including the heart and brain, and cause life-threatening complications.

Symptoms of a tooth abscess include:

• A persistent, debilitating toothache that spreads to the ear, neck, and jawbone.
• Sensitivity to cold and hot temperatures.
• Toothache while chewing.
• Swelling of the cheeks and other facial characteristics.
• Fever.
• Swollen and painful lymph nodes in the neck or beneath the jaw.
• A foul odor emanates from the mouth.
• An unpleasant taste in the mouth caused by the afflicted tooth.
• Swallowing or breathing problems.