What are the symptoms of a severely abscessed tooth?

Question

Two months ago I had a very bad toothach and the dentist gave me meds to help the infection and said I need a root canal. I have no dental insurance so I have put it off. Two months later I have a large knot above that tooth. I also am having trouble breathing in my right sinus. Lately I have been experiecing pain in my ears too. I am getting very worried but i cant afford to get the root canal. I guess my question is, can I die from putting off getting it treated?

Answer 1

Same thing with me except mine happened 2 years ago and I still haven't gotten it fixed.

I will next month; and I'v been experiencing weird pains as well for the past 2 years; nothing a little caffiene couldn't fix up...

You can start forming puss in your gums that will reach your jaw etc..etc... but the odds of that are small if you brush your teeth no matter how much it hurts...

And if you want to get it out ASAP go to the emergency room during normal business hours (10am-2pm) and complain BIGTIME about your tooth, cry say the pain is hell; they'll remove it for you and bill you and you can make a payment plan after they send you the bill.

Or talk to your dentist and he can prlly help you out as well.

Answer 2

To answer you, you need to understand what an abscess is.

Basically it is the tooth dying. The nerve is slowly dying and rotting away. This produces gas which produces pressure and pain on the nerves that are still with you. The rot also produces acids which will slowly disolve the bone (ie: jaw or skull - and you only have ONE of those)..

And, of course, the body tries to stem the problem by producing antibodies (swelling and infection). That is systemic and gets your lymph nodes swelling and adjacent tissue hurting. The infection then begins to be a body-wide issue The pain in your ears is likely pressure related from the swelling. The knot above the tooth is definately.

Ok you have two choices...

1) Get the root canal. That will save the tooth if the socket is still intact enough to hold it. It will eventually go black or discolored so you should also plan on a crown or cap. YOu will also need to have the doctor prescribe something to deal with the infection(s).

2) Have the tooth extracted. If the decay and rot is into the jaw or skull you may still have a problem (again.. TIME is the important element here). Again.. see the doctor !!!!

These are issues that the dentist needs to address and that you need to sit down and talk with him about. Not to scare you but they CAN have a serious impact on your life - not just for this tooth but for your mouth and system. Stress on your body system is not good. If you are in poor shape to start with it might even be REALLY serious. Putting it off is not an option.. since what you have there is a little mini pressure cooker.

If you can not afford your dentist, check with the county and see if they have some kind of support plan.

OK.. that was the GOOD news.. the Bad news is that because of the infection the effectiveness of anesthetic is greatly reduced. It is going to hurt like hell.

Meantime start eating motrin.. that will help a bit but it is NOT a cure.

Answer 3

A bad abscess can cause all kinds of health problems beyond your mouth. At the very least, you need to be on another antibiotic to control this infection. If you won't be able to afford a root canal for a long time, I would suggest you either try to work out a payment plan with your dentist, or have the tooth pulled. Yes, you could potentially die from putting this off too long!

Answer 4

If this is not some silly joke......

You ought to be getting worried honey. You have a spreading sinus infection that could spread to your brain, and yes, you could indeed die. What ARE you thinking... Hello?? Your body is telling you something. So see a dentist today, get some antibiotics, You cannot have a root canal done while it is so infected. And if it is bad enough, no endodontist will even do one.... you may loose the tooth, because you have bone infections in your jaw.... see a dentist or doc today.

Answer 5

Yes, you can die. The infection can travel to your heart and cause a heart attack. I understand that denists are too expensive, especially when you have no insurance, but you really need to get that taken care of. Do you have a college with a dentistry department in it in your area? If so, they probably have a clinic where you can have it taken care of for much cheaper. Even at worst, you could have it extracted - I would persoally rather have a tooth extracted than croak from a heart attack.

Answer 6

egyptian dentist.a dental abcess can really cause serious problems.we dont wanna make you panic i am practicing for 4 years now . i saw the very serious complication like death or spreading of the infection to the brain only once in my life .but it is theoriticaly possible specially if your immunity is weak for any reason.so it is not the big deal if treated time is important .first antibiotic .then immidiatly root canal ttt or extraction.but never leave it. with the passing of time evry thing will be harder .and dont be afraid the anathesia will work good after antibiotic and relif of inflamation

Answer 7

SUNI,

THE PROBLEM WITH THIS ABSCESSED TOOTH MUST BE DEALT WITH IMMEDIATELY. EVERY DAY THAT GOES BY THE INFECTION TRAVELS THROUGHOUT YOUR BODY AND YOUR IMMUNE SYSTEM IS DOING ALL IT CAN TO KEEP YOU FROM DYING.
THIS ABSCESS IS A POTENTIALLY LETHAL SITUATION.

Answer 8

Not to sacre you, but the infection can spread throughout your body and can do major damage. If you can't afford the treatment, ask your dentist about alternate solutions, such as an extraction.

Answer 9

not true i've never had an abescess on a tooth and my ears have been ringing for 35 years.