A Brief Overview Of Dental Infections
Thousands of people develop dental infections each year. In most cases, prompt treatment can result in complete recovery. However, a tooth infection can cause both oral health problems and other potentially serious medical issues when left untreated.
Also known as dental abscesses, tooth infections occur when bacteria-laden pus pockets form in a specific part of the mouth. There are two different types of dental abscesses: a periapical infection, which forms at the tip of a tooths root, and periodontal, which appears inside the gums or at the sides of the tooth root.
Symptoms may vary from person to person depending upon the location of the infection and the severity of the abscess. The most common symptoms include severe throbbing pain in the impacted tooth, a discomfort that may spread to the jawbone or neck, sensitivity to hot and cold exposure, difficulty biting or chewing, oral or facial swelling, and elevated body temperature.
What To Do About An Infected Tooth
If you suspect you have an infected tooth, the first thing you should do is schedule an appointment with your dentist as soon as you can. If you have severe pain, are having trouble breathing, or notice any signs of sepsis, an emergency room can provide you with more prompt care. Never ignore an infected tooth, because it will not go away on its own, and the symptoms and pain will likely worsen quickly.
Once your infected tooth has been treated or is healing from the infection and any subsequent procedure, you may experience a little pain or tenderness. You can gently clean the area by swishing salt water in your mouth, and over the counter pain relievers will help ease any discomfort. Follow any instructions that your dentist gives you.
Are you looking for a dentist near you who can treat tooth infections? Klement Family Dental is happy to help! Our caring, compassionate team of professionals understands that sometimes, patients may be nervous when visiting the dentist, especially for a problem like an infected tooth. We strive to make you comfortable and help you relax during your procedure. Oral health is such an important component of your overall health, and we believe you should never avoid the dentist because youre scared. If youre in the St. Petersburg, Florida area,contact us to learn more about the services we offer. We have two convenient locations and a team of expert staff ready to make your next dental visit a pleasant experience.
Always Floss Your Teeth After Brushing
In addition to brushing frequently, always make sure your toothbrush is in good condition. Also, after brushing, make sure you floss your teeth properly, and as a golden rule, Never share your toothbrush with anyone. Flossing your teeth should be done regularly to remove tartar and other dirt from between your teeth.
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Got An Earache Suspect An Infected Tooth Come To Muse Dental Now
Muse Dental is proud to be a high-performance dental clinic with over 20 years of experience. If an infected tooth can cause ear or toothache, you can make an appointment on the same day. At Muse Dental Group, dentists experienced emergency root canal treatment. Over 200 patients were very satisfied and chose Muse Dental for their treatment. We are confident that we will offer suitable treatment and be comfortable throughout the process. Our experienced dentists are knowledgeable and special, delivering the best dental treatment. We would like to have a medical examination with a professional doctor of the Muse Dental Group.
Update: Dangerous Abscesses And Hearing Loss
A bit of an update, starting out with an unsurprising message: Dont fool around with a tooth abscess. Especially if you are diabetic or have other things messing with your immune system, because it makes us more prone to infections and various dental problems in the first place, and also makes it harder to fight them off and heal. Im not always so good at following my own advice, but seriously. You will be sorry if you think you may have an abscess, and dont deal with it ASAP.
He declared that Ludwigs angina was an emergency, adding that by the time the condition developed in an individual, such may have hearing and understanding difficulty and find himself in serious distress. This is a condition caused by dental infection. The patient had been careless over his dental care for a while, he had been tolerating a lot of pains and this had resulted in the infection spreading to the floor of the mouth, where the tongue was.#
But, the main thing I wanted to write about today is more directly related to my last post on CAPD. Im running out of steam, so will just paste in something I shared with Mr. U again, maybe adding some more links. In short, a lot of the worsening problems that Ive been attributing to auditory processing are probably coming from actual hearing loss.
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How Do You Know If A Tooth Infection Has Spread To Your Brain
Symptoms of a brain abscess
headache which is often severe, located in a single section of the head and cannot be relieved with painkillers. changes in mental state such as confusion or irritability. problems with nerve function such as muscle weakness, slurred speech or paralysis on one side of the body.
The Process Of Hearing
First, lets review how hearing works. When your outer ear collects sound waves, the vibrations funnel into the ear canal, through the eardrum, and into the middle ear, where they vibrate tiny bones called ossicles. The vibrations then reach the innermost part of the ear, an organ called the cochlea. Here, the vibrations stimulate fluid and tiny hair cells, which translate the vibrations into electrical impulses. The brain detects these impulses via the auditory nerve and interprets them.
If any of these components fail to complete its job properly, you will experience auditory issues. Common complications include damaged hair cells, perforated or ruptured eardrums, ear infections, and otosclerosis.
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What Else Have Your Patients Asked About Tinnitus And Dental Issues
Most patients arent aware of the connection between these two issues, and frequently we find that as we go through our comprehensive evaluation, it comes up in conversation. Theres always a chance we can help patients improve through individualized dental treatment. A lot of otolaryngologists also arent aware of the connection, and if they dont see a structural issue such as an ear infection, they may be at a loss as to what to do next. In those cases, patients may end up living with the discomfort. Thats why Im such a proponent of collaboration between providers. It frequently takes two or more specialized doctors to resolve an issue that involves more than one part of the body.
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Blaming Bacteria That Starts In The Mouth
The nasty bacteria that are able to thrive in your mouth and wreak havoc there also have the potential to get into your bloodstream. Once there, the bacteria are capable of traveling to other parts of your body, causing further damage. Scary, right?
Basically, when you arent keeping the bacteria in your mouth in check with a consistent at-home oral hygiene routine and regular trips to the dentist, youre upping the odds that the bacteria will travel into the blood, leading to inflammation. Your blood vessels and arteries might end up becoming narrower than they should be, and that may, in turn, adversely affect your hearing. But the worst part is that, if hearing loss does occur, it might be permanent!
Wait, how do blood vessels play a role in your ability to hear? Well, the hair cells in the ear could become damaged, or even die, when blood vessels become narrow because the cells will no longer receive enough blood. Beyond that, however, bacteria that originated in the mouth might also cause inflammation within blood vessels in your brain, and that may end up reducing blood flow to the area of your brain that receives information through the auditory nerve, thereby impacting your ability to hear clearly. Who knew?!
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What Exactly Is Tinnitus
Its estimated that about one in every five people is affected by tinnitus, which is a ringing or noise in the ears. But tinnitus isnt a condition in itself its actually the symptom of an underlying condition. Some of these underlying conditions could be hearing loss, injury to the ear, or some sort of circulatory disorder.
Another common cause if tinnitus is a dental injury or dental issue, whether it involves the jaw or the temporomandibular joint, better known as the TMJ. Somatic tinnitus is the term given to the version that is attributable to injuries to the head or neck area. Symptoms of somatic tinnitus may include noticeable fluctuations in sound volume, intermittency, headaches, memory loss or increased forgetfulness, and an increased likelihood of being depressed or sad.
If you have tinnitus that is caused by the misalignment of the TMJ or an injury to the mouth, thats a condition that can be corrected by Drs. Fraker and Cahoo and our team at Green Lake Dental Care. We will work to relieve your symptoms by realigning the jaw or adjusting your bite with routine dental care. Sometimes we wont even have to go this far, because an oral infection or gum infection may be causing your problem. We might also recommend other life changes, such as dietary adjustments and medication.
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Milder Symptoms But More Contagious
Whats becoming clearer, however, is that omicron, while highly contagious, appears to cause more mild, coldlike symptoms. Many people are presenting with sore throat, nasal congestion, headache, muscle aches, Roberts says.
Data collected so far show that individuals infected with omicron are significantly less likely to be hospitalized than those infected with delta, even though hospitalization rates are at an all-time high due to skyrocketing case counts. Theyre also less likely to require intensive care. This is not the case for everybody, experts caution. Some patients experience serious symptoms with omicron, like trouble breathing, Washer notes. We are still seeing people end up on ventilators and having severe disease, Roberts adds.
Health experts are trying to determine whether omicrons less severe symptoms are a product of the variant itself or a reflection of a majority-vaccinated population that is better able to blunt some of its worst effects. The vaccine-plus-booster regimen is about 75 percent effective against symptomatic disease, and protection against severe disease is likely higher, researchers report. Both Roberts and Washer say the majority of people who are hospitalized with COVID-19 are unvaccinated.
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Can An Ear Infection Cause Long
by Hearing HealthCare Centers | Aug 15, 2018 | Hearing Loss Articles
Otitis media is the medical name for what you probably call an ear infection. These ear infections can affect adults and children alike, especially after a cold or sinus infection. Even a bad tooth can bring on an ear infection.
Hearing loss is one of the primary indications of an infection in the middle ear. But is it permanent? To come up with a precise answer can be fairly complex. There are quite a few variables to consider. There is damage which can be caused that you need to understand and also how this damage can affect your ability to hear.
The Dentist Is Your Friend
Like the ides of march in the Julio Caesar story, never fight with your dentist because they play a crucial role in helping you live an excellent oral hygienic life. So, to ensure your oral health is intact, it is advisable to visit your dentist at least once every six months. Doing this will enable you to have up-to-date information about your oral health. During the visit, your dentist will run a series of tests on your teeth. If any issues can cause discomfort, the routine check will help you in diagnosing the causes of the ailment and also proffer the recommended treatment.
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Could An Untreated Abscess On A Tooth Lead To Mild Hearing Loss And A Ringing In The Ear
Ask U.S. doctors your own question and get educational, text answers â it’s anonymous and free!
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How Do Toothaches Affect Your Ear
You may have toothaches and earaches at some point in your life, but they can be linked together. How can you tell the difference? Doctors and dentists can usually tap your teeth or gums to find out if a tooth problem is causing pain in the back of the ear. You can also distinguish earache caused by toothache instead of earache caused by specific symptoms. Earache is usually related to cold symptoms, congestion, loss of appetite, hearing loss, and balance problems, but these are not symptoms of a toothache.
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This Permanent Damage Can Be Prevented
First and foremost, consult a doctor if you believe that you have an ear infection. You shouldnt wait if you want to protect your hearing. Always have chronic ear infection checked by a doctor. More damage is caused by more serious infections. Finally, take steps to prevent colds, allergies, and sinus infections because that is where ear infections usually start. Its time to quit smoking because it causes chronic respiratory problems which can, in turn, lead to ear infections.
If you are still having problems hearing after getting an ear infection, consult a doctor. There are other things which can cause conductive hearing loss, but it may be possible that you may have some damage. Hearing aids can be very helpful if you have permanent hearing loss. You should schedule an appointment with a hearing specialist to get more information on hearing aids.
Will My Hearing Loss Be Permanent After An Ear Infection
by Anderson Audiology | Aug 15, 2018 | Hearing Loss Articles
An ear infection is the well-known name, but its medically referred to as otitis media or AOM. These ear infections can have an affect on children as well as adults, particularly after a cold or sinus infection. If you have a bad tooth, that can also lead to an ear infection.
Hearing loss is one of the primary symptoms of an infection in the middle ear. But is it going to last forever? You might not recognize it but there is no simple answer. Ear infections have a lot going on. There is damage which can be caused that you need to understand and also how that injury can affect your hearing.
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Beyond Bacteria: Tmj Wisdom Teeth And Hearing Loss
In addition to bacteria, other oral health problems, such as TMJ and infected wisdom teeth, may end up causing hearing problems or hearing loss. Lets start with TMJ before moving on to wisdom teeth, shall we?
- TMJ is short for temporomandibular joint disorder . This is a painful condition that should be treated. Basically, the temporomandibular joint is the joint that connects your jaw to your skull. When it becomes inflamed, talking and chewing may hurt, but TMJ might even cause hearing problems. For example, you might notice that your ears seem clogged or that your hearing is muffled. How annoying! Or you might notice that youve developed tinnitus .
How is this possible? Well, there seems to be a connection between this joint and the middle ear. Experts believe that, if the joints disc shifts out of alignment, the nerves and Eustachian tube may feel more pressure than they should, and the Eustachian tube may become clogged as a result. Beyond that, TMJ might also lead to inflammation that blocks the Eustachian tube, causing hearing problems.
Good news, though: if you work with your dentist to resolve the TMJ, you might also regain the hearing that was lost. So, if you have symptoms of TMJ, dont hesitate to see a pro to get relief ASAP.
Conductive Hearing Loss From Ear Infections
Chronic ear infections can cause conductive hearing loss. When this happens the inner ear doesnt get sound waves at the proper strength. The ear has mechanisms along the canal which amplify the sound wave so that when it reaches the tiny hair cells of the inner ear, it is intense enough to create a vibration. Sometimes something changes along this route and the sound is not effectively amplified. This is known as conductive hearing loss.
Bacteria dont just sit and do nothing in the ear when you have an ear infection. They must eat to survive, so they break down those components that amplify sound waves. Usually, this type of damage includes the eardrum and the tiny little bones. The bones are very fragile and it doesnt take much to break them up. If you lose these bones they dont grow back. You dont just get your hearing back once this damage happens. In certain cases, surgeons can install prosthetic bones to repair hearing. The eardrum can restore itself but it will probably have scar tissue affecting its ability to move. This can also potentially be repaired with surgery.
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