Suggest Treatment For Pain And Pressure In Lower Jaw, Gums And Teeth
Question: For almost two weeks now I've had pain and pressure in my lower jaw/gums/teeth in the front. The pain really intensified over the weekend, so on Monday I went to the dentist. They did an xray and a series of tests and determined #24 nerve is dead, so I need a root canal. My root canal is scheduled for Friday. The dentist said there didn't seem to be an infection on the xray. She saw a pulp stone in the dead tooth, and put me on antibiotics as a precaution. I took two amoxicillin pills on Monday (lunch and dinner) and 3 pills Tuesday. The swelling seemed to be worse on Tuesday. Should I be concerned about the infection spreading since the swelling was worse today (Tuesday)? I'm worried it will spread to my heart or brain. Also, why is there pain if the nerve is dead? And I just had a dental cleaning five weeks ago, they didn't do an xray at that time, but they did clean my teeth. On Monday, the dentist checked the "pockets" and said my gums were very healthy - so how did this develop? And why didn't she see an infection on the xray?
Brief Answer:
Root canal treatment
Detailed Answer:
Hello and thanks for writing in.
Pain and swelling in the particular teeth indicates an infection either periapical or periodontal.
In some cases improper cleaning of gums also leads to post treatment swelling. But as in your case doctor says that your gums are healthy I think that its a periapical infection that needs an endodontic treatment.
Root canal treatment can cause decrease in swelling and pain. If there is a pulp stone in the teeth that makes the procedure difficult.
I would advice you to go for endodontic treatment. If you can upload your xray that would give me a better picture.
Hope this answer helps.
Regards
Dr. Shesh
Root canal treatment
Detailed Answer:
Hello and thanks for writing in.
Pain and swelling in the particular teeth indicates an infection either periapical or periodontal.
In some cases improper cleaning of gums also leads to post treatment swelling. But as in your case doctor says that your gums are healthy I think that its a periapical infection that needs an endodontic treatment.
Root canal treatment can cause decrease in swelling and pain. If there is a pulp stone in the teeth that makes the procedure difficult.
I would advice you to go for endodontic treatment. If you can upload your xray that would give me a better picture.
Hope this answer helps.
Regards
Dr. Shesh
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Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Ashwin Bhandari