If you've ever had an infected tooth, you know it can be extremely painful. While root canal therapy and extraction are the only options to remove the infection, there are several treatments your dentist may recommend. If your dentist believes you have a tooth infection, check out these four possible treatment options.
Antibiotics and Pain Medication
Depending on your level of pain and when the dentist can treat the tooth, you may be prescribed antibiotics and/or pain medication. The antibiotics help reduce some of the infection, which eases stress on the pulp, reducing pain along with pain medication. Some dentists choose to prescribe antibiotics after treatment to ensure an infection does not return. If you are getting root canal therapy to fully remove the infection, your dentist may actually break up treatment into multiple visits, so you can take a dose of antibiotics before the root canal treatment is completed.
Root Canal Therapy
Root canal therapy is the ideal way to actually cure the infected tooth. With this procedure, the entire tooth pulp, including the roots of the tooth are removed and replaced with a dental filling compound. Unfortunately, like having a huge filling, this makes the tooth weak, so you will also need to have a crown placed, further increasing the already expensive price, much of which must be paid out of your own pocket.
Retreatment
While uncommon, you may need to have the tooth retreated. This often occurs when the dentist misses some tooth pulp deep in the tooth roots. With living tissue still inside the tooth, the infection can spread again, causing pain. The dentist can perform another root canal treatment to remove the remaining infection and tooth pulp.
Extraction
If the retreatment doesn't work, there may be damage to the tooth's roots, which may require extraction to prevent the infection from returning again. In other cases, extraction may be necessary because the root canal treatment failed, and the tooth shattered. Depending on how badly the tooth breaks, the dentist may be able to rebuild the tooth, but extraction is likely. Last, you may not be able to afford root canal therapy and a dental crown. Tooth extraction is extremely cheap and often completely covered by insurance.
If your tooth is infected, you should start seeking treatment immediately. Even if you aren't in pain now, the infection may worsen. For more information about tooth extraction or treatment, contact a dentist in your area today.
Share8 September 2018
Being born with naturally soft teeth, I've spent a lot of time in and out of the dentist's office. Not only have I learned a lot about basic dental care, I've also discovered many tips for dealing with broken teeth, extractions, implants, and more. I decided that I wanted to make the most of my experience by sharing what I've learned with others. True first-hand experience is a great teacher, and I knew that my story could help. I created this site to do just that, and I hope that the information here helps you to understand what to expect from your dental problems.