Posted by writeradmin
I have a tooth that has been bothering me. I didn’t worry about it until the side of my face swelled up. I went to see my doctor thinking maybe it was a different problem. He checked everything over and said he is convinced it is a dental problem and I need to see a dentist. While I have medical insurance, I do not have dental insurance. I explained this to him but he still refused to treat the problem. He did give me some antibiotics but said I need to see a dentist soon. Well, the antibiotics didn’t work. I felt better for a couple of days and now the swelling has gone even further. Do I need a different antibiotic?
Brent
Dear Brent,
I’m glad you wrote. Your situation is serious. You currently have a dental emergency. If you don’t get treatment soon, then you will also have a life-threatening emergency. This infection is spreading up your face. You don’t want this infection reaching your brain. Believe it or not, people still die every year from untreated tooth infections.
I know you are frustrated with your doctor for not doing the treatment on your tooth, but the truth is he does not have that training, nor does he have the tools. The antibiotics he gave you would never have cured the tooth infection. What he was trying to do was buy you some time to get in to see a dentist. A dentist would have done the same thing if they could not get you in right away or if your infection needed to be brought under control before the permanent treatment was safe.
The only way to truly treat a tooth infection is to physically remove the infected pulp. A dentist can do this by either performing a root canal treatment or by extracting the tooth.
Most dentists are compassionate about financial limitations and will help you get the emergency treatment you need and then work out a payment plan for you. I’d start by looking for dentists who advertise themselves as an affordable dentist.
This blog is brought to you by Baton Rouge Dentist Dr. John Theriot.