I don’t have any dental insurance, or medical insurance either. I am writing to ask about a problem I am having, so I don’t waste my very limited resources in going to see the wrong professional.

Here is what has happened: Last week I broke one of my molars. It is the very back molar on the left side, right ahead of where my wisdom tooth used to be, in my lower jaw. Ever since I did that, I have a lot of pain in my cheek and jaw. In the last couple of days, the pain seems to be in my sinuses and nose, too. Basically right now my hold head and face just hurt!

I had some antibiotics left over from a recent infection (they are not expired), so I’ve been taking those but that doesn’t seem to be helping at all. Does all of this sound like it could be caused from that broken tooth, or is this more likely to be sinus issues? I know I need to see someone, but like I said I don’t want to waste my money on a visit to someone who is just going to tell me to go see someone different.

One of my co-workers said today that infections in your teeth can get in your brain?! Is that even true? She said that it can be really dangerous and that has me kind of freaked out. Any advice you can offer would be really helpful.

Thanks,

Eleanor in Ludington, MI

Dear Eleanor,

Your friend is correct–an infection in your tooth is dangerous, and can indeed spread to your brain. You must get this taken care of right away. The infection is spreading, and this will not get better on its own.

Call your dentist and see if he or she will work out some kind of payment plan. Very few dentists will turn away a patient in an emergency situation like this. If by some chance your dentist will not help you, keep calling around until you find one that will, or contact the local dental society (look in the yellow pages for a listing) and see if they maintain a list of emergency dentists in your area that can help patients without insurance or funds. You can also go into the emergency room and they will help you.

You should also discontinue the antibiotics immediately. If you take antibiotics for a tooth infection without treating the source of the infection within the tooth (and oral antibiotics do not touch it), then you simply strengthen the bacteria that remain and make them antibiotic-resistant. Only a root canal treatment or an extraction will reach the source of the infection. If you have to have an extraction, talk to your dentist about a dental bridge to replace the tooth. The location of the infected tooth means that a dental implant would be the best choice to replace the tooth, but dental implants are quite expensive and never covered by dental insurance.

Please do not delay. Get this taken care of right away, before the infection spreads further. Wishing you the best of health.

This blog post brought to you as a courtesy by the office of Lafayette Louisiana cosmetic dentist Dr. Malone.