Ask a Periodontist: How Does Your Dentist Treat an Abscessed Tooth

An abscessed tooth is a tooth that has an infection within it that has gone beyond the tough outer layers of the tooth and gotten into the softer and more sensitive pulp of the tooth. An abscess typically occurs down where the root of the tooth meets the gum and the jaw, at the place where the points of the tooth are anchored below the gums at the jawbone. The defining characteristic of the abscess is that it has pus or infected matter that needs to be removed, and the main goal and mission of the dentist treating an abscessed tooth is to clean out this pus or dead tissue and harmful fluid and restore the tooth to health.

Treating an abscess inside the gum or tooth is not unlike the treatment of a surface wound or infection. For example, if you have a thorn in your finger or some kind of infected sore on your skin, it can be treated by removing the problem, cleaning the area and applying antibiotic ointment, and then washing it and bandaging it until it heals. The main difference is that since the problem is in a hard to get part of the mouth, working to heal an abscess becomes a significant dental procedure.

Because an abscess is in a deep location, fixing it requires a form of dental surgery. To ensure that the patient is comfortable during the procedure the dentist will choose some kind of painkiller or anesthetic. Once the pain medication is administered – which usually requires an injection or two into the gum – the procedure will begin as the dentist creates an access point to get to the precise site of the abscess. He or she will study X rays and do a visual examination using probing tools and other instruments, and in that way come up with the most simple and straightforward strategy for attacking the problem area with the minimal amount of invasive surgery. If the abscess can be gotten to by making a small incision in the gum, for example, that is where the dentist will work. In other cases the dentist may find it easier to drill down to the abscess through the crown of the tooth.

Once the path to the abscess is made, the dentist will then use a variety of methods to remove the diseased material, drain the pus, and completely clean and sanitize the wound or pocket of the abscess. Tools specially made for this kind of dental work include tiny scoops shaped like spoons, small suction tools, and various types of instruments that gauze or cotton pads can be attached to that facilitate the soaking up of infected fluids and blood. Then medicines that have an anti bacterial effect can be swapped or injected into the cavity where the abscess was removed, and the entire area can be completely cleaned and then sealed up and closed.

Afterwards the dentist will usually prescribe some drugs like antibiotics, aspirin, and painkillers to help with the healing process and make sure that the patient is as comfortable as possible. He or she will do a follow up examination or two to check that the healing is going well, and within a short time the abscess tooth will be completely taken care of and its trouble will become a distant memory.