Tooth Abscess Symptom

Video Transcript

"I'm Dr. Joe Neely, and I practice with the Barton Oaks Dental Group. We're going to talk about the signs of an abscessed tooth. An abscessed tooth, an abscess is simply an infection that's contained, trapped in an area. In the case of the tooth, it would be trapped first, in the inner chamber of the tooth, and then, in the surrounding structures, or between the tooth, and the surrounding structures, of bone and ligament. The signs initially, as the infection or abscess begins to affect the nerve tissue inside the tooth, the tooth becomes hypersensitive. It more dramatically responds to changes in temperature, be they cold or hot. Also, would be tactile sensation. It would be more sensitive to being tapped on, or to being struck with an object, like a tooth brush, or a fork, or the other teeth against it. As the abscess spreads into the surrounding structure, then the pressure becomes more hydraulic in nature, so even more intense. As the abscess begins to expand, it would create a void in the bone, around the infection, around the root tip, create an enlargement of the ligament. The ligament can drain up into the gum. The gums surrounding a tooth, could become engorged and swollen, and red, and painful to the touch. If given enough time, there would be a period of time, where the abscessed tooth, only hurts with pressure. It no longer responds to temperature, because there's no nerve tissue in the tooth, any longer. That usually is a brief period of time, until the infection worsens, and you get a much more dramatic increase, in pressure related pain."