What causes swelling after toothache?

Question

Hi doctor,

I had a toothache for the past 48 hours. It made the right side of my face completely swell. The toothache has now gone, but the swelling is increasing and started affecting the eye area. I have applied heat and ice to the swollen area, but neither has worked. Please give me some advice to quickly reduce the swelling as I have an important event later today.

Please help.

Answer 1

Hi,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

The swelling that you have seems to be an abscess or pus due to infection. This infection is most likely due to your tooth decay over a long period, which has spread to the bone and around your soft tissues like muscles. In the face region, swelling increases rapidly in size due to multiple natural pathways that connect each other. It is a potentially dangerous situation. The abscess needs to be drained quickly. If allowed to progress, then it may lead to the infection spreading to the brain or even may lead to breathing difficulty. I suggest you antibiotic Augmentin 625 mg twice daily along with analgesics. Contact an oral surgeon or a dentist as soon as possible for physical evaluation and take the medicine with consent. Follow up and get the tooth treated once the infection subsides. Do warm salt water rinses and apply ice to the swelling. Do not apply heat as it will spread the infection further.

I hope this helps.

Thank you.