Abcess on Wisdom Tooth, extraction??

[Perdyhorses]

Hi, I'm wondering if anyone out there has had an abscess on a wisdom tooth, not had it out, and not had a problem since? I had an abscess on a wisdom tooth 3 months ago which cleared up nicely with one course of antibiotics. I have seen 4 dentists (2 emergency, 2 locum). Three say I should have it out to prevent further potential problems. One said "if it's not bothering you leave well alone". Of course I want to go with the "leave it" guy, I'm a wimp when it comes to teeth, but the abscess was really painful. Please share your experiences, thank you

I had an abcess on my wisdom tooth it would be okay for a while then get very sore. I ended up having it out as an emergency appt at the hospital and the relief the moment it was out was incredible

Honestly, have it out...
I had problems with one wisdom teeth causing infections. I actually had all 4 out as the top two kept decending. It wasn’t the most pleasant 2 weeks but so worth not having to worry about it now.
Get it booked in for a time when it’s not an inconvenience to avoid having to have it removed when it is, inevitably, very inconvenient!
Best of luck!

Have it out. The fourth dentist said “If it’s not bothering you, leave well alone”. It might not be bothering you at the moment, but if there’s been an abscess above it, the likelihood is that the nerve in it has died, with no blood supply to the tooth and that’s a perfect confined chamber for the growth of bacteria. That means that the abscess could recur.

I had to have my upper left 6 molar out because of abscess and pain; that was a much harder decision because it’s (just) in the smile zone and it’s absence is a very great presence because of its support for adjacent teeth and affect on my bite etc...but a wisdom tooth is right at the back and these teeth are notoriously temperamental.

Have it out and be done with it.

Have it out. I had the same (but not a wisdom tooth, another one), and thought it was okay. About three weeks ago, the pain came back and it was agony. Had a large infection which swoll one side of my face up. Really, it is up there as one of the most painful experiences of my life. Never again will I just hope it all goes away against dental advice.

Was it an abscess or was it pericoronitis?

www.nhs.uk/conditions/wisdom-tooth-removal/

Well Bickles they told me it was an abscess not perocoronitis. Thank you all so much for your advice, I almost cancelled my appt (next Wed, with sedation because I'm so scared) this morning but decided to ask advice....now thinking of maybe just getting it over with!

If it's an abscess due to decay / broken tooth then yes you will need it out. If it's pericoronitis which is inflammation of the tissues/gum flap covering the wisdom tooth then you need to meet NICE guidelines.

NICE guidelines indicate there needs to be recurrent infections to warrant extraction as there is a risk of nerve damage when removing a wisdom tooth

I had one 30 odd years ago, it’s still there and trouble free.

I currently kind of have one I've had for years. I've had a root canal which is failing but 95% of the time it doesn't bother me, and it only flares mildly and occasionally. My dentist is also of the 'if it isn't bothering you then leave it' school and I'm definitely not wanting to go through it. I'd have to be knocked unconscious for them to do it anyway!

Well I was sent to hospital for a full xray because the dentist's equipment didn't reach that far back. The xray showed that one of the roots (nerves?) was dying,almost certainly due to a filling I had 4 months previously which was a big job and very painful despite 4 injections (hence my fear!). The said this meant I would continue to have problems, and since the NHS don't do root canal on wisdom teeth they advised to have it out. I''m69, still got all my teeth and would quite like to keep the all. Just wondering if I should give the tooth a second chance and see what happens..........

If a nerve is dying then it is an actual abscess so the tooth will require removal. You need to remove the source of infection otherwise it will flare up again.

Ok so I understand a lot more about what's going on now, thank you happygertie, but now I'm scared about permanent nerve damage afterwards if I decide to go ahead, anyone had this? I know I must seem a complete wimp but I've had quite a lot of surgery in my life, some of it life saving, and some very recent, so I'd just like a period of calm. Having said that, I was in a great deal of pain with the abscess so if it flared up again I wouldn't be at all calm!

The risks are minimal but they just have to make you aware of them. It's very unlikely and if it does occur then it's more likely to be temporary than permanent. That's the reason for the large x-ray that your dentist couldn't take, its shows the position of the roots in relation to the nerve.

If it was an actual abscess because the tooth is dying have it out.

Yes there's a risk of permanent nerve damage, however your tooth's infected and it's only going to get another abscess. Wisdom teeth infection can spread and be quite severe. You will have to have it out at some point, and that risk isn't going to go away.

The risk of permanent nerve damage is low, the risk of infection from a wisdom tooth spreading is higher. The risk of getting another abscess at some point in 100%.

I've had my wisdom tooth out today!!!. Bit unpleasant but nothing bad. Just stung a bit having the needles then nothing. Bit of tugging and pushing then it's done. Had an abscess on and off over the last year and have taken antibiotics a few times but honestly it will just keep coming back.

I wish I'd dealt with it properly when it first became a problem because it's caused another problem now which I didn't realise were connected until my consultant asked how my dental health was, probably because I was going a few months with no symptoms between courses of antibiotics.

It's inflamed my vestibular nerve and caused me to develop really awful vertigo that's landed me in hospital more than once, terrible vomiting and spinning. Then I also got a facial palsy, while right side of my face drooped and I thought I'd had a stroke! The infection has inflamed all the nerves in that side of my face.

I'd strongly recommend getting it sorted out permanently. Best of luck x

Definitely have it out. I was scheduled for sedation but ended up having to do it with just local anaesthetic as an emergency appt. Although it appeared that things were better the whole cavity was full of pus. It was absolutely disgusting when it was pulled out but like pp there was instant relief.
It was very sore imo for a couple of days after but I bought otc Co codomal and slept it off and was okay.
Definitely do it.

Can't thank you all enough for your comments and SO glad I didn't cancel the appt. Just have to take a deep breath and get it done. I feel so much better about going ahead now, it feels like the right decision which it didn't before, thank you all again {smile}

I have got two of my wisdom teeth out. It really wasn't anywhere near as bad as I anticipated. A bit unpleasant, of course, but not worse than other dental treatment I've had.

You’re 69 and up to now you’ve got all your teeth. You’re definitely ahead - well done!

Hope the extraction goes smoothly.

Hi, to everyone who helped me make my decision I say a huge thank you once again. Just home from the extraction and it was fine! The worst bit was the injections but the edge was taken off that with the sedation. Hopefully no dry socket or nerve damage to come; he said the nerve was very close but he isn't expecting any problems. He also said antibiotics only damp down the abscess they don't clear it, so it will keep recurring until antibiotics don't work anymore. So the right decision was made thanks to all of you, without this forum I would have cancelled.