Symptoms · dental abscess
Do I have a dental abscess?
A dental abscess is a pocket of infection at the root of a tooth or in the gum. Signs include throbbing pain, a swollen gum or face, a pimple on the gum and a bad taste. It won't clear up by itself. Call Y3 Smiles Dental in Broadmeadows today on (03) 9022 4442, and go to hospital if swelling is spreading or you can't swallow or breathe easily.
When does an abscess become urgent?
Go to hospital or call 000
- Swelling spreading towards your eye, down your neck or under your jaw
- Difficulty swallowing, breathing or opening your mouth
- A high fever, racing heart, or feeling confused or very unwell
Call us today
- A swollen, tender gum around one tooth
- A pimple or bump on the gum, with or without discharge
- Throbbing pain with a bad taste or bad breath that won't shift
- Mild swelling of the cheek that isn't spreading
Abscesses can get worse quickly. If your swelling changes after you've called us, ring back or go to hospital.
What are the signs of a dental abscess?
- Severe, throbbing pain in a tooth or the gum, sometimes spreading to the ear, jaw or neck
- A tooth that is very tender to touch or bite on, or feels slightly raised
- Redness and swelling in the gum, or swelling in your face
- A small pimple on the gum that may leak fluid
- A bad taste in your mouth or persistent bad breath
- Fever, or swollen glands under the jaw
Sometimes an abscess causes little pain at all, and is only found as a gum pimple or on an x-ray.
What causes an abscess?
Most dental abscesses start when bacteria get inside a tooth through deep decay, a crack or a leaking filling, and infect the nerve. The infection then collects at the tip of the root. Others form in the gum, often around a tooth with advanced gum disease or where food has been trapped. Partly erupted wisdom teeth can also cause infection in the gum around them.
What can you do today while you wait?
- Rinse gently with warm salty water a few times a day.
- Take pain relief you normally use, following the packet, if it's safe for you.
- Use a cold pack on the outside of your face, not heat.
- Keep drinking water and rest.
- Don't squeeze or pierce any swelling, and don't use leftover antibiotics.
How is an abscess treated?
At Y3 Smiles Dental, the dentist first finds the tooth or area causing the infection, usually with an x-ray. The aim is to remove the source and let the infection drain. Depending on the tooth, that means starting root canal treatment to clean out the infected nerve and save the tooth, draining a gum abscess, or removing a tooth that can't be saved. Antibiotics are added if the infection is spreading or you're unwell with it.
Most people feel a big improvement within a day or two of the source being treated. Our aftercare guide covers recovery, and there is a separate guide to recovering after root canal treatment, and our emergency dentistry page explains how to get seen.
Other questions people ask
Can a dental abscess go away without treatment?
No. The pain may ease if the abscess drains on its own, but the infection is still there and can flare up again or spread. The source needs to be treated.
Will antibiotics cure an abscess?
Antibiotics can help control spreading infection, but they can't reach the source inside a tooth well enough to cure it. The tooth or gum still needs treatment.
Is a dental abscess dangerous?
It can be. Most are treated simply once they are seen, but an untreated infection can spread into the face and neck. That's why spreading swelling or trouble swallowing is a reason to go to hospital.
Should I pop the pimple on my gum?
No. Squeezing or piercing it can push infection deeper. Rinse with warm salty water and let us treat it.
Can I use heat on the swelling?
Avoid heat on your face. A cold pack on the outside of the cheek, 15 minutes at a time, is safer.