Hi Dankham,

Thank you for replying to my questions.

I assume the tooth was removed because it was badly decayed... and/or severely broken and infected.

Based on that assumption, most likely the bacteria from the tooth had spread to the bone around the tooth and quite possibly into the sinus area. When this occurs, the surgeon has to be very thorough with not only removing the tooth but with cleaning out the socket. Any visible infected tissue and bone needs to be scraped out as completely as possible. Frequently the sinus will also need to be cleaned up and irrigated thoroughly with saline before the surgical site is sutured closed.

If these steps were not taken by the surgeon, then the bone and sinus would still be infected. In these cases antibiotics can subside some of the inflammation and lower the bacteria count but very often they cannot cure this type of infection because it needs to be physically removed.

Your symptoms do indicate an infection may be present. Hopefully the ENT dr will be able to help you. I would try to get in to see him sooner if at all possible. Also, make sure to tell him that the dentist only took 2-3 minutes to remove the tooth and did not scrape the socket very much.

In the meantime, continue with the salt water rinses 3-4 times a day and drink several glasses of filtered water every day to help remove the toxins from the infection that filter through your kidneys. Supplementing with powdered buffered vitamin C (2-4 times a day) and a probiotic capsule daily would be helpful for your overall health especially during this time. In the evening before you go to sleep, you could try placing a very warm, moist washcloth over that side of your face (cover it with a dry cloth to keep the heat in) for about 10 minutes as this may help reduce the congestion from the inflammation. You could also try sleeping on 2 pillows so your head is not lying flat. These things may help to give you a better nights sleep.

Do not rinse with any mouthwash, just the salt water. Mouthwash contains harmful chemicals that have no therapeutic benefit and are irritating to the oral tissue.

I hope you get relief soon. Please do try to get into the ENT as soon as you can.

Keep us posted.
Bryanna