Originally Posted by motivate4change

Bryanna..
Sorry that I forgot to ask these two questions before..

1.) I have heard about the dangers of NOT closing up an extraction site right away, when there was an infected tooth extracted.
This dentist removed the tooth (in 4 pieces)..according to him, my tooth did not break, and came out in 4 pieces, all in tact. When the tooth was extracted, you could clearly see the infection, stuck to the tooth. (I even saw it..it looked like red jelly, stuck to the tooth. Now that I think about it, could that have been pulp tissue I saw, and NOT the infection, or abscess?)

The dentist told me that, after he extracted the tooth, he debrided some of the bone, to clean the bone area of infection, before he did the bone graft. My question is, can a person still have some infectuous bacteria left in there, that might NOT be visable to the human eye, or is ALL bacteria able to be seen by the dentist, once an abscessed tooth is extracted? My abscess was deep in the pulp, around the tooth, as far as I know. Do u think its possible that I could have some infection left inside my gums, that the dentist might not have been able to see?? And..if so, can that infection escape by use of anti-biotics, or will it stay in there, wreaking havoc on my immune system?? (By the way...my gum/cheek area is still very sore and swollen inside my mouth..it feels extremely weird when I run my tongue over it, as I can feel that my cheek was sewn around my extraction site, and it is really FREAKING ME OUT, to say the least.)

2.) Last question...is there any way to email u directly, on this site, or
otherwise?
It seems that the only way to contact u through this site is to send u a
message through someone else's posts? Maybe Im wrong?

THANKS AGAIN...
SINCERELY,
KIMBERLY

Originally Posted by motivate4change

Bryanna,

Very often dentists refer to the "cyst" at the tip of the root as infection. For some reason they shy away from the word cyst with some patients. But that's what it is.

All if not most root canaled teeth eventually develop cysts at the root of the tooth because the tooth still has infected nerve material inside the microscopic canals. The infection causes a build up of pressure inside the tooth and it eventually "puffs out" through the root causing a jelly like cyst to form. Some dentists refer to this as scar tissue. But when these cysts are biopsied, they are very much filled with infectious bacteria. The cyst does not mean the tooth infection has left the tooth, it just means that the cyst is the body's way of trying to get rid of the bacteria. Sometimes the cyst gets very large, other times it stays small.

It's nice that the office assistant has been so kind to you while your dentist is away. However, the only time I've seen the cheek tissue get sutured near an extraction site was either by mistake or in the case of a wisdom tooth removal where sometimes there is no other skin to tie a suture to other than a piece of cheek tissue. In the wisdom tooth case, the area usually heals without a problem. As far as the cheek tissue being live skin and the palate tissue being dead skin....... ummm....... skin grafting from the palate is done all of the time to cover oral wounds because it is a vital piece of flesh that is harvested from the patient's own palate and immediately sutured to other vital gum tissue. This allows the donor graft to rejuvenate from the blood supply of the gum tissue that it is sutured to... as the two become one Perhaps your dentist knows of a technique involving the cheek tissue that I am not aware of.....?

I would continue with the warm salt water rinsing and try to forgo rubbing your tongue along the suture line as this may be causing some unnecessary discomfort because it causes the tissue to pull. The bump that you feel may be scar tissue or suture or a fold in the tissue itself. Without seeing it, I couldn't tell you more than that.

The issues you have had and continue to have with your lower left wisdom tooth extraction site could be any number of things. Perhaps that area should be checked with an xray at your next appointment. I also think you may be tightening up your facial muscles because of the discomfort from the sutured cheek. This could cause pain to radiate along the lower jawline.

With regard to the thyroid nodule on the lower left.... do you have thyroid problems? If you feel a nodule there and it is sore, you should have it checked out by your physician. Also, some thyroid conditions cause mucus in the throat and/or hoarseness. You also have lymph nodes in various areas of the throat and neck. So what you are feeling may be a lymph node and it could be due to infection or allergies or something else. Again, your physician would be able to check that out for you.

Dental Implants are a good option to replace missing teeth in people who do not have any chronic inflammatory illnesses, who don't smoke, or have periodontal disease. Partial dentures are a good option for people who have compromising health issues, smoke, or have periodontal disease.

I hope I've been of some help to you... I know this is confusing and stressful, especially since you are uncomfortable and have a few different things going on at once. Perhaps a visit to your MD might be helpful?

Bryanna








Thank you so much for explaining to me about the "cyst" at the end of the root tip (the jelly like substance I saw stuck to the tooth roots after my tooth#14 was extracted.) My dentist told me that this "jelly like substance" was the infection i was looking at...he never mentioned anything about a cyst! Now I am even more scared that this dentist really might not have a clue about anything he is doing! Why would he tell me that this was the infection on the tooth, and not a cyst??
(Also, you stated that all root canaled teeth develop cysts on the roots...why is that, and are all of these "cysts" the pre-amble to an infection??)

Regarding my "sick tooth #14 extraction" and my "cheek skin graft".
Yes, the dentist did this wonderful procedure ON PURPOSE.
He has been out of town the whole week, and my next appt with him is next Monday! Naturally, I have been freaking out...and have talked extensively to his office assistant who is not a hygenist or dental assistant, but seems to know the answers to ALL of my questions for some reason...or at least he makes it seem like he does! I am not sure how he would have so much knowledge, but every time we talk, he seems to know what he is talking about, so it calms me down and makes me feel more sure that I am going to heal..but the question is, will I really? And...what if all the discomfort I am feeling is infection that is still in my body...causing inflammation and pain.

He told me that the reason for my "cheek skin graft" is because the tissue from my cheek, {which is still attached to my cheek and stretched over and sutured around my extraction site, on the inside of my old tooth #14}, is LIVING TISSUE..able to supply the extraction site area with fresh blood and oxygen, helping to keep infection out of the area, due to my "compromised oral immune system".
Apparently, if he had used skin from the roof of my mouth for the skin graft, this skin would have been "dead tissue", which would not have kept my extraction area vital and healthy. DOES THAT MAKE ANY SENSE?? (I have a feeling u will say "NO"!) I STILL dont know what or who to believe!!!!

Now...although the swelling on the outside of my cheek has gone down, and I dont see anymore bruising, the inside of my mouth is raw and sore around the stitches at times (I rinse with salt water and biotene which helps this rawness)...but the worst part is the feeling of my cheek skin being attached to my extraction site and, if I run my tongue along the area, I feel a swollen ball of tissue between my cheek and gums. The swelling in that area has not gone down. I have a feeling that there is infection in there, keeping it swollen, and, that the cheek tissue is going to have to be cut away from the extraction site later on.

Secondly, ever since this extraction of tooth #14, my jaw pain has worsened immensely!!! I have pain going down the lower jaw bone, which I had before, but its now much worse. (I dont know whether the pain is coming from an inflamed nerve, or swollen glands, or simply, jaw bone pain due to a jaw bone infection from a past wisdom tooth extraction!!!)
Before the extraction of tooth #14, I also had soreness and swelling in the lower, left wisdom tooth extraction site. A feeling like I have been chewing gum on it for hours...and, to the touch, it is swollen and looks swollen, compared to the other side of my mouth. I had my wisdom teeth extracted over 20 yrs ago, and it seems that this extraction site has hurt, on and off, since then. (I also had dry socket in that extraction site after that wisdom tooth was extracted, 20 yrs ago). This extraction of tooth #14 has caused my jaw pain to increase immmensely, along with causing that wisdom tooth extraction site to feel much more sore and swollen.
Is there any connection between an upper molar extraction and pain and swelling in an old wisdom tooth site, on the same side, on the lower jaw?

Two more things to ask u...thank u so much in advance for any answers u may be able to provide for me!
Do u feel (or have u heard of ) ANY connection between thyroid nodules and tooth infection?? I am curious because I have had a feeling, for a long time of pressure in my left thyroid area...(again, everything is on the LEFT side).
I also have a continuous feeling of mucous, deep down in my throat/neck on the left side when I swallow. Sometimes I choke when I am falling asleep, because my throat dries up and feels blocked, and my voice gets very hoarse, too. I dont know if I have a thyroid nodule, but, if I do, its on the left side, and so was my sick tooth. I still feel, however, that even though tooth #14 is gone, there is STILL some sort of infection in my system!

Lastly, what do u think of implants vs. partials?? I am now scared to even think about getting a tooth implant! With all the jaw bone pain I have, and swelling in my wisdom tooth extraction site, wouldnt I be risking more pain and infection if I were to get an implant??


Thank u so much for all of your guidance and information...
I TRULY APPRECIATE YOUR GUIDANCE!! (I dont know what I would do without it).

Sincerely,

Kimberly