Infection after wisdom teeth removal
 

Hi I had all four of my wisdom teeth removed over 2 weeks ago. I was put on antibiotics to prevent infection and everything seemed fine until I stopped taking the antibiotics. A couple days after stopping the antibiotics I developed an infection gums swollen and my left check swollen. I went back to the dental office and confirmed and the infection and was put on another antibiotics which I am still currently taking. The swelling of the cheek went away after 2 days but my gums are red in between a couple of my teeth on the left side. The teeth are not directly beside the wisdom teeth so I am not sure if this is related. To me it looks like gingivitis which is strange since I have been super careful with my oral health and have never had a problem with this before. Or is this a sign that the antibiotics are not fully working on the infection.

Hi Marge,

It is important to be very thorough with your brushing and flossing to limit the accumulation of plaque.

Sometimes ulcers or sores will develop in the mouth near a surgical site. They can resemble gingivitis. They can take up to 21 days to go away completely. Sometimes medication can cause the gums to swell up and if that is the case then you need to stop the meds and use something different.

Anytime you develop an obviously new and abnormal symptom after oral surgery, you should see the surgeon to evaluate it.

Bryanna

thanks for the advice I have been very vigilant with cleaning since removal and have been doing salt water rinses as well. I will be seeing the surgeon on Thursday so we will see what he says. I am thinking that this is a reaction to original antibiotic I was taking since I also developed a rash and that is when I first started seeing this problem but at the time my bigger concern was my swollen check over the gums since it was more visible. It may just be that it has not healed up since it has not been 21 days since I stopped taking the other antibiotic.

I was mostly concerned that this was a sign that the infection was still present.

So I went to go see another dentist today since the surgeon will not be available till next week. I know I'm not a dentist but her advice did not seem to help she basically said it was random with no cause.

First she did not beleive me when I told her I got a rash from the original amoxicillin that I was given. She was like its probably from something else even though a rash is a very common side effect.

They took an xray between the teeth and didn't see anything so I guess that was a good sign. She said that its probably random and unrelated to my wisdom teeth even though I never had a prior problem with my gums. She said its probably not the antibiotics either.

The she lectured me on proper oral care when I was always told that my teeth were healthy and that I was doing a good job.

Anyways she told me to wait and if it doesn't go away to come back again. I will go and see the original surgeon or another dentist if it doesn't go away by next week.

Hi Marge,

Well...... that was a waste of your time :/

First of all she cannot tell you the rash was or wasn't from the amoxicillin. However, the be on the safe side, you should be allergy tested for that drug before ever taking it again.

As far as the inflammation and redness in that area of your gums.... what the heck is a "random" diagnosis?? What does that mean?? :/

Many general dentists are a bit..... uninformed..... about oral surgery complications. Perhaps that's because they usually only perform simple surgical procedures and/or rarely deal with the complications because when they do arise, they refer those patients to the oral surgeon.

As for the oral hygiene comments she made to you..... she may or may not have been correct in that observation. But usually a dentist will not even comment on that unless they see a generalized plaque problem. Did she explain what/where she was referring to and offer you some constructive help?

Is the reddened area getting any worse.... bigger.... sore....??

Any chance you could post a picture of just that area?

Bryanna





QUOTE=Marge1;971697]So I went to go see another dentist today since the surgeon will not be available till next week. I know I'm not a dentist but her advice did not seem to help she basically said it was random with no cause.

First she did not beleive me when I told her I got a rash from the original amoxicillin that I was given. She was like its probably from something else even though a rash is a very common side effect.

They took an xray between the teeth and didn't see anything so I guess that was a good sign. She said that its probably random and unrelated to my wisdom teeth even though I never had a prior problem with my gums. She said its probably not the antibiotics either.

The she lectured me on proper oral care when I was always told that my teeth were healthy and that I was doing a good job.

Anyways she told me to wait and if it doesn't go away to come back again. I will go and see the original surgeon or another dentist if it doesn't go away by next week.[/QUOTE]

Thanks Bryanna for the support for giving me your support it feels good to know that I am not just crazy making things up.

On the amoxicillin issue I plan to take that up with my doctor when I am done with this issue first. I have read that it is not necessarily an allergy and it may be possible to take it again with no reaction . I definitely would want to take an allergy test first.

The oral hygiene lecture mostly annoyed me because she just went on and on longer then she actually took trying diagnose my problem. It was like she was trying to fill time because she had no clue what was going on with me.

I went to go see someone else today that has experience in removing wisdom teeth since I started to get some inflammation in my gums in between the site and the rad gum section. He was a lot more helpful. He said most likely what is happening is that even though I am healing well the gums can still let some food in since my teeth my be shifting. He did not want to give me anymore antibiotics since I am still taking some and after a week of taking a second one he didn't want to mess up my body anymore. Instead he put some sort of medicine in my gumline he told me the name but it escapes me now. He said it does not look serious and to finish the antibiotics. I will definitely be keeping an eye on this and will let you how it progresses. I may try to take a picture later but I don't want to move around the stuff that he put in my teeth right now.

Also as a side note he did not mention anything on oral hygiene so it must have not been as bad as the other dentist told me.

[/QUOTE]

My last post may have been sort of confusing. The redness between my teeth he said is most likely caused by my teeth moving. It is not sore but it is sensitive to coldness. It is not getting worse it looks pretty much the same.

The new inflammation that I am experiencing is from food getting into gums at the sites. He said there could be a couple reason for this including the gums are still healing and it at the bottom which is more prone to food getting into the gums. I think he said that shifting teeth can make this problem worse but I may have misunderstood.

[/QUOTE]

Marge,

The "medicine" that the dentist applied to your gums was probably an ora base or something similar which is simply benzocaine. It really has no medicinal purpose other than to numb the area to reduce discomfort. If this isn't what he used, then I have no idea what it could have been.

It is common to get some food debris in the surgical areas and so long as it is not causing inflammation or pain, it is usually not a big concern.

Just be mindful of your home care and be as thorough as you can be. Not aggressive just thorough. Hopefully you're on your way to healing okay!

Bryanna

[/QUOTE]

Thanks, Bryanna for your help it seems to be subsiding now although the gum is still sensitive to cold things.

About the medicine he said it would help with the inflammation a little bit and numb so most likely what you said although I think the name was a little different.

On a side after being on so many antibiotics I caught the flu and have been trying to fight it off with my weakened immune system. I hope that once I fight this bug I will be ok in the health department for a while.

[/QUOTE]

Hi Marge,

Yea, many people don't realize that when you take an antibiotic you lower your resistance and actually become a host to germs. That's why it is best to allow our immune system to fight infections that do not require antibiotics. But when you have a bacterial infection especially involving the bone, it is usually best to take the antibiotic. Are you still taking the probiotic? It would be ideal to continue that. FYI..... I take mine daily and have done so for many years.

I sure hope you feel better soon!
Bryanna


[/QUOTE]