Jay woke up on a Wednesday with a little bump on his throat, but since the affliction did not cause any pain, he chose to forget about it. That changed on Friday night when Jay’s little bump swelled to be the size of a baseball and the inflammation was accompanied by chills. At that time Jay decided to address the issue and went to seek urgent care from his health care provider. On site, the attending physicians hooked him up to an IV of antibiotics and asked basic questions in regards to his overall health and dental health history. The medical specialists strongly advised him to go to the emergency room as his condition was extremely fragile because his airway was near completely blocked. He hemmed and hawed, but finally decided to follow the advice.

His arrival to the emergency ward is accredited with saving his life. It was at that time he was admitted to the hospital, connected to another IV for antibiotics and the medical team at the hospital made further inquiries into Jay’s dental history. The doctor on duty noticed a cracked tooth and an oral surgeon confirmed the diagnosis that an abscess had formed where the tooth damage was. The team on duty ordered a cat scan to confirm their suspicions and it was that test that confirmed the horrendous infection stemmed from the tooth. At first the team was going to work on saving Jay’s tooth, however when Jay awoke Sunday, he was unable to speak or breath and was placed on a ventilator.

That evening, Jay underwent an emergency tooth extraction as the doctors had to remove the tooth and drain the liquids that had accumulated from the dental abscess. After his dental emergency was treated, Jay lay in the hospital under the effects of general anesthesia for several days. Once he awoke, Jay’s primary physician told him that had he not received the emergency surgery, chances were that he would have died in his sleep that Sunday night due to asphyxiation.

Importance of Professional Dental Care

Since that time, Jay has been reborn as a strong advocate for regular dental care, dental visits and practicing daily oral hygiene. Jay stated that the experience “Changed my life dramatically, I’ve told everyone I know that ‘you are crazy if you don’t go to the dentist.’” He readily admits that he foolishly ignored the symptoms associated with a dental abscess and is now committed to a regime of preventative dentistry to ensure his life is not put at risk again.

0900-DENTIST encourages individuals to learn from Jay’s experience to nip dental problems in the bud. The best way is to prevent the formation of a dental abscess is by not letting a broken tooth or cavity go untreated. Individuals motivated by this harrowing tale can count on 0900-DENTIST to help them deal with the aftermath resulting from dental neglect.