Tooth/gum infection...again - could use your help!

[beth22]

Good point, Roy. Wash your hands after leaving dentist's office. I just had my teeth cleaned last week.

[Wyok]

MKW - I, too, was perfectly healthy before I took the clindamycin for a small tooth abscess. It's really a crime how uninformed dentists are on this subject. Thankfully, I finally found a dentist, after looking for almost 2 weeks in New York City, who says that he will not use antibiotics unless I have an extremely bad infection ( which this is not ). He uses antibiotics only very sparingly in his practice. He uses it for cases of extreme infection, patients who are ill or immuno- compromised, etc. He says that he gives lectures on this subject when he can. You can imagine how relieved I felt. I have an appointment with him this Tuesday. My anxiety was through the roof, and a brought on some other symptoms for me. I am so sorry that this happened to you, and what makes it much, much worse is that it was 100% unnecessary.

Roy - never thought about the dentist's office as a breeding ground for germs, but you are right. Will see what this new dentist's office is like.

[Wyok]

Thought I'd follow-up: I finally found a holistic dentist who, after discussion with me and examining the tooth, agreed to remove the infected broken tooth without an antibiotic. That was two days ago, and all appears to be well. I am glad I took the time to find the right dentist, and to avoid antibiotics. Please know that you should be able to do this too, although it took me a good two weeks to find a cooperating dentist. Thanks, once again, to everyone who gave me great advice. As always, appreciated.

[MKW]

So glad to hear you found a provider to give you the care you needed, and that you are doing well. It's encouraging, as I definitely fear my future with dental care! I am curious... are you using any type of topical antimicrobial or mouth rinse following the procedure?

[Wyok]

Hi MKW - This particular dentist used ozone to clean out the spot where the tooth was, and he performed what is called a complete cavitation. This is supposed to really rid the area of all bacteria. He didn't really feel the need for me to use any particular antimicrobial. He did encourage me to rinse gently with warm water and salt, and to do whatever else I was comfortable with. I also am rinsing with a small amount of water and a couple of drops of oregano oil. If you don't know about oregano oil, you really should. It kills bad bacteria like crazy. It was what I mainly used to keep the infection down, and it worked very well By the time I got to the dentist, the infection was still there, but had been reduced greatly, to the point where the dentist said it wasn't bad at all. I've also used oregano oil in capsules. I used them a number of years ago when I had an intestinal parasite infection. I was able to completely cure that with the oregano oil in combination with some other herbs and probiotics. Believe me, I'm going to be much more careful about treating my teeth well.

[MKW]

Wow, really interesting. Thank you so much for the detailed information :-)