Any Dentists On Here Please That Can Help Me With A Question? Our 7 Year Old Grandson Has Had An Abscess Under One Of His Back Double Teeth, The Dentist Drilled Through The Tooth, Without Any Painkiller. And Burst The Abscess. My Daughter Said He Was Havi

[lilacben]

Part two.

Sorry to come on here again but now my grandson has another abccess under another tooth.! Poor little thing. Why on earth has this happened again.?

Brenda x

[J9PUR]

Very simply.......

The abscess is due to pulp death of the deciduous tooth

The pulp death is due to bacteria entering the pulp causing an inflammatory response, causing the pulp to become is ischaemic and necrotic

The bacteria reach the pulp through caries (decay)

The decay is caused by cariogenic foods (too much sucrose in the diet)

[Maydup]

Does he drink a lot of fizzy drinks Brenda? Soft drinks can be very high in sugar and affect the teeth badly.

Sweets of course are the more obvious culprit. Poor little one, does he have a sweet tooth.?

[Buenchico]

While sugar certainly doesn't help, starchy foods (such as bread and potatoes) are actually far worse for causing dental decay because they tend to cling to the teeth more.

It could also be worth checking whether or not fluoride is added to the local water supply. If not, then (for a 7-year-old) many people would regard the regular use of a fluoride toothpaste as essential. (Some idiots, though, allow young children to use 'whitening' toothpastes, which can cause more damage to young teeth than either sugar or starch).

Information from the NHS website:
http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Dental-abscess/Pages/Causes.aspx

[J9PUR]

The bottom line is that your grandson's problems are caused by poor diet which sadly is nearly always preventable.

In order to try and minimise further decay, the priorities are:
1) reduce the frequency and amount of sugary foods/drinks
2) regular use of a fluoride-containing toothpaste
3) improve brushing technique
4) regular dental check-ups
5) fissure sealants placed in all four permanent first molars. Your grandson fulfils the criteria suggested for this

[lilacben]

Thankyou all. Well it is strange because he doenst have fizzy drinks at all and my daughter will not let any of the four have a lot of sweets.Plus the others teeth have been fine. Also his diet is good, he enjoys his dinners.
Whereas my other daughter allows hers sweets,biscuits and not very good diet and there teeth, at the moment is fine.!Both make sure they clean there teeth.
Brenda x

[Peter Pedant]

welld one J-PUR

has anyone eva said Thank you ?

[lilacben]

I always say thankyou.?

[ladyalex]

For what it is worth, I think it's just bad luck that the poor wee soul has another abcess.
Or possibly that the infection from the first one has somehow transferred to this one.
I hope his Mum is taking him to a more sympathetic dentist this time.

[J9PUR]

Abscesses very rarely 'spread' from one tooth to another.

Deciduous teeth are generally more prone to abscess formation due to their comparative anatomy to permanent teeth.
1) Smaller size
2) Thinner enamel
3) Larger pulp chamber

Thus, the 'same size' cavity will generally be much more detrimental to a deciduous tooth compared to an adult tooth

[lilacben]

Thankyou again, I am just hoping his second teeth will be ok. This time he is on antibiotics before any treatment. so lets hope it clears it. Brenda x

[J9PUR]

He will still need definitive treatment - either pulpotomy or extraction. If left untreated, the infection will recur.

Ensure that his first permanent molars have been fissure sealed. This is a very simple but effective treatment to reduce the likelihood of decay on these teeth. Also, regular application of a fluoride varnish to his deciduous teeth has been shown to be helpful.

[lilacben]

J9PUR, Many thanks again for all your help. I will pass all this on to my daughter and get her to make a note of it for when his permanent teeth come through. Brenda x

[J9PUR]

If he is 7 years old, his first adult molars are most likely already there!

[squidgirl]

my bad teeth are heriditary-nothing to do with diet

[nannybooby]

squidgirl -I'm there with you ,terrible teeth lots of abcesses (abcsi/) all my adult life ,despite going to the dentist every 3 months my oral hygene is good as is my diet -some people are just unlucky that way.

Poor little chap I hope that this will be his last xx