Abscessed Tooth (HB)

Damdent, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

An abscessed tooth is an emergency and should be an urgent evacuation (though it is generally not worth high-risk). It may manifest as swelling and severe pain in the jaw, or be localized around the base of a tooth.

Red Flags

This is already an emergency, but if the patient has a fever, uncontrollable pain, or changes to mental status you need to expedite their extraction.

Treatment

There is no fix in the field. The patient will need to see a dentist who will drill the tooth, drain and clean the infection, and install a filling. The patient will be put on a course of antibiotics.