How Long Until A Tooth Infection Kills You?

Oral hygiene is essential for survival, as leaving even a minuscule infection untreated will take no time to escalate into a fatal condition. While there is no doubt that dentistry has improved by leaps and bounds compared to the past and contributed to minimizing deaths related to dental infections, it is still essential for us to learn about the potential complications, progressions, and, timely interventions associated with dental infections. This article will explore exactly how long until a tooth infection kills you if left neglected along with various oral inflammations that can affect you.

Comprehending Tooth Infections

Let’s start by actually understanding what tooth infections refer to. Tooth infections, otherwise known as dental abscesses take place when bacteria manage to occupy the dental pulps, the part containing your blood vessels and nerves. This invasion is often caused by undiagnosed tooth decay, gum diseases, or fractures. Your immune system’s response to this threat ends up forming pus, leading to tooth infections. If left unchecked, this infection can gradually proliferate to other body parts.

Categories of Tooth Infections

Dental infections are divided into 3 primary types:

1. Periapical Abscess: Periapical Abscess is caused by deep decay or trauma to the tip of the tooth’s root.
2. Periodontal Abscess: Caused by gum diseases in the gum tissue.
3. Gingival Abscess: Forms in Isolation in the gum tissue without influencing the periodontal ligament or the tooth itself.

All of the previously mentioned infections can lead to fatal consequences if left untreated, raising the question of how long until a tooth infection kills you when left to deteriorate.

Untreated Tooth Infections and Their Drawbacks

Tooth infections may seem trivial to some people, but if left untreated, provide a route to major health risks, such as:

1. Sepsis: Often caused as a lethal response to an infection when a bacteria from an infection makes its way into your bloodstream. Sepsis also sets off organ failure, widespread inflammation, and blood clotting. Sepsis being the primary way a tooth infection turns deadly, requires immediate medical care. How long until a tooth infection kills you via sepsis? Sepsis can cause death in as little time as 12 hours.
2. Ludwig’s Angina: An infection in the base of your mouth, underneath the tongue, Ludwig’s Angina can cause airway obstruction due to excessive swelling and lead to respiratory failures. How long until a tooth infection kills you through Ludwig’s Angina? In as little time as 24-48 hours.
3. Mediastinitis: This is a severe condition resulting in labored breathing, fever, and chest pains caused by the downward travel of the infection through the soft tissues of the neck into the chest cavity. How long until a tooth infection kills you in this case? This condition can become fatal in the span of a few days.
4. Brain Abscess: If you are experiencing fever, seizures, confusion, and severe headaches, a dental infection might have travelled to your brain via your bloodstream resulting in a brain abscess, requiring immediate intervention. How long until a tooth infection kills you if it reaches your brain? A brain abscess can be fatal within weeks if not treated appropriately.
5. Endocarditis: When the inner lining of the heart is affected by a dental infection entering your bloodstream it often leads to Endocarditis damaging heart valves and causing life-threatening complications. Though the answer to the question ‘How long until a tooth infection kills you via Endocarditis’ varies, extreme cases can result in heart failure within weeks or months.
6. Osteomyelitis: Defined by pain, fatigue, fever, and swelling, Osteomyelitis is caused by bacteria from a tooth infection spreading to your jawbone or the rest of your skeleton. Treatment for this infection includes surgery or antibiotics. If you want to know, how long until a tooth infection kills you from Osteomyelitis? The answer is anything from several weeks to several months.

Timeframe for a Tooth Infection To Become Fatal

How fast a tooth infection spreads throughout the rest of your body is reliant on several factors such as your body’s immune response, your health, and the virulence of the bacteria.

The progress of each tooth infection differs, according to their severity. For example, something like Ludwig’s Angina can block airways and lead to death in as short of a time as 12 to 24 hours, while you also have diseases like Sepsis, which if allowed to be festered, can cause your organs to fail in mere days.

In short, there is no universal answer to the question ‘How long until a tooth infection kills you?’ but what you do need to keep in mind is that you should act with haste if you detect any signs of deteriorating oral health to save yourself from a; life-threatening outcome.

Final Thoughts and Preventative Measures

Though rare, deaths from tooth infections are not non-existent. Keeping that in mind, we need to seek proper medical care, analyse the risks, and pinpoint the symptoms in their initial stages.

If you want to avoid thinking ‘How long until a tooth infection kills you?’ you can take these preventative measures:

1. Maintain Your Oral Hygiene:  Brush your teeth twice daily with fluoride toothpaste. Get into the deep crevices of each tooth by flossing daily. Prevent bacteria growth by using antibacterial mouthwash.
2. Make Dental Check-Ups Regularly: Every six months visit your dentist for exams and cleanings. This ensures you can address any concerns before they escalate.
3. Observing Early Symptoms: Even if you have something as minor as a toothache, pus formation or swelling don’t hesitate to get it checked out by your dentist as an even greater issue may be taking place without your knowledge.
4. Buff Up Your Immune System: Exercising regularly and maintaining a healthy diet can assist your body in fighting infections more effectively.