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An unusual presentation of a dental abscess
Author(s) -
Att M.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
oral surgery
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.156
H-Index - 11
eISSN - 1752-248X
pISSN - 1752-2471
DOI - 10.1111/j.1752-248x.2012.01152.x
Subject(s) - medicine , presentation (obstetrics) , osteomyelitis , necrotising fasciitis , abscess , fasciitis , soft tissue , head and neck , sinus (botany) , focal infection theory , surgery , pathology , botany , biology , genus
Dentoalveolar abscesses are common squeal to microorganisms reaching the periapical area of a tooth. If the infection remains localised, it may drain intraorally through a sinus. If the infection spreads, fascial planes determine the path that the bacteria will follow and may result in cellulites affecting different tissue spaces in the head and neck. Either way, diagnosis is usually straight forward. In very rare situations, these abscesses can present in an unusual way and can be diagnostically misleading. In addition, they may cause more serious conditions such as necrotising fasciitis, which is an uncommon, progressive, destructive soft tissue infection caused by a mixture of aerobic and anaerobic organisms. Other serious consequences of dental abscesses depending on their anatomical location are cavernous sinus thrombosis, osteomyelitis, and Ludwig's angina.