Even with the incredible dental/medical technology, there are circumstances where a tooth should be removed. If a tooth is possibly “seeding” infection into your body get it fixed or out immediately.

Tooth infection was a leading cause of death a few centuries ago. Yes, we have antibiotics, but these will not stop or fix the source of the infection. They only help your body resist and fight off the infection. And we are overusing antibiotics so that after multiple exposures the bacteria are becoming resistant and or tolerant.

Bacterial Endocarditis is a life-threatening infection of the heart that can come from infected gums or teeth. The bacteria in your mouth are very opportunistic. If they get into your blood or lymph system, they will circulate looking for a “new home”. Perhaps, you have an underlying heart, pancreas or joint condition. These pathogens can colonize these areas and create big problems. Frequently, before heart operations cardiologists will insist on an infection-free mouth. Orthopedic surgeons will also insist on an infection-free oral exam prior to hip/knee and other operations.

The elephant in the room issue is the correlation between systemic diseases such as heart attacks, certain cancers, kidney problems, some auto-immune diseases and excessive bacteria in the mouth or poor oral health. While this is still controversial and not widely publicized, I believe there may be economic factors that suppress this epidemiologic connection. Only about 25% of our population see a dentist regularly. If this was a widely accepted principle there would never be enough dentists/hygienists to handle the stampede.

Dr. Alan Ross, Keene Family Dental, 67 Mechanic Street, Keene, NH 03431 Phone: 603-357-6767