Patients who have a tooth abscess anywhere in the Chicago-land area have a compelling reason to visit a Chicago oral surgeon. Many times, a dental abscess must be drained through a surgical procedure in conjunction with a tooth extraction in order to avoid more dangerous local or systemic issues developing elsewhere.
When the bacteria travels to other sites in the body, more serious problems can develop, including Ludwig’s angina. This is why it’s important to visit an oral surgeon as soon as you suspect you may have a dental abscess.
Not to be confused with the most common meaning of angina, which is pain in the chest, Ludwigs angina is an infection that affects the connective tissues found in the floor of the mouth, neck and encompassing the airway.
Ludwig’s angina is not very common, but it can develop when a tooth abscess in the lower jaw extends and travels within the soft tissue spaces in the floor of the mouth and quickly spreads further from there.
In Ludwig’s angina, the tongue may become swollen and painful, and swelling may also become evident in the neck and chin or under the tongue. A condition called trismus develops which causes limited range of mouth opening due to pain. As the condition progresses, patients begin to have difficulty swallowing and even breathing becomes labored due to upper airway constriction.
Make no mistake, this condition is a surgical emergency and can be quickly fatal due to airway compromise. That is correct, you can die from a tooth abscess! In Chicago, it requires the expert care of an oral and maxillofacial surgeon who will aggressively treat this life-threatening emergency with the placement of multiple drains and incisions, removal of the offending tooth or teeth, and I.V. antibiotics in the operating room. The oral surgeon may even need to perform a tracheostomy to maintain and protect the airway and prevent fatality. Patients whose airways are compromised may also need mechanical ventilation in an intensive care unit until the acute infection phase has abated.
It can be difficult for patients to tell the difference between a typical toothache and an abscess, so you should become familiar with the signs of abscess. With an abscess, the toothache may be more severe and enduring and it’s likely to be accompanied by fever and swelling. Wisdom teeth are notorious for developing abscesses, but it can happen with any tooth in the mouth.
An oral surgeon can use various methods to eliminate a dental abscess, and the surgeon will take steps to make the procedure as smooth as possible, including comfortable sedation. Anxiety should not keep you from seeking treatment for a dental abscess, but if it does, consider the possible adverse effects of postponing treatment.
To learn more and to schedule a consultation, please contact the Chicago oral surgery practice of Drs. Steven Koos and Brian Shah today.
Not only does a dental abscess—a severe infection located beyond a tooth’s root or between the gums and the teeth—cause pain in a patient’s mouth, the condition can also lead to broader systemic problems throughout the body.
If the dental abscess is not treated, the bacteria from the infection can spread via the bloodstream to other parts of the body. Fortunately, a tooth extraction can protect Chicago patients from such an outcome.
An oral surgeon may also recommend treating an abscess by making an incision, or several incisions in the gum, soft tissue, and muscles of the face and neck to allow the abscess to drain.
Certain complications can arise if an abscess is not treated in a timely fashion, and two of those are bacteremia and septicemia.
Bacteremia is the introduction of bacteria into the blood. The blood is typically a sterile environment, so it is problematic if bacteria from the abscess enters the bloodstream because it can have distant effects. Signs of bacteremia could be slight fever, nausea and distal infection.
Rarely, bacteremia may resolve on its own. It also may progress into septicemia, a more serious blood infection that is always accompanied by symptoms such as chills, high fever, rapid heartbeat, severe nausea, vomiting and confusion. These symptoms indicate a more widespread inflammatory response by the immune system to the microbes in the blood, tissue, gums, or bone from a tooth abscess. A lay term for sepsis is blood poisoning, also used to describe septicemia.
If the septicemia is not controlled, sepsis, which is often fatal, comes next. Severe sepsis is the systemic inflammatory response, plus infection, plus the presence of organ dysfunction. Sepsis causes shock and organ failure, ultimately resulting in a patient’s death. It is very difficult to reverse sepsis after it has begun its course.
Fortunately, bacteremia and septicemia can be prevented if a tooth abscess is treated quickly. Patients should not wait for the abscess to rupture on its own or become worse. Some abscesses can remain pain free and be in a chronic state, but a patient is equally at risk for bacteremia and septicemia from a chronic infection too. Any dental infection in Chicago needs the prompt response of our oral and maxillofacial surgeon, which will reduce the likelihood of complications like bacteremia and septicemia.
Additional signals like fever, swollen lymph nodes and extreme tooth sensitivity can all indicate that an average toothache is evolving into something more serious.
If you’ve been plagued by an enduring toothache accompanied by the other symptoms of abscess, schedule an evaluation with our dual-degree oral surgeons at ORA® Oral Surgery & Implant Studio in Chicago to determine if you have an abscess that requires an intervention. Call 312-328-9000 for your appointment.
This is the third of a three part series on real life examples of how having your wisdom teeth extracted can actually be a fun experience and sometimes a hilarious one. The Ellen Show has really taken a liking to the whole process, especially the initial recovery period, where some rather amusing things can happen. Some of the medications that a patient receives are sedatives and relaxants that can make you a bit forgetful, euphoric, and un-inhibited. The medications are very well tolerated and metabolized quickly and everyone’s experience is unique, but in general, patients awaken surprised that the procedure is finished and in a pleasant, mellow, and super happy state.
The whole process at ORA Oral Surgery & Implant Studio in Chicago begins with a trip to to oral surgery suite on the day of your wisdom tooth removal procedure. You will have one of the very comfortable, peaceful, sterile operating rooms reserved for your oral surgery procedure. Patients have the choice to listen to whatever music that they like, and are able to pick from any genre and from over 40,000 songs (and always growing) residing on an Apple i-Pod that has an in-wall docking station. A patient’s personal music selection is played overhead through a premium sound system and then the procedure commences with some nitrous oxide (laughing gas) which is the first step in the dental sedation process. Patients awaken in a pleasant and euphoric mood, with their favorite musical artist still playing and often not believing that their wisdom teeth removal procedure is complete. Some patients are super euphoric and very talkative, and in this case here, where a young girl was featured on the Ellen Show, she actually thought Ellen Degeneres was present filming her!
Chicago patients who have worn dentures for a number of years tend to notice that the devices don’t fit as well as they used to. As the years go by, dentures are increasingly likely to slip out of place and they get more uncomfortable to wear as well.
This phenomenon occurs because the jawbone changes shape over time in edentulous patients. With no root structures present to hold the jawbone in place, it continues to wear away and recede, persistently compromising the fit of your dentures.
If you’ve noticed that your dentures are getting loose, you can have the appliances re-lined to improve the fit or even opt for an entirely new set of dentures. These are only temporary fixes, though. Your jawbone will continue to atrophy and eventually you’ll find yourself with ill-fitting dentures on your hands again.
A trip to ORA® Oral Surgery & Implant Studio will give you a better long-term solution: dental implants.
Our experienced oral surgeons at ORA® can place dental implants to anchor an arch of artificial teeth. Implant-supported dentures, such as the All-on-4 system, are stable unlike conventional dentures. They stay in place and it’s easier to chew with them, too.
Dental implants are the perfect complement to dentures, and they come with a number of additional benefits, as well. The screw-like structures are made of titanium, which allows your jawbone to fuse with them and become a permanent fixture in the mouth.
By mimicking the structure of a biological tooth’s root and supporting the jaw bone, dental implants help to prevent jaw atrophy. However, enough bone material must be present at the time of placement to give the implant sufficient opportunity to integrate with that bone.
Although long-term denture wearers may have already experienced extensive bone loss, particularly in areas where the molars used to be, they can still be eligible for implant-supported dentures with either bone grafting or by utilizing the bone in the anterior portion of the jaw.
The All-on-4 technique is particularly valuable for such patients. Using this approach, your Chicago oral surgeon will take advantage of the patterns of jawbone erosion, placing the four implants toward the front of the jaw, where the bone wears away most slowly.
Contact ORA® Oral Surgery & Implant Studio at 312-328-9000 to ask about dental implants if you’ve noticed your dentures getting looser as the months pass.
A tooth abscess is a serious infection that targets one of the oral structures, most often the jawbone or the roots of the teeth. Beginning as a minor infection or even a mere cavity, a tooth abscess can evolve into a major problem, complete with toothache, draining purulence (pus), and a number of other unpleasant symptoms, usually necessitating a trip to the oral surgeon. Tooth abscesses can even lead to severe neurologic infections of the brain as well as death due to sepsis and airway blockage.
Although cavities are quite treatable when addressed in early stages, they serve as a haven for potentially harmful bacteria when they are not cleaned and filled. Those bacteria can collect along the surface of the tooth and eventually reach the soft pulp of the inner tooth, where they may do even more damage and infiltrate other oral tissues. You may also develop an abscess when a dental injury cracks a tooth, giving bacteria easy access to the pulp.
When you have any outward swelling to the gingiva (gum) or the face, this is an indication that the infection has spread from the tooth to within the marrow of the bone, and then through the hard outer cortex of the bone and into surrounding soft tissues.
As an abscess gets larger, Chicago patients are more likely to need a tooth extraction to resolve the issue as well as a bone graft due to the aggressive bone resorption that tends to occur due to the bacterial inflammatory process. Alternatively, the abscess may need to also be drained, and in some cases from multiple sites. However, if you seek treatment in a timely fashion, you may be able to avoid such dramatic interventions.
With some abscesses, acute pain can be absent and the condition can be chronic. Because there is no pain associated with these chronic abscesses, sometimes patients delay treatment or do not even seek any treatment at all. Unfortunately, chronic infection in the mouth has distant and harmful systemic effects on other organs like the heart and kidneys. It can increase the incidence of stroke, diabetes, myocardial infarctions, and peripheral vascular disease.
Be on the lookout for abscess symptoms such as noticeable drainage or swelling, tender gums or extreme sensitivity. Fever or chills may indicate that the infection has progressed to other areas of the body. If an abscess continues to advance, continued swelling may ultimately compromise your airway which is a medical emergency and requires immediate intervention in the emergency room.
As soon as you notice symptoms and suspect you have a dental abscess, you should visit a Chicago oral surgeon immediately to get a conclusive diagnosis. It’s best to have some form of early treatment to avoid further complications, and prevent life-threatening circumstances.
You can also take steps in your daily routine to reduce your risk of developing a tooth abscess. Dedicated brushing and flossing not only help to prevent cavities but also the abscesses that can develop as a result of these cavities later.
A tooth abscess is a serious matter. Stop it in its tracks before it progresses into a systemic condition.
Online PR News – 18-January-2012 –Chicago, IL – Dr. Steven Koos, a Chicago Loop oral surgeon and owner of ORA® Oral Surgery & Implant Studio, was recently honored with the distinction of earning a Patients’ Choice Award for 2011.
The Patients’ Choice recognition is determined based on an extensive analysis of online reviews submitted by patients throughout the year. Only those physicians earning near perfect scores from their patients are presented with this coveted award, and only about 5% of all physicians nationwide receive reviews that are deemed exceptional enough to designate them as Patients’ Choice winners.
The honor awarded to the oral surgeon and implant dentist in Chicago was determined based on a variety of satisfaction levels of his patients’ experiences, as reported by them directly through credible online sources. Patients of Dr. Koos and ORA® Oral Surgery & Implant Studio that took the initiative to rate various components of their experiences gave him unanimous rave reviews. Ratings and reviews related to aspects of their experiences with the Chicago oral surgeon, such as the quality of the doctor’s bedside manner, degree of follow-up, the amount of doctor-patient “face-time” offered to patients, and the overall courtesy of the office staff, were combined to come up with an overall rating for the doctor. Reviews were compared and analyzed from a selection of sources, including Demandforce, Healthgrades, Vitals.com, Wellness.com, Yelp, Yahoo Local, Google Places, Yellow Pages, Dex Knows and Dr. Oogle, in order to determine the final ratings.
“I am honored to have received recognition as a Patients’ Choice Award winner,” explains Dr. Koos. “This distinction is a testament to the patient-centered environment that I have made a priority in how I run my Chicago oral surgery practice. Knowing that I have made such a positive impact on so many patients, and realizing that they were compelled to leave very positive reviews on websites related to their experiences with me and the rest of my staff, makes me feel like I am succeeding in my commitment to making my patients my top priority.”
Dr. Koos has received numerous awards and honors in recent years for his dedication to patient-centered care, as well as his commitment to protecting the environment. He is the first oral surgeon in Chicago as well as the Nation, pledging to adhere to sustainability and eco-friendly dentistry practices. Dr. Koos and his staff incorporate environmental responsibility in all aspects of how they operate their practice. In addition to his focus on Green Health Care, Dr. Koos has also created a patient-centered atmosphere within his practice. This focus on creating a positive experience for his patients, combined with his expertise in the field of oral, jaw and maxillofacial surgery, has earned him high praise by his peers and community, resulting Patients’ Choice Award.
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Dr. Steven Koos is a Chicago oral and maxillofacial surgeon that operates his practice, ORA® Oral Surgery & Implant Studio, with a commitment to patient-centered care and environmental responsibility. The Patients’ Choice Award bestowed to Dr. Koos in 2011 is one of a number of awards earned by the oral surgery specialist during the year. To find out more about Dr. Steven Koos or his Chicago oral surgery practice, visit http://orasurgery.com.
When you lose a tooth, it leads to negative effects beyond the unattractive gap left behind in your smile. A missing tooth can affect your speech and ability to chew because its opposing tooth now becomes useless. Remaining teeth shift, drift and migrate if missing teeth are not replaced, and when the absent tooth’s root is not replaced, the jawbone in the vicinity can begin to recede.
For this reason, dental implants offer a tooth replacement option that is superior to other alternatives like fixed permanent bridges and dentures.
Because a dental implant replicates the entire tooth structure—not merely the visible crown portion—Dr. Steven Koos, your dual-degree Chicago IL implant dentist, can help to protect your jawbone.
In placing dental implants, Dr. Koos is inserting a tooth root-like fixture into your jawbone. The dental implant, which is made of bio-compatible titanium, fuses with the jawbone and functions much like the root of a biological tooth.
A tooth’s root serves as source of stimulus and support that stabilizes the jawbone. When no structure is present to maintain the bone, the jawbone begins to atrophy. Over time, it wears away and other teeth may be at risk for being lost, as well. However, with dental implants, that resorption is halted. The implant continues to secure and stabilize the bone over time.
Jawbone erosion usually progresses most quickly toward the rear of the upper jaw. If you need to replace a tooth in this vicinity, dental implants can be particularly valuable to use immediately after a tooth has been lost.
Similarly, fully edentulous patients have a more significant risk of jawbone resorption. Dental implant-supported dentures are the best choice for these patients.
Because of jawbone erosion, it’s important to have a dental implant placed relatively quickly after the tooth is lost. You will need to have a certain amount of remaining jawbone to fuse with the implant. If too much bone has worn away, you may need to have a preliminary surgery, namely a bone graft, before your implant can be placed.
In addition to the functional benefits of dental implants, these tooth-like devices have aesthetic advantages, and they’re easier to maintain than traditional bridges or dentures. Consider a dental implant if you are missing a tooth, and contact ORA® Oral Surgery & Implant Studio at 312-328-9000 to learn more about the process involved.
Wisdom teeth removal = Surgery = Fun? This is the second of a three part series depicting real life examples of how having impacted wisdom teeth removed can not only be a painless and quick procedure, which is safely carried out with sedation and anesthesia, but also how the post-recovery period can make for life-long entertaining memories…especially when captured on film by your family!
As previously indicated, no one looks forward to surgery of any type. Well, unless the ailment that is causing pain or a problem is being removed, such as impacted wisdom tooth surgery. But even when mal-positioned wisdom teeth are not causing outwardly acute symptoms, a chronic problem can be occurring that quietly can cause harm to adjacent teeth and bone. A similar analogy exists with hypertension, known as high blood pressure. It usually does not manifest itself with obvious acute symptoms, but silently causes harm to various organs of the body. When hypertension does start to demonstrate acute symptoms, much damage can already have occurred. Therefore, even if your wisdom teeth are not causing you any symptoms, you should still seek consultation with an expert oral surgeon.
The wisdom tooth experience at ORA Oral Surgery & Implant Studio emphasizes safety and comfort, attention to detail, customer service, and caring follow-up. We feel it is an honor and privilege that people entrust their safety and oral surgery treatment with us every single day. That being said, we thoroughly enjoy our work and have fun doing it. We encourage patients to relax and have fun with their wisdom tooth extraction experience as well. This video shows Ellen Degeneres acknowledging what a fun experience that two siblings had with their oral surgery and says “It’s a shame that you don’t have any more teeth to pull”.
Few patients would choose to lose all of the upper or lower teeth. Unfortunately, due to trauma, disease, and other circumstances, complete tooth loss is a common occurrence in our society. Although dentures have been a popular choice for tooth replacement for hundreds of years, the introduction and success of dental implants has changed the way we now address tooth loss.
Patients who have lost all of the upper or lower teeth are choosing a procedure known as All-on-Four in Chicago as an impressive alternative to traditional. poorly fitting dentures. Instead of a removable denture that is designed to rest directly on the delicate gum tissue, our highly experienced dual-degree Chicago oral surgeon can design a denture that is fully supported by permanent dental implants.
The All-on-Four technique is based on the concept that four strategically placed dental implants can support an entire complete upper or lower denture. The dental implants are fully integrated with the jaw bone for long-term durability, strength, and support. Once the denture has been anchored to the implant, patients can enjoy more comfortable chewing and speaking, with the confidence that the denture and implants will never shift or slide out of place. The denture will not rub or irritate the gum tissue, and does not need to be removed for normal oral hygiene.
Typically, your oral surgeon can complete the All-on-Four procedure in a single visit, and patients can function with chewing within a day. This procedure has been proven to be tremendously successful (90% success rate) for patients who have suffered significant bone loss as well as tooth loss, and for patients who may not have been candidates for traditional implant procedures.
The advantages of the All-on-Four procedure as compared to the traditional denture are impressive. Obtaining a strong, attractive, and complete set of teeth in one day with no worries about gum irritation or instability can be extremely rewarding. In fact, simply having teeth that fit well and function well can have an immeasurable impact on the quality of your life.
Scheduling an appointment to discuss the All-on-Four procedure with our oral surgeon serving Chicago IL 60616 is the only way to find out if this treatment is right for you. Call ORA® Oral Surgery & Implant Studio at 312.328.9000 for your consultation today.
ORA® Oral Surgery & Implant Studio, a Chicago Loop oral surgery practice specializing in dental implants, All-on-4, wisdom teeth removal, and a wide range of jaw and oral surgery procedures, is pleased to announce that it is one of only a select few dental facilities within Chicago to have an i-CAT 3D Cone Beam CT Scanner within its practice.
Online PR News – 19-December-2011 –Chicago, IL – ORA® Oral Surgery & Implant Studio, a Chicago Loop oral surgery practice specializing in dental implants, All-on-4, wisdom teeth removal, and a wide range of jaw and oral surgery procedures, is pleased to announce that it is one of only a select few dental facilities within Chicago to have an i-CAT 3D Cone Beam CT Scannerwithin its practice. This advanced technology offers complete views of all oral structures, allowing Dr. Steven Koos, a Chicago oral surgeon and owner of ORA®, as well as his staff, to dramatically enhance the level of care offered to patients.
The i-CAT 3D Cone Beam CT Scanner provides dental professionals with an immediate three dimensional image of a patient’s critical anatomy without the typical distortion and magnification seen with traditional plan film images. This gives dentists, oral surgeons and other dental professionals the opportunity to more thoroughly analyze a patient’s tooth orientation, bone structure, wisdom teeth, TMJ joint spaces, periodontal conditions, root fractures and root canals, and maxillary sinuses and airways. It eliminates the guesswork that is present when clinicians use older plain film technology and makes it easier to evaluate deformities and pathologies, and the 3D mapping tools are crucial for implant dentistry. In addition to the enhanced images provided by the i-CAT CT scanner, the technology and equipment increases patient comfort by providing open environment seating and a quicker scan time (as little as nine seconds!). It also produces dramatically lower radiation compared to traditional CT scans.
“We have invested in the i-CAT 3D Cone Beam CT Scanner for our practice for a number of reasons,” explains Chicago implant dentist and oral surgeon, Dr. Koos. “For one, it allows us to more thoroughly analyze a patient’s anatomy to determine the best course of treatment. The technology also affords us the opportunity to visually show a patient what we see and more easily explain treatment. This increases confidence levels in patients and makes them feel more comfortable with their treatment. Finally, as a Chicago oral surgery practice focused on environmental responsibility that spans all aspects of how we operate our practice, the fact that the i-CAT scanner is digital, forgoing toxic x-ray chemicals and film manufacturing and emits dramatically lower radiation compared to other CT scanners was of supreme importance to us.”
In fact, ORA® Oral Surgery & Implant Studio has been recognized within Chicago and nationwide for its commitment to environmental responsibility. The practice has received numerous awards due to its eco-friendly dentistry practices and is touted as a leader among the dental and oral surgery community for its green initiatives. From how the Chicago Loop oral surgery office is decorated to the types of equipment and procedures utilized in the day-to-day operation of the practice, Dr. Koos and his staff are focused on making the most environmentally friendly choices for their patients, for themselves and for the environment as a whole. “The i-CAT scanner fits into our eco-friendly model of dentistry reducing our carbon footprint, while offering numerous additional benefits for us as practitioners and for our patients,” says Dr. Koos. “In my book, that’s a win-win situation for all.”
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ORA® Oral Surgery & Implant Studio is an oral surgery practice in the Chicago Loop neighborhood owned by Dr. Steven Koos. Dr. Koos and his entire staff are committed to operating an environmentally friendly practice that specializes in all aspects of oral surgery and implant dentistry. The i-CAT 3D scanner is just one element of ORA® ‘s dedication to offering the highest level of patient care and they are one of the few dental practices throughout Chicago to utilize this state-of-the-art diagnostic equipment. For more information about the oral and jaw surgery procedures offered at ORA® Oral Surgery & Implant Studio, or to find out more about ORA® ‘s commitment to environmental sustainability and how that benefits patients, visit http://orasurgery.com.
Patients who have a tooth abscess anywhere in the Chicago-land area have a compelling reason to visit a Chicago oral surgeon. Many times, a dental abscess must be drained through a surgical procedure in conjunction with a tooth extraction in order to avoid more dangerous local or systemic issues developing elsewhere.
