In this issue:
(1)
How the different root end infections affect the body - By Dr. George Meinig.
(2) Affiliate programs.
(1) How the different root end infections affect the body - By Dr. George Meining, D.D.S., F.A.C.D.
There are three main kinds of root end tooth infections, but in most instances they are simply referred to as " abscessed teeth."
The three main root end tooth infections are called granulomas,cysts and condensing osteitis.
Granulomas and cysts, though they appear to be quite similar, have distinctly different characteristics.
Fistulas are channels that carry pus from the infection area to the outside ofthe face or mouth. They help the body drain away excessive amounts of pus.
Condensing osteitis is rarely mentioned as a root end infection process, but Dr. Price found its presense to be accompanied by some very specific infection related reactions.
Dr. Price made bacteriologic examinations of three different dental infection areas. To his surprise, he found, for the most part that no matter how large an involved area or how much pus was flowing, comparatively few bacteria were present. He interpreted this to mean the body's white blood cells and other defense mechanisms had good control on the infection process present.
Furthermore, in such cases he found patients to be in relatively good overall health and that they did not exhibit the expected signs and symptoms of systemic illness.
Dr. Price reasoned that the large areas of bone destruction and pus about these infected areas were not a measure of the severity of infection, so commonly believed, but were in actuality expressing the goodness of the involved patient's immune defense capability.
He (Dr. Price) further found that though the organisms spread locally, they did not spread to other parts of the body until the infection had persisted for a prolonged period of time.
Condensing osteitis cases proved to be quite different. This condition exhibits a very dense area of bone, sometimes with very little loss of bone at the tooth's root end.
Patient histories and in-depth studies revealed that people exhibiting condensing osteitis suffered more serious consequences from their infections. Price surmised that in such a case the patient's defense system was poor and the body was trying to wall off the infected area with dense bone in order to contain its effects.
However, the tissue as the root end was incapable of controlling the bacterial growth in these cases and consequently some bacteria escaped through the bloodstream and set up diseases in other areas.
Sung Lee
Gum Disease & General Health Tips #13
