Re: Spot Near Tooth What Is It?
Glad I found this thread as I can tell you my personal experience with a couple tooth abscesses I had and the headaches (figuratively) it caused.
That little bump with pus in it is an abscess. It's a common thing if you let an infection go for awhile.
The reason why it stopped hurting for awhile is - well - when a tooth gets infected, the nerves in it eventually die off, that's why it stops hurting for a little while, but it's actually a good thing you caught it now because if you left it alone you'd be in *way more pain*. I'm talking about you-can't-go-to-sleep kinda pain.
My dentist usually prescribes penicillin or amoxicillin, not sure why they gave you erythrocin - I guess it's stronger? Usually with the stronger antibiotics you may have to take it with food. It burns if you try to take it on an empty stomach. Only problem is if you Google this medication - there's conflicting info, but if it's making your stomach sour it's your best bet to take it with food, double check with your dentist though, I'm just a random stranger on the Internet.
The antibiotics is only to keep you "tided over" so that the pain from the infection doesn't hurt so much. It won't 100% eliminate the infection because there are very thin blood vessels in the gums so not much of the medication will get there, but you should definitely start feeling better after a few days.
ALSO, this is something I learned from my endodontist. Endodontists are like specialists that ONLY do tricky root canals, which makes them a tier above regular dentists. I asked him about all these articles about how if you let an infection go it'll spread throughout your body and cause problems - he said these are rare, and these only happen *if you let the infection/pain continue for a long time*. We're talking many months, if not years. Since you reacted quickly you'll be ok.
I know you're worried about the dentist visit itself but dentists have become way more modern these days - X-rays are easier to do, the procedure is generally faster, and you should be recovered within a few days.
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Just keep going folks. It may be difficult, but it's worth it!