A Tooth Infection Suddenly Killed This 26-Year-Old Guy - Men's Health

Think a toothache is just a simple inconvenience? In most cases, you’d be right, but in some rare instances, it can progress to something deadly.

In fact, a tooth infection recently killed a 26-year-old long-haul trucker from California, as the Sacramento Bee reports. On a haul earlier in January, Vadim Anatoliyevich Kondratyuk pulled over in Oklahoma to see a dentist after he started to feel pain in his mouth.

The dentist gave him antibiotics to treat the infection in his tooth. At first, the pain improved, but then it started to get worse. After he returned home, Kondratyuk began having trouble breathing, and turned pale.

His brother rushed Kondratyuk to the hospital. Doctors tried to treat him with stronger antibiotics and dialysis, but the infection had already spread to his bloodstream and lungs. He later died. (To help support Kondratyuk’s family, you can visit their GoFundMe page.)

A tooth abscess is a bacterial infection that occurs when infected material builds up in the center of your tooth. It can cause severe, persistent throbbing, sensitivity to temperatures, fever, swelling, swollen lymph nodes in your jaw or neck, and even a rush of foul, salty fluid in your mouth if the abscess ruptures, according to the Mayo Clinic.

If the infection doesn’t drain, it could spread to your jaw, head, or neck—or, like in Kondratyuk’s case, to you bloodstream.

Deadly tooth infections are rare, but they aren’t unheard of. In fact, in a study of 61,439 hospitalizations that occurred because of tooth abscesses, 66 patients died as a result of their tooth infection, the Journal of Endontics reports.

In many cases, tooth abscesses are caused by untreated cavities, according to the Mayo Clinic. So see your dentist regularly so you can catch any teeth issues quickly before they develop into something far more serious. (Here are 6 serious health problems your dentist can spot.)

If you do end up with a tooth abscess, your doctor may treat it by draining it, performing a root canal on the tooth, or pulling the tooth. Antibiotics are often necessary, too.

For nearly 10 years, Christa has created health, fitness, nutrition, and wellness content that’s steeped in science but engaging enough that people actually want to read it. She’s tuned in to all the latest research that people with an athletic lifestyle need to know, and prides herself on helping her readers apply it to their everyday lives.