How do Antibiotics find and treat an infection?
Posted on August 05th, 2008 in Answers
louih25 asked:
I have an infection in my tooth and need root canal therapy. I can't afford to have the treatment just yet so my dentist has put me on a course of antibiotics in the mean time.
How do the antibiotics know where to find the infected area and start treating it?
I have an infection in my tooth and need root canal therapy. I can't afford to have the treatment just yet so my dentist has put me on a course of antibiotics in the mean time.
How do the antibiotics know where to find the infected area and start treating it?
This post has 2 comments
August 5th, 2008
Well, antibiotics don’t just seek out bacteria to kill. Ordinarily it is absorbed in the blood, and spreads out through the entire body. In that spread, it comes across bacteria which it kills. Some of it will obviously get up there to your mouth. What an antibiotic does is assist the immune system itself, by killing off other stray things that can take the opportunity to set up housekeeping while the immune system is concentrating on another site. Your immune system is able to zero in on a specific spot, though. Having the antibiotic lets your body concentrate even more defenses at the site where they are needed, and less on the rest of the body- which the antibiotic is taking care of. Antibiotics do not distinguish between bacteria- unlike your immune system. Antibiotics kill everything they come in contact with- the good and the bad. That’s why it’s not unusual to have diarrhea or a yeast infection after taking them, or suffer a dietary upset. In your case, the body will be able to isolate the infection in your mouth faster, and control it- possibly even get rid of it, before you can arrange for the treatment. A dentist often will prescribe one first, as it’s not ideal to work in the mouth with an abcess present. It’s a lot safer for you if it’s treated first, and then the tooth attended to to prevent a reoccurence.
August 6th, 2008
IN SIMPLE TERMS THERE ARE BAD CELLS AND GOOD CELLS IN YOUR BLOOD. THE BAD CELLS ARE HIGH WHEN THERE’S AN INFECTION.
ANTIBIOTICS FIGHT BAD CELLS BY KILLING THEM.
SINCE THIS TOOTH NEEDING A ROOT CANAL IS OPEN TO YOUR BLOODSTREAM, THE ANTIBIOTICS ARE THERE TO HELP THIS TOOTH.
THE MOMENT YOU TAKE THE ANTIBIOTICS THEY TRAVEL EVERYWHERE THE BLOOD GOES.
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