Management of odontogenic infections and sepsis: an update.

The management of odontogenic infections has improved over recent decades, but further improvements are still required. The ongoing education of GDPs and their dental teams on this issue continues to be important, especially during the current COVID-19 pandemic, where remote triage poses additional difficulties and challenges.Odontogenic infections can lead to sepsis, a potentially life-threatening condition caused by the body's immune system responding in an abnormal way. This can lead to tissue damage, organ failure and death. A patient with non-odontogenic-related infection could also present with sepsis at a dental practice. Early recognition and prompt management of sepsis improves outcomes. GDPs and their dental teams should be trained in the recognition and management of sepsis. Age-specific sepsis decision support tools have been developed by the UK Sepsis Trust to help dental staff recognise and manage patients with suspected sepsis.The aim of this article is to provide an update on the management of odontogenic infections and sepsis.

Does Extraction or Retention of the Wisdom Tooth at the Time of Surgery for Open Reduction and Internal Fixation of the Mandible Alter the Patient Outcome?

Whether to extract or retain wisdom teeth present in a fracture line is a controversial topic. This study reviewed the records of all patients who had mandibular wisdom teeth at the time of the injury, and had an open reduction and internal fixation procedure between January 2009 and January 2012. The cohort of patients who concomitantly had their wisdom tooth extracted at the time of fixation had a greater complication rate (24.3%) compared with patients who did not (14.9%). This suggests that if third molars in the line of a fracture have caries, are fractured, show signs of pericoronitis, are periodontally involved, or are interfering with the occlusion are extracted at the time of fixation, this will increase the incidence of complications.