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Hi John,
Thank you for your helpful reply. I feel very alone and afraid right now and am so grateful to have a place to ask questions. I have not talked to my surgeon about the origin of this infection, but I am starting to think it may be dental in origin. Since I’ve had a feeling I’d need a revision I went to my dentist two weeks ago. She found that a large filling had fallen out, but it had not progressed to needing a root canal. I admit I was overdue for a dental visit (it had been one year), but I had an ACDF neck fusion in the summer that came as as a complete shock to me. Whole different topic, but two discs had calcified and almost vanished. I’m going to get dental insurance so I can get my teeth cleaned 3 or 4 times a year after all of this. That actually raises a whole different question…how many times a year should I go to the dentist and get cleanings with hip implants? During the pandemic with no visits I developed an infection and had a root canal as soon as my dentist could see me.
Thanks!!!! Catherine
Replies to "Hi John, Thank you for your helpful reply. I feel very alone and afraid right now..."
Hi Catherine, my buddy, @johnbishop brought me into your conversation about dental visits and your question of the possiblity of a the infection in your hip being dentally related.
Short answer. Yes.
Infections can happen at the site of a joint replacment from a dental infection, or from having teeth cleaned. Anytime we have a joint replacment it’s recommended to have a prophylactic dose of antibiotics to preempt any bacteria that might enter the blood stream during dental treatment.
Also, having an infected tooth requiring a root canal, can go systemic, often seeking the area of a surgical implant.
Here’s a good discussion on our forum with other members whom have had joint replacements and their comments on prophylactic antibiotics before dental treatment.
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/dental-antibiotics-after-tkr/
Reading through your previous posts I see you’re going to be having IV antibiotics for several weeks to get control of the infection. From my experience I think you’ll find this is kinder to the tummy than oral antibiotics and should be highly affective in wiping out the infection. Don’t fear the antibiotics! I was on 2 concurrently for almost 3 years. They did the job and I had no side effects. Just make sure you have a good live culture yogurt daily. Maybe mix in a little teaspoon of ground flax. That seems to work well to keep the guts happy on antibiotics.
As for dental cleanings it may not be necessary to have 3 or 4 cleanings per year if your oral hygiene is good and you aren’t having any bone loss or gum infections. Twice per year is the general recommendation. If you have a great deal of calculus (tartar) built up between appointments then that may require more frequent visits. Daily use of dental floss and brushing is key to keeping that under control. Another good tool is a electric toothbrush. Oral B has a round brush that spins and does a great job of cleaning at the gumline and just below the surface to keep the calculus from buiding up.
But with each of those dental appointments, you will need to take a dose of penicillin (just for that day prior to the appointment…not a full course) or whatever med your dentist prescribes for you.
As you found out, Catherine, you’re not alone here. You have a huge new family. ☺️. I’m that old pesky auntie that sticks her nose in everyone’s business.
When do you begin your antibiotic treatments?
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Hi Catherine, That is a good question so I'm hoping someone will jump in with some recommendations on dental visits when you have hip implants or other joint replacements. I've had a knee replacement but I avoid the dentist like the plague but then I already have a partial.
I'll bet my friend @loribmt might have some thoughts.