A few years ago I had root canals and crowns done on all my teeth, won't go into the reasons. Turns out the dentist botched almost every single root canal and they started developing infections one by one.
For the past year I've been getting re-treated with secondary root canals at a new dentist who was able to reopen most teeth.
Recently, after re-treating one of my teeth, I experienced above average, unrelenting pain that had me taking painkillers (NSAIDS) every 4-6 hours for 2 days and was put on two types of antibiotics.
After two days, once the tooth pain subsided, I began suffering intense abdominal pain, vomiting and diarrhea. My family doctor said it was the painkillers and the strong antibiotics and switched one of the antibiotics for a gentler one.
That night my stomach pain became unbearable, I developed chills and disorientation/weakness and continued vomiting. After being hospitalized, I was taken off the antibiotics completely, tested for Clostridium Defficile which came back negative and was released with a prescription of Nexium (an antacid). I was told it was probably a stomach bug, not the painkillers or the antibiotics that caused this. For a week after, I would experience this immense pressure/heaviness in my lower abdomen that slowly faded each day.
Two months later, I went back in to continue my dental work. We re-treated one tooth which hurt for a day but was fine. The next week we did another tooth which hurt more than average but not quite as bad as that first one. This time I stayed away from NSAIDS and antibiotics and stuck to Panadol (paracetamol) and didn't exceed the recommended dosage.
The next day as the tooth pain subsided, I started getting dizzy and my stomach started hurting again. That night I developed chills and started vomiting. I made it through the night and was placed on a gentle antibiotic and antacid the next day. After two days of seemingly getting better, my stomach pain increased, I developed chills, diarrhea and vomited twice. I was told if this was a result of a tooth infection, the antibiotic should have improved it so this was likely a stomach issue.
I am now continuing the antibiotic course and am still taking the antacids and experiencing slight disorientation accompanied by lesser abdominal pain in the evenings. When my stomach isn't hurting, I experience the same dull pressure in my lower abdomen that I felt after the hospital.
Tomorrow I'm getting tested for H. Pylori and other possible culprits. I have never had stomach problems in the past and highly doubt that them showing up after the root canals is just coincidence. I am absolutely convinced it has something to do with my teeth and is more than just an infection that is spreading to my stomach because antibiotics don't seem to fix it.
If anybody has had any experience with something like this, I would appreciate the advice.