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Is Facial Swelling A Sign Of A Serious Health Problem?

Facial swelling can be quite an alarming symptom because it often looks a lot worse than it is. If your face suddenly swells up, you may start panicking and head to the hospital right away. However, in a lot of cases, there is a simple explanation and you don’t need to be concerned. That said, there are some situations when facial swelling is a serious problem. So, what causes your face to swell up, and should you be worried?

Allergic Reactions

If your face swells up, you may have an allergic reaction to something that you ate or touched. Sometimes, allergies occur quickly and other times the symptoms don’t appear until several hours later. Depending on what caused the allergy, your face could swell up around your eyes, lips, cheeks, or other parts of your face. Even if it feels like your entire face is swelling up, you can still have a milder reaction elsewhere. If you want to avoid swelling and keep your skin in good condition, it’s important to find out what you are allergic to. Keeping a food diary will help you make the link between certain foods and the reaction you are having. Your doctor can also perform an allergy test for you.

If you notice other symptoms like your throat closing up, it’s important to seek medical advice right away because this can be dangerous.

Tooth Decay

Sometimes, tooth decay can cause your gums to swell. It’s important to call your local dentist if this is the case so that you can get treatment and prevent further damage. Often, you will need a root canal to remove the infected material from your tooth and replace it with a filling. If you don’t deal with tooth decay, the infection will continue to spread through your jaw and the rest of your face, and become more serious.

Medications

Certain medications can cause your face to swell up as a side effect. This will often go away after you stop taking the medication, but if it doesn’t happen immediately, make sure to call your doctor for advice on what you should do next. If you think that a medication is causing your face to swell, look out for other symptoms including a rash, hives, and difficulty breathing. This is definitely something to bring up with your doctor or pharmacist. In most cases, they will be able to prescribe an alternative medication that doesn’t cause a reaction.

Eye Infections

Most of the time, an eye infection will cause swelling around your eyes. This can be quite painful and may last anywhere from a few days to a couple of weeks if it is bacterial. If you have an eye infection and notice that your face starts swelling, it’s important to seek medical advice so that they can determine whether or not the problem is bacterial or viral. If it is a bacterial infection, your doctor will probably prescribe an antibiotic.

If you notice that the swelling around your eyes doesn’t go down, it’s a good idea to make a follow-up appointment with your doctor anyway.

In most cases, you should go to the doctor if your face swells up because you are likely to need antibiotics. However, you don’t need to be too worried because it’s usually something that can be cleared up quite easily. 

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