Browse categories and answer follow-up questions to refine your symptom profile.
Airway and immediate threats
Time-critical stabilization
Airway threat features
Voice change
Stridor
Drooling
Inability to handle secretions
Rapidly progressive neck or floor of mouth swelling
Tongue elevation
Tripod positioning
Escalation triggers
If any airway threat feature, resuscitation bay
If floor of mouth swelling or tongue elevation, early anesthesia and ENT or OMFS involvement
If impending airway compromise, awake technique planning preferred over paralytic first approach
Sepsis physiology
Hypotension
Tachycardia out of proportion to pain
Altered mental status
Lactate elevation if obtained
Spread beyond alveolar process
Trismus
Neck stiffness
Chest pain
Facial swelling crossing midline
Periorbital swelling
Cranial nerve deficits
Monitoring and access
Continuous pulse oximetry for systemic symptoms or deep space concern
Cardiac monitoring for sepsis physiology or significant comorbidity
Two IV lines if toxic appearance or deep neck concern
NPO status if airway concern or operative likelihood
Initial decision points
Triage classification
Localized odontogenic infection
Gingival or alveolar tenderness with focal swelling
No systemic toxicity
No trismus
No floor of mouth involvement
Complicated odontogenic infection
Systemic toxicity
Immunocompromised state
Deep fascial space involvement
Orbital or intracranial red flags
Consultation thresholds
OMFS or dentistry for source control needs
Fluctuant abscess
Need for extraction or endodontic source control
ENT for deep neck space involvement
Submandibular swelling
Floor of mouth swelling
Significant trismus
Ophthalmology for orbital involvement concern
Pain with extraocular movement
Proptosis
Visual change
SymptomDx is an educational tool for medical professionals. It does not replace clinical judgment. Verify all clinical data and drug dosages with authoritative sources.