What You Need to Know about Cavitations

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Your teeth are attached to bone by connective tissue called the periodontal ligament. If you have a tooth extracted, this ligament needs to be removed, too, along with about 2 mm of the surrounding alveolar bone - the bony ridge containing the tooth socket. If this isn't done, any pathogenic microbes (disease-causing "germs") present will be effectively sealed into the jaw once new tissues grow over the socket. Those microbes are free to proliferate. Healthy tissues die and decay – a process that creates even more toxins. (Not to be gross, but if you think here of a putrefying corpse being gobbled by bacteria and vermin, you’ll be thinking of a similar process.)

The end result? Holes in the jawbone: osteonecrotic cavitational lesions, or "cavitations," for short.

Because these infected, decaying areas still have access to the blood supply and the body’s basic regulative system, the toxins may enter the body's general circulation, free to infect other organs, generating disease and dysfunction. Brain health is of special concern, since the organ is so close to the mouth – just inches away. When neurotoxins exit into the bone, it’s not far to the cerebrospinal fluid that bathes the brain. There and over time, they contribute to a variety of neurological illnesses, just as toxins affecting other organs and polluting the terrain contribute to other forms of systemic illness.

Illnesses that have been linked to cavitations include cancer, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS), fibromyalgia, multiple sclerosis (MS), Lou Gehrig Disease (ALS), lupus and other autoimmune and inflammatory conditions.

Cavitations can follow even routine and seemingly "successful" dental surgery. Here, we see the removal of a third molar (wisdom tooth):

Note how there’s no attempt to clean the bone once the tooth has been removed, nor to fully remove the periodontal ligament. The tooth is merely sectioned and the tissue flap, sutured shut – a technique that often leaves a cavitational lesion in the bone. Outcomes can be worse if several wisdom teeth are removed during the same appointment - especially if the patient’s biological terrain is disordered and polluted. (The terrain is your body's internal environment, and its condition determines whether and how illness and dysfunction will manifest in the body.)

Here’s another clip in which no attempt made to remove the ligament or clean the bone once the tooth had been pulled.

Suffice it to say, when oral surgery is required, it's key to have a surgeon who is aware of the potential for cavitations and so will clean and treat the surgical site thoroughly.

Below are materials we recommend for learning more about this topic. Each of us is the author of our own health and well-being. So we encourage you to do the research that will help you make good choices for your dental and systemic health – choices appropriate to your wants and needs. For good choices depend on understanding how and why illness arises. This is the basis of truly informed consent.

Article by Dr. Verigin on Cavitations

• From Microbes in the Mouth to Dysfunction in the Body: Focal Infection Theory

Other Recommended Articles on Cavitations

• The History of Maxillofacial Osteonecrosis (NICO)
  "NICO" is another term for "cavitations." After you've read this article, be sure to explore the rest of this site's info on cavitations, including the fine resources page.
• Jawbone Disease Produces Many Ills (PDF)
• Cavitations, Cavitational Osteonecrosis & Alveolar Cavitational Osteopathy
  A brief overview of what they are and their impact on health
• Routine Dental Extractions Routinely Produce Cavitations (PDF)
• Jawbone Cavitations: Infarction, Infection & Systemic Disease
• Cavitations
  Click on "Dental Articles" in the main menu to read this and related articles on the topic
• Chronic Jaw Osteitis (NICO) and Heavy Metals: A Threat for Systemic Regulation
• Incidence Levels & Chronic Health Effects of Cavitations (PDF)
• Research on Dental Toxins & Cancer Proteins
• Are There Other Dental Dangers We Should Know About
  While this article gives a good overview of common concerns about dental materials, the information on ceramic/porcelain is misleading. As explained in this excellent white paper (PDF) from materials expert Jess Clifford, there is no such thing as "metal-free dentistry." What matters is the form the metals take.

Recommended Video on Root Canals & Dental Implants

• Oral Obstacles to Optimal Health
  • Part One explains tooth anatomy and physiology, as well as how root canals are done and their limitations.
  • Part Two discusses why a root canal filling cannot be considered sound biological therapy even if lasers and ozone are used. The concept of focal infection is introduced, as are the importance of removing the periodontal ligament from the bone when a tooth is extracted to avoid creating a cavitation.
  • Part Three continues the discussion of cavitations and focal infection before turning to issues with implants and their negative effect on energy flow. It also taps into Bob Jones' research on the relation between dental toxins, foci and cancer.