Iv started taking antibiotics for a tooth abscess. will it kick in before it gets too painful?

Maybe: Antibiotics for a toothache should start to kill the bacteria causing the abscess. However, the pain you feel is caused by pressure building up in the tooth by the collection of pus. The only way to relieve this pressure is to have a root canal to clean the tooth of the infection. Your dentist may also give you pain medication to cover your pain.

Depends: Antibiotics can take 24-48 hours to fully kick in. A toothache can get much worse in this time. The best way to treat an abscessed tooth is to see your dentist and have the tooth treated with either a root canal or extraction. If you don't treat the tooth, the abscess will just come back when the antibiotics are finised.