Extractions

Extractions

Before removing a wisdom tooth, your dentist will give you a local anesthetic to numb the area where the tooth will be removed. A general anesthetic may be used, especially if several or all of your wisdom teeth will be removed at the same time. A general anesthetic prevents pain in the whole body and will make you groggy or cause you to sleep through the procedure. Your dentist will probably recommend that you don't eat or drink after midnight on the night before surgery, so you are prepared for the anesthetic.

To remove the wisdom tooth, your dentist will open up the gum tissue over the tooth and take out any bone that is covering the tooth. He or she will separate the tissue connecting the tooth to the bone and then remove the tooth. Sometimes the dentist will cut the tooth into smaller pieces to make it easier to remove.

After the tooth is removed, you may need stitches. Some stitches dissolve over time and some have to be removed after a few days. Your dentist will tell you whether your stitches need to be removed. A folded cotton gauze pad placed over the wound will help stop the bleeding.

If you are considering a tooth extraction, thought should be given to how you plan to restore the tooth. For example, do you plan to use a dental implant or fixed bridge? If you plan to restore the tooth in some manner, then you must preserve the site where the tooth was extracted. If not, then the alveolar ridge, or jawbone, will degenerate, along with the tissue surrounding it. What this means is that there must be some specific action to preserve the extraction site, so that you can restore it after the extraction.

While there are many options to prevent this degeneration, you need to consider them before you extract the tooth. Failure to consider these options will severely limit the restorative options available to you. For example, a severely degenerated jawbone will not support a dental implant, and then you may have to opt for a fixed bridge instead.

What we do know is that failure to preserve the extraction site will cause additional bone degeneration, shifting teeth and an irregular bite. If you have failed to preserve the site, bone grafting is a possibility. Speak with one of our dentist’s about the best options for preserving your extraction site.