Your dentist may refer you to an oral surgeon for wisdom tooth extraction. It is best to have any impacted third molars extracted early before they cause severe discomfort, infections, fluid-filled cysts or crowding of other teeth.
As with a cavity filling procedure, your extraction site will be numbed using local anesthetic. Since this medication can leave you feeling sleepy after administration, it’s important tо arrange for a ride home, as the anesthesia may make you dizzy. It’s advisable tо consult your North York dentist for any concerns оr questions regarding the procedure.
Your Dentist
Wisdom teeth should be removed as soon as they become impacted, as waiting until they erupt can result in complications. Your dentist will use X-rays of your mouth to evaluate whether the wisdom tooth should be extracted and can recommend the most convenient time and date for surgery.
Your dentist or oral surgeon will start by cutting into the gum and extracting any bone covering the tooth, before subdividing the wisdom tooth using a drill before extracting it – something which may be uncomfortable but necessary.
After your dental procedure, your dentist will place gauze in your mouth and ask you to bite down for up to an hour in order to control bleeding and promote clotting in the empty tooth socket. As necessary, change out your gauze as necessary in order to keep it clean and avoid infection; follow-up appointments will also be scheduled so they can ensure healing is progressing appropriately.
X-Rays
Dentists may be able to detect wisdom teeth that have become impacted by visually inspecting the mouth; however, more often X-rays will be needed, particularly of lower jaw areas. This allows your dentist or oral surgeon to accurately view where a wisdom tooth lies before it’s extracted.
Impacted wisdom teeth may erupt and crowd other molars, causing pain or the possibility of infection from food trapped between crowded teeth. Furthermore, these wisdom teeth can grow crookedly into place causing damage to other teeth or nerves in their path.
Before having wisdom teeth extracted, both your mouth and tooth will be numbed with local anesthetic. A dentist or oral surgeon may then administer a sedative such as nitrous oxide or intravenous sedative to ease anxiety levels during surgery. After removal, you must bite down on gauze which helps form a blood clot at the wound site; any stitches used must then be removed in approximately 1 week; otherwise, it must remain clean and be kept free of debris for optimal healing.
Anesthesia
An injection of local anesthetic into the gum surrounding the wisdom tooth (similar to receiving fillings) should numb you without any pain during this procedure. You also have the option of getting general anesthesia; though this option takes longer and puts you under anesthesia, typically leaving little or no memory of its effect upon awakening from sleep.
Wisdom teeth that have not fully emerged will be extracted, while their roots may also need to be extracted, known as an operculectomy, depending on whether there is extensive decay.
After extracting wisdom teeth, you will receive a prescription of painkillers which should be taken as prescribed. Swelling is normal and can be reduced by using water or mouthwash to rinse the site regularly after surgery. Avoid smoking and drinking through straws which increase risk of an empty socket infection (dry socket). Soft foods (especially liquids) are best until any pain subsides.
Surgery
Once we have determined the position of your wisdom teeth through oral examination and X-rays, we will schedule surgery. After being sedated with local anesthesia, an oral surgeon will remove any impacted or improperly erupted wisdom teeth that have resulted in cysts, infections or jawbone damage – often times these removals prevent future dental complications like cysts.
After your procedure, we will give you instructions for post-operative care that includes using ice packs to reduce pain or swelling, eating soft foods, and rinsing with salt water. In some instances, stitches may be used to close surgical sites; these generally dissolve themselves within days. We may recommend that you don’t blow your nose into tissues as this could dislodge healing blood clots that have formed under your jaws and result in dry socket; dry socket causes dull ache in jaw/gums/bad breath over a week-to few months of healing process.
