The good news about wisdom teeth is that they do not always have to be removed. In fact, many people live their entire lives with their wisdom teeth intact and present without any complications or oral health issues. However, patients whose wisdom teeth are not in the best condition and require removal. The process is one that has become even more common in many mouths over the course of the past few years, even when patients do not experience any pain or discomfort from the presence of their wisdom teeth.
At Vestal Dental Associates, we help our patients determine whether or not your wisdom teeth are in need of removal or are fine to stay. If you do need your wisdom teeth removed, it’s for one of the following reasons:
Depending on the shape of a patient’s mouth, their age and their overall oral health, our dental professionals make a decision as to whether or not wisdom tooth extraction becomes necessary. Sometimes we might be able to wait a few months to see how well the teeth are growing in as they begin to break through the gum to determine whether or not wisdom tooth extraction is actually necessary.
The extraction of wisdom teeth is not a very difficult surgery, but it is a painful one. We begin the process with a local anesthetic to numb the mouth where your teeth are being removed. This allows you to go through the surgery without experiencing any pain. However, we will do a general anesthesia for patients who are having more than one wisdom tooth removed at the same time. This will cause you to sleep through the procedure and feel nothing when we remove the teeth. In most cases, we simply ask that you refrain from eating or drinking anything the night before your surgery from midnight on to help your body handle the anesthesia we issue.
When you are under, we then remove the tooth and the bone covering the tooth through the gum tissue. Once it is out, you likely need some stitches in your mouth. Depending on your situation, we use stitches that either dissolve as your mouth heals or we ask that you come back a few days after your surgery to have them removed from the gum in your mouth.
Recovery is the worst part of the wisdom tooth extraction process. It requires rest, some pain and a lot of careful care to help the area heal properly and to allow you to recover nicely. All wisdom tooth removal surgery comes with its own set of minor risks, though it is not particularly usual for these risks and side effects to occur. Most people who have wisdom teeth removed never experience any pain or suffering, and that is why it is so important to understand the risks associated with deciding to keep your wisdom teeth or have them removed.
The first step in determining whether or not to have your wisdom teeth removed is to schedule a consultation. If you have pain or discomfort from them, they will likely require removal. If you are unsure and want to make sure that the presence of your wisdom teeth does not interrupt the rest of your oral health, it’s important to schedule a consultation with our experts. A simple examination helps us to determine whether extraction is necessary. As always, our team is here to help you with any questions you might have, or any concerns you might notice. Call us today at (607) 785-3339 to schedule a consultation.