Why Do I Need a Surgical Extraction?
A surgical extraction is an extraction procedure used when a tooth is impacted below the gum tissue or within the bone and an incision is necessary. If the tooth is impacted within the jaw bone, a small piece of bone will also need to be removed so that your doctor can access the tooth. For teeth that are fully erupted above the gum line, a simple extraction can be used to simply loosen and remove the tooth and does not require an incision.
Why do I need a surgical extraction?
It is ideal for patients to keep their natural teeth as long as possible, but sometimes, extracting a tooth is the only way to restore health to the mouth. An extraction may be necessary if a tooth has severe decay, has suffered a trauma, or has broken.
Removing the wisdom teeth is one of the most common occasions where a surgical extraction is necessary. The wisdom teeth develop perpendicular to the rest of our teeth and often do not have the space necessary to rotate and push up through the gum tissue. Therefore, a surgical extraction is needed to remove problematic wisdom teeth that are impacted below the gum. Extractions are also performed in anticipation of orthodontic treatment, ensuring proper space for all of the teeth to shift and rotate into alignment.
In case of extensive decay, the tooth may be too weak for a simple extraction and surgical procedure is needed to remove the tooth from the socket in its entirety. If a simple extraction is attempted on a severely decayed tooth, the tooth could crumble and make it harder to remove all the pieces.
Another time for surgical extraction is gum disease or in the case of treatment failure. Gum disease can cause a whole host of problems, one of which is dental abscess. If an abscess develops, it may be drained but sometimes, the infection cannot be completely eradicated without extracting the tooth. This is also true in cases of failed root canal therapy. Root canal therapy is used to clear infection from within a tooth, effectively getting the patient out of pain. When root canal treatment fails to provide the desired outcome, the tooth may need to be extracted.
What can I expect after a surgical extraction?
Surgical extractions are typically performed under a local anesthetic, which keeps you comfortable during the procedure, but does not put you to sleep. It is normal to experience minor pain as well as bleeding and swelling after a surgical extraction but this should all subside within a few days. Your doctor will provide a prescription for antibiotics to prevent infection and may include a pain medication but after the first couple of days, any discomfort that you feel should be manageable with over-the-counter pain medication.
If you experience severe pain or pain that lasts longer than three or four days, it is important to visit your doctor for a follow up evaluation to make sure that everything is healing properly and that you have not developed an infection.