Why You Might Need a Surgical Tooth Extraction
Most dentists will save teeth when given a choice instead of having them extracted. Sometimes, however, a tooth simply cannot be saved due to severe decay, bone loss, or extensive damage. Under these circumstances, dentists may recommend extraction. If you need to have one or more teeth removed, contact the team at Dreamtime Dentistry, Vista, California, for safe, pain-free teeth extraction.
Enjoy Safe and Effective Dental Extractions at Dreamtime Dentistry
Despite advanced dental technologies, extractions are still necessary in dentistry. While our focus is always to preserve your natural teeth, extensive damage, extra teeth, or troublesome wisdom teeth present situations where your beloved tooth has to go. When extractions are necessary, you need a trusted dentist to perform the procedure safely and painlessly.
Dreamtime Dentistry provides precise extractions for standard cases and wisdom teeth. If you need dental extraction in Vista, California, schedule an appointment with Drs. Ryan Watkins and Joel Altshul. Our treatment looks beyond the immediate concerns to promote long-term oral health, providing functional teeth replacements to restore oral function and aesthetics.
Why tooth extraction?
As the name suggests, tooth extraction involves completely removing the tooth from its socket. Tooth extraction is never our first line of treatment. Often, we try to salvage your tooth with fillings, crowns, and root canals. Unfortunately, saving your tooth is sometimes not viable, warranting extraction.
For instance, our doctors will recommend extraction in the following cases:
- A severely damaged or decayed tooth
- An “over-retained” baby tooth
- An ingrown or impacted wisdom tooth
- Tooth overcrowding
- Advanced gum disease
- To create spaces for orthodontic care
Extractions are performed as a last resort because keeping your natural tooth has numerous benefits. However, when your tooth is severely infected or extremely painful, the health risks may outweigh the advantages of preserving your tooth. Dental extractions remove problematic teeth and present a new opportunity to protect your smile with a dependable, healthy restoration.
What should I expect during the tooth extraction procedure?
Your treatment starts with a consultation where the dentist will use digital X-rays to examine your tooth and determine the best approach for extraction. Before the procedure, the dentist administers powerful local anesthetics for a comfortable experience. However, if you are anxious about the treatment or can’t stay still in the dental chair, you can talk to our team about sedation dentistry.
Our office performs two types of extractions.
- Simple extractions: This procedure is ideal for teeth that are visible and accessible in the mouth. Your dentist loosens your tooth from its socket with an elevator before pulling it out in one piece with forceps.
- Surgical extractions: Your doctor surgically removes your tooth if it’s severely damaged, impacted, partially erupted, or otherwise challenging to remove. In this case, the dentist makes a small incision on the gums and removes the underlying bone for easy access to your tooth. Often, the doctor breaks the tooth into several pieces for easier removal. The last step is to clean and suture the wound to pave the way for healing. Although surgical extractions are complex, our dental team makes the process simple and comfortable for you.
After extraction, our dental team will give post-op instructions to ensure an event-free recovery. We’ll place a gauze on the extraction site, which you should only remove when the bleeding stops. Additionally, we’ll give home remedies and medications to prevent any health complications. Where necessary, we may schedule follow-up appointments to monitor your treatment progress.
Are you seeking dental extractions near you?
No one likes them, but extractions are a necessary part of dental care. If you want to discover how dental extractions can benefit your oral health in Vista, CA, call (760) 274-0993 to reserve an appointment with Dreamtime Dentistry.