Tooth Extraction Service in Lewiston Maine
Experience A Modern Tooth Extraction Treatment
When Do You Need A Tooth Extraction?
Tooth extraction is usually one of the last resorts in modern dentistry. Centuries ago, tooth extraction was one of the only options for an infected tooth or a toothache. Dentists would recommend pulling a tooth to stop the infection from spreading to other teeth or into the gums. But nowadays there are many different options to save a tooth. Part of the reason dentists recommend that you see them twice per year is because they are able to catch problems at earlier stages when there are only six months between visits. A tooth extraction is necessary in the following situations:
- Severe Decay: If a tooth is decayed to the point where a filling or root canal cannot sufficiently remove the decay and leave a structurally sound tooth, a tooth might need to be pulled to relieve toothaches and prevent the spread of decay to the rest of the mouth. Again, this will be a last resort and is only done if a tooth cannot be saved.
- Severe Injury: Some dental injuries are so severe that it is impossible to save a cracked or broken tooth. Instead, it is safer to remove the partial tooth and replace it with a bridge or implant.
- Alignment Issues: Sometimes teeth are removed to help improve bite alignment. For adults, wisdom teeth are often removed to prevent infection caused by impacting (when the wisdom teeth come in at an angle and hit the other teeth). Children also sometimes have primary (baby) teeth removed to make room for the adult teeth that are growing in behind or around them.
Make A Restorative Dental Appointment in Lewiston
If you are concerned about a toothache, a damaged tooth, or are worried about your child’s baby teeth not falling out, please do not hesitate to call our office. We provide emergency dental services for toothaches, injuries to the teeth, and similar issues and can get you same-day treatment. As for children with baby teeth that won’t fall out or wiggle, we can also provide a thorough exam and make recommendations. In some cases, primary tooth extraction may be necessary. For more information please click below to schedule an appointment.
Anxiety-Free Dentistry in Lewiston Maine
Here at Aspire Family Dentistry, it is our goal to make sure all of our patients have positive dental experiences. While tooth extractions can cause a lot of dental anxiety, we work hard to make sure our patients are comfortable during their treatment, and confident in their results.
Tooth extraction is often a last case scenario and recommended only when necessary either due to trauma/damage, orthodontic issues, or other factors.
With a combination of cosmetic and restorative dental treatments we can help provide adult tooth replacement options, to help keep the look and structure of your smile.
Why Would I Need To Have A Tooth Pulled?
Trauma and/or Damage
Caused by physical damage or long-term decay, once a tooth loosens enough, extraction may be the only choice.
Orthodontic Issues
A range of orthodontic treatments may include tooth extractions in order to provide room for a more harmonious alignment of teeth.
Useless & Wrongly Positioned
At times, adult teeth are not aligned correctly within the mouth, requiring removal.
Too Many Teeth
Extra teeth aren’t just a pain, they create long-term problems by using space needed by other teeth.
Radiation & Chemotherapy
These serious medical procedures for cancer patients may sometimes necessitate tooth extraction.
Useless & Wrongly Positioned
Some medications and other medical processes can increase the potential for dental health issues, eventually requiring tooth extraction.
Types of Tooth Extraction
Simple Extractions
When the tooth is visible and accessible to the dentist, simple extractions can be the best solution. These usually include a local anesthetic, and sometimes sedation and anti-anxiety medications.
Surgical Extractions
When a tooth is NOT visible and accessible, it may have broken below the gum line, or may have never risen above it in the first place. In these cases, surgery may be necessary for bone removal, as well as lifting or folding gum tissue while performing the tooth extraction. Local anesthesia and sedation are possible.
Wisdom Tooth Extraction in Lewiston Maine
One of the most common dental extractions is for wisdom teeth. This tends to happen for patients between the ages of 16 and 20. Wisdom teeth are also often removed surgically. This is because the wisdom teeth are either “impacted” or at risk of becoming impacted. An impacted tooth is a tooth that is unable to grow-in correctly and instead of coming through the gum line it runs into the other teeth which can lead to damage to their roots as well as infection. Because of this, impacted wisdom teeth, or wisdom teeth that are at a high risk of become impacted are almost always surgically extracted.
But what about wisdom that successfully break through the gum line? They might be extracted as well. The simple extraction process for wisdom teeth is also recommended in situations where the wisdom teeth will cause crowding and bite alignment issues. Unfortunately, most people do not have room in their mouths for all 32 possible adult teeth. It is very rare that someone is able to have all three sets of four molars. Even wisdom teeth that don’t cause infection or become impacted are likely to need to be pulled.
Does My Child Need Their Baby Teeth Extracted?
Two rows of teeth, also sometimes referred to as “shark teeth” can happen when an adult tooth isn’t able to come-in because the primary tooth (baby tooth) hasn’t fallen out. This forces the adult tooth to grow in behind the baby tooth. When this happens, the best thing to do is schedule a dental appointment with a family dentist. They can recommend either a tooth extraction for the primary tooth to prevent future alignment and orthodontic issues, or if the tooth is loose, the might simply recommend for the child to keep wiggling the tooth until it falls out naturally. Two rows of teeth isn’t uncommon, and isn’t an immediate health concern. But it is definitely something to bring up to a dentist as they will have recommendations on what to do.
What Do You Do After A Tooth Is Extracted?
Depending on why your tooth is extracted, you might need to consider adult tooth replacement treatments. Here is a quick rundown of what to expect after a tooth extraction:
- Primary Tooth Extraction: If a baby tooth is extracted to make room for the adult tooth, replacements obviously will not be necessary. During the treatment, local anesthesia is often used to numb the mouth before the tooth is “pulled”. After you leave the dentist, your child might start to feel some discomfort and swelling. A cold compress or ice pack can help with both. Swelling often beings a few hours after the treatment and subsides 1-2 days after the treatment. Before your child leaves, the dentist will give them gauze that is placed on the extraction site. Your child should bite down on the gauze for 45 minutes after the procedure. When the gauze is removed, if there is still some bleeding, you can fold clean gauze, wet it with warm water, and have your child bite down on the gauze over the extraction site for another 30 minutes. If your child is still bleeding after this, please call a dentist. Another important element of the healing process is rest. After a tooth extraction, let your child rest so that they can recover quickly.
- Wisdom Tooth Extraction: Post-care for a wisdom tooth extraction is dependent on whether the extraction is surgical or not. You should follow your dentist or dental surgeon’s advice on how to handle post care if you or your teenager has their wisdom teeth removed. If a simple extraction was performed, the advice above applies. Over the counter pain medication, rest, ice packs or cold compresses, can all help reduce pain & swelling and improve the recovery process. If the teeth are surgically removed, your teenager might receive stitches. They will likely be instructed to disinfect with warm salt water, take prescribed pain medication, and alter their diet for a few weeks as they slowly reintroduce solid foods. They might also have a follow-up appointment to remove stitches.
- Adult Tooth Extraction: If an adult tooth is removed due to decay or injury, you might need to consider adult tooth replacement options. For a single tooth, the two most common treatments are dental bridges and dental implants. However, if you are getting older, you might consider full tooth replacement options like dentures or All-On-4 Dental implants. Click on the links below for more information.
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