Tooth Extractions
Damaged, infected, or severely decaying teeth that cannot be repaired with other routine dental procedures such as root canals, fillings, or crowns may need to be completely removed. Tooth extraction is very common and also very safe.
About the Procedure
There are two kinds of dental extractions—simple and surgical. Both procedures should be painless for the patient, even under local anesthetic. The only sensation you can expect to feel is pressure.
Simple Extraction
In a simple extraction procedure, usually only local anesthetic is enough to numb the area that will be worked on so the patient cannot feel anything.
Surgical Extraction
A surgical extraction procedure is a bit more complex and sometimes requires general anesthesia for the patient to sleep. These extractions are necessary for teeth that have not yet broken through the gums or have broken at the gum line.
Crown Lengthening
In simple words, crown lengthening involves exposing more of the gum or bone (or both) to expose a tooth. This is commonly performed as a surgical procedure.
Who Needs Crown Lengthening?
At times, your dentist may need to fix a crown, but there may not be enough of the tooth sticking out above the gumline. This situation may arise in many ways:
- The tooth may have chipped or broken off at the gum line.
- The filling or crown may have fallen out of the tooth and decay may have set in underneath the tooth.
- People who have a gummy smile and feel their teeth are too short may find that a crown lengthening procedure helps improve your smile. In this case, the teeth may be of the correct length, but the problem is that they are covered with gum tissue which is why the smile appears gummy.
- If your tooth is broken or decayed below the gum line, your periodontist may suggest crown lengthening for further restorative or cosmetic treatment.
Crown lengthening can also be a prerequisite procedure for restoration, such as a bridge or a crown. The dentist works to reshape the gum tissue and bone so that an adequate amount of tooth is exposed.
Wisdom Tooth Extractions
Wisdom teeth are the third pair of molars that humans develop. These molars typically appear in the late teens or early twenties but can cause major problems. For a shocking number of people, there simply is not enough room for wisdom teeth to grow. Other people have trouble with the wisdom teeth not erupting – or emerging from the gums – properly. When this occurs, the gums become swollen and painful, and teeth might become crooked.
Who Needs Wisdom Teeth Extractions?
We perform wisdom tooth extractions in Spring, TX, for a broad range of patients. The majority of our patients who need removal are those who are in pain from the molar eruption or those who do not have room for the teeth to emerge. If you are in your late teens or early twenties and are experiencing pain and discomfort along the back of your upper or lower jaw, you might have wisdom teeth coming in.
To assess your situation, our skilled dentist uses the latest technology. Besides a visual and tactile exam, your dentist will also take x-rays of your mouth to see better how the wisdom teeth are placed. It is common for the molars to become trapped by the jaw, so x-rays are necessary to highlight where they are likely to emerge.