Will I need recovery time from sedation with my oral surgery?

Most patients who have a surgical procedure like a wisdom tooth extraction or dental implant placement will want some sort of sedation during the procedure. Your oral surgeon will review your sedation options with you and advise you of what to expect in the recovery process. Some methods require some recovery time after the appointment, while others do not. The mildest form of sedative is nitrous oxide (also known as laughing gas), which the patient inhales in gaseous form through a mask. It produces a calming sensation throughout the patient’s body, and its effects are reversed quickly after the patient returns to inhaling normal air. There is minimal recovery time needed for patients who receive nitrous oxide as sedation for their procedure. Alternatively, your oral surgeon may recommend IV sedation or general anesthesia for your procedure, and these methods do have lingering effects even after the surgery is complete. With…

Do dental implants require special care?

Dental implants offer patients a tooth replacement option that is convenient in many ways. One of those is day-to-day maintenance. In most cases, dental implants do not require any special care beyond the same good oral hygiene habits that you keep to preserve your biological teeth. After the oral surgeon places the dental implant in the jaw and the surrounding bone forms the necessary bond with the device, the implant-supported crown is able to stand alone without support from neighboring teeth. Therefore, there is no structure that restricts access to the gumline, as is the case with a traditional dental bridge. Patients can brush and floss around a dental implant in the same way they do with their natural teeth. No special tools, like floss threaders, are required. An implant-supported bridge or denture may require a special technique, such as sliding the appliance down in order to floss along the…

All-on-4 Offers a Permanent Tooth Replacement Solution

Edentulous patients often have great difficulty with traditional dentures, especially if they have worn them for years. Traditional dentures only address the loss of the biting surfaces of teeth. In recent years, dental professionals have favored using dental implants to secure prosthetics because implants address the loss of an overlooked part of tooth structure: the roots. Using a revolutionary method called All-on-4, our oral surgeons can secure an entire arch of custom made dentures to precisely placed dental implants. This tooth replacement solution allows an edentulous patient to enjoy a full restoration of oral function and appearance without the hassle of ill-fitting prosthetics that only rest on top of the gums. What Makes All-on-4 Unique All-on-4 allows edentulous patients the ability to enjoy the benefits of dental implants without the need for replacing each single tooth. Instead, four dental implants – placed in strategic locations – can support a full…

Common Reasons for Tooth Extractions

Many people may first think of the wisdom teeth when they hear the phrase tooth extraction, but there are a number of other reasons that a patient may need to have a tooth removed, as well. For example, a tooth that has been severely damaged by injury may not be salvageable. Similarly, extraction may be indicated in the case of a tooth that has been significantly compromised by extensive decay to the degree that not enough tooth material remains to support a restoration. An oral surgeon may also need to extract a tooth as part of an orthodontic treatment plan. If the patient’s smile is “crowded,” removing a tooth can create the space needed to move the other teeth into their proper positions. Indeed, impacted teeth also may be extracted, and the surgeon may need to remove surrounding bone first in order to access the teeth. Regardless of the issue…

Dental Implants: Enjoy the Health Benefits of a Complete Smile

While tooth loss is devastating, there are durable and lifelike alternatives to bridges and dentures. Dental implants have become the most popular method for replacing lost teeth in recent years. The reason these permanent replacement teeth are so well liked is the fact that they replace total tooth structure, last for decades, and support all oral health structures – including bone. Receiving a dental implant can reduce the likelihood of further tooth loss while also improving oral function and appearance. Our oral surgeons offer dental implants to folks in our community. The Devastating Impact of Tooth Loss When we lose teeth during childhood, it’s a milestone. When we lose teeth in adulthood, it’s traumatic. Losing a tooth affects more than just our ability to eat. It affects our overall oral health and our psychological health. Many patients suffer with depression after tooth loss because they feel incomplete and embarrassed. Losing…

All-on-4: How strong will my replacement teeth be?

Are you in need of a brand new smile? Perhaps you already wear dentures but they have become ill fitting. Whether you have lost most or all of your teeth or currently wear dentures, our oral surgeons can help you regain oral function and confidence in your appearance with All-on-4 implant supported dentures. Dental implants make for great anchors to prosthetic teeth. They allow for smooth oral function and are durable enough to withstand the force and pressure associated with eating meals. Patients with All-on-4 enjoy balanced diets and can eat tough and chewy foods. Following is some helpful answers to common questions about All-on-4. What is All-on-4, exactly? All-on-4 refers to a method of securing prosthetic teeth to dental implants. By loading four strategically placed dental implants into the jawbone, an entire set of teeth can be supported. The dental implants will act as anchors or pillars to hold…

Will Dental Implants Affect the Natural, Adjacent Teeth?

Are you considering dental implants to replace lost teeth? Replacing missing teeth is very important to enjoying proper oral function and preventing conditions associated with tooth loss. Our team understands that losing teeth is a very stressful experience and for this reason, we provide options to help our patients regain their oral function and self-confidence. Dental implants are a permanent, tooth replacement solution that is incredibly long lasting and lifelike. Since implants are made from biocompatible materials, they will help improve the health of neighboring teeth as well as support the entire oral health system. How are dental implants different from dentures? The construction of implants is what makes them different from other types of prosthetics. Consisting of a titanium post and a manmade crown, implants replace an entire missing tooth’s structure. For example, dentures and bridges only replace the crowns (visible portions) of teeth and rest on top of…

Root Canal vs. Tooth Extraction

A root canal can help to save a severely damaged tooth by removing the pulp material so that it cannot become infected or to eliminate an active infection. However, for a number of reasons, root canals may not be feasible in all cases. When a root canal is not appropriate, the patient likely will need to undergo a tooth extraction on the damaged tooth. Although it’s preferable to keep a biological tooth whenever possible, when tooth extraction is unavoidable, it’s important for patients to begin thinking about a replacement tooth as soon as possible. Delaying this aspect of treatment may limit your options in terms of interventions. Patients who desire a structurally complete replacement tooth should consult with an oral surgeon about dental implants. These devices are small titanium cylinders that are biocompatible. That is, the bone material in the jaw is capable of forming a permanent bond with the…

What happens if a cuspid tooth becomes impacted?

While impacted wisdom teeth have little, if any, effect on your smile’s appearance when they’re removed, patients with impacted cuspids (also known as the canine teeth or eyeteeth) will have smiles that suffer if those teeth are just extracted. Fortunately, impacted cuspids can be uncovered and moved to emerge when an oral surgeon and an orthodontist collaborate on the treatment. The maxillary (upper) cuspids actually are the second most likely teeth to become impacted after the wisdom teeth, so a number of patients may face this problem. In order to address the issue of impacted cuspids, the oral surgeon will expose the tooth by removing gum and bone tissue that are covering it. The surgeon may need to put a dressing on top of the tooth in some cases. If that is necessary, the dressing will be removed after 10-14 days. Alternatively, the surgeon may attach a bracket to the…

Wisdom Teeth Removal: Preserve Your Investment in Orthodontic Treatment

If you spent years in braces in order to get a perfectly straight smile, you may want to consider having your third molars (more commonly known as the wisdom teeth) removed so that it will stay that way. Impacted wisdom teeth will continue to try to emerge, even though most human jaws do not have the space necessary for them to slide into the correct positions. In doing so, these large third molars can push the other teeth out of alignment, rendering years of orthodontic treatment useless. To protect their investment in earlier orthodontic treatment, many patients will consult with an oral surgeon to have their wisdom teeth removed before any misalignment develops. Impacted teeth often must be extracted in a surgical procedure because they are at least partially covered by bone material that must be removed before the tooth can be.  Keeping your teeth properly aligned is one of…