Patients typically want to avoid having a tooth removed when possible. Dentists, too, will often recommend taking steps to save the biological tooth if that outcome can be achieved.
In certain cases, however, a tooth extraction is the best course of treatment and sometimes unavoidable.
Patients may be reluctant to have a tooth extracted, but they should take comfort in the technology available to replace an absent tooth.
For example, a patient with a severely decayed or damaged tooth may need to have the tooth removed.
Although a dentist may initially attempt to restore or preserve a patient’s natural tooth, instances of advanced decay or a significant injury or trauma can render the tooth unsalvageable. In removing a significantly decayed tooth, the oral surgeon may be acting to save the surrounding teeth from a similar fate.
Similarly, if a patient chooses to get a dental implant rather than a restoration such as a crown, the tooth would need to be removed before the dental implant could be placed.
Tooth extraction may also be necessary prior to orthodontic treatment if the teeth are crowded along a jawbone too small to accommodate all of them. If the jawbone cannot be expanded to allow the teeth to fit in the proper alignment, then tooth extraction offers another option to the orthodontist and patient.
If a tooth fails to erupt properly and becomes impacted, extraction is highly recommended. This phenomenon often occurs with the third molars, or wisdom teeth. Those third molars are prone to infection and other complications when they become impacted, and it’s best to have them removed by an oral surgeon—ideally before the patient reaches age 25.
Patients may be reluctant to have a tooth extracted, but they should take comfort in the technology available to replace an absent tooth.
If your tooth does need to be removed, you should begin to plan the process of replacing it before the extraction takes place. Most patients want to fill in the resulting gap in the smile as soon as possible after they heal from the extraction.
Talk to our team at Northern Texas Facial & Oral Surgery, serving Dallas TX and the surrounding areas, to learn more about the options available to replace an extracted tooth.
