With restorative dentistry, we use restorations like fillings and crowns to repair teeth and preserve your smile’s stability. But what if your tooth is damaged or infected beyond the ability to receive treatment? In these cases, your Prairie Village, KS, dentist could use a tooth extraction to save your smile.
The Reasons a Tooth Needs to Be Removed
A tooth may need to be removed if it sustains damage too great to be treated with a dental crown. We may also recommend extracting a tooth with cavities or infection too advanced to be treated with a filling or crown. If a tooth is loosened by gum disease, or if we need to make room for orthodontic treatment, we could recommend a tooth extraction. If you have lost most of your teeth and we need to clear the way for a set of dentures, we could do so with an extraction. Finally, we could help protect your smile from the onset of impaction and misalignment by removing wisdom teeth before they erupt in early adulthood.
Preparing Your Smile
To start the process, our team will take detailed digital x-rays to pinpoint the position of the tooth or teeth in question, and ensure we can remove them and never come into contact with nerve tissues, blood vessels, and sinus cavities. Our team will also take steps to ensure you feel comfortable. For example, we can administer a local anesthesia to the area where the tooth is being removed to keep you comfortable. If you have anxiety or special needs that make undergoing care difficult, we could also recommend dental sedation to help you enter a deep state of calm and relaxation, with little to no memory of the procedure at all!
The Tooth Extraction Process
Once you are ready for the procedure, we will gently extract the tooth in question with a pair of forceps. We then suture the area closed. For some, the entire process could take as little as a half hour. We then send you home with detailed aftercare instructions, and possibly prescriptions for medications to aid in the healing process and keep you comfortable. A clot will form and we want to make sure it doesn’t dislodge, so be very gentle when you brush and floss, eat soft foods, and rest for the first day or two. If you have any questions about the tooth extraction process, then contact our team today to learn more.
DO YOU HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT TOOTH EXTRACTION?
We want to help you avoid major complications related to severe infection or wisdom tooth eruption. To find out more about improving your oral health with restorative dentistry, you can call Dr. Browne in Prairie Village, KS, at 913-901-8585.
