Visiting the dentist or oral surgeon to have your wisdom teeth out can be a scary procedure for many people. Having your wisdom teeth extracted is a fairly simple procedure, the recovery time is often far worse than the actual procedure. Usually patients have all four wisdom teeth removed at the same time, but some patients may only have one or two removed. It all depends on your oral health needs. Fortunately at Bismarck Advanced Dental and Implants specializes in dental extractions and implants.
Before the procedure, the dentist will give you some anesthesia to numb the area. Some patients will end up being sedated with general anesthesia. If you are sedated, you may be in the office longer as the assistants will need to wait for you to wake up and fully recover before you can leave the office. Since the procedure is invasive, it is important that you do not drive your vehicle. Always have someone drop you off and pick you up from the dental office.
If you are conscious during the procedure, you will hear a lot of cracking and you will feel a lot of pressure. The dentist will make an incision in the gum tissue to expose the tooth. Then, they will take out any bone that is covering the tooth and they will pull it from the jaw bone. In some situations, the dentist will need to break the tooth into smaller chunks to pull it from the jaw bone. Some teeth can be heavily embedded in bone, which is why it is important to have x-rays done before as you may need to receive treatment from an oral surgeon.
The extraction site will bleed for about 24 hours. Initially the bleeding will be contained by the dental assistants. The dentist will then place stitches in the extraction site to help the gum tissue start the healing process. The stitches will dissolve on their own in about a week. However, some patients may need to go back to the dentist to have the stitches removed.
Once the procedure is complete, a gauze pad will be placed over the extraction site. You will remain in the chair for several minutes as the gauze fills with blood. The dentist will replace them before you leave, and they will send you home with several gauze to change throughout the day.
It is important that you heed the after-care instructions from the dentist. Many people can end up with dry socket, a painful condition, due to improper after-care. You must rest your body for at least three days, or possibly longer. The dentist will give you painkillers to take to limit the amount of pain you feel. The gauze pads should only be needed for 24 hours after the surgery, then the bleeding will stop. Prop your head with pillows as you rest to prevent the bleeding from becoming worse.