Wisdom Tooth Extractions – Temple, TX
Removing Your Unneeded Teeth
Most people have four wisdom teeth located at the back corners of the mouth that erupt between the ages of 17 and 25. Nowadays, these teeth don’t serve any real purpose and are likely to cause pain, infection, or other dental problems if they don’t have enough room to grow. To prevent potential future problems, we may recommend wisdom tooth extraction in our Temple, TX dental office. If you have concerns about your or your child’s wisdom teeth, get in touch with us today.
Why Choose Temple Choice Dental for Wisdom Tooth Extractions?
- Dentists With Decades of Experience
- Variety of Dental Sedation Options
- Convenient Saturday Appointments
What Are Wisdom Teeth?
Wisdom teeth are the final (or third) set of molars that people typically develop in their lifetime. These kinds of pearly whites are the wide and flat ones at the back of your mouth. They’re used for grinding up food for efficient digestion. However, since today’s foods require less chewing to consume, most humans no longer need their wisdom teeth. More importantly, our jaws generally don’t have enough space to fit these third molars, and some people might not even develop them at all.
Why Do Wisdom Teeth Need to Be Removed?
Wisdom tooth removal is often thought of as a rite of passage, but in reality, it’s not always strictly required. If the teeth in question can fully erupt and are positioned correctly, then they can stay as long as you keep them clean and healthy. Extraction will be required if the wisdom teeth are completely or partially trapped underneath the gums, or if they start to crowd the nearby teeth, causing pain and damage.
What to Expect from the Wisdom Tooth Extraction
If you need to pull your wisdom teeth, then you can expect several different ways to extract them, depending on how your molars developed. Our expert dental team will walk you through your treatment plan and the steps you’ll need to take to prepare in advance. Once it’s time for your extraction procedure, we’ll ensure that your mouth is completely numb before starting any work. We’ll likely administer one of several sedation options to keep you relaxed and comfortable throughout the process. Our team will then extract your molar with specialized dental tools depending on whether it’s impacted or not.
Recovering from Wisdom Teeth Extraction
Some bleeding may occur after the surgery. To stop it, bite down on a gauze pad for thirty minutes at a time. Get in touch with us if the bleeding does not seem to subside. While you’re recovering, you can apply a cold compress to the side of your face to reduce any swelling and take pain medication if you need to. Any discomfort should usually go away after a couple of days. You can eat a wide variety of soft foods as long as you stay away from the surgical site while chewing.
Wisdom Tooth Extractions FAQs
Let’s say you’re now convinced you need a wisdom tooth extraction. Even so, you may still have concerns about the procedure. That’s understandable — it isn’t every day that you have a (wisdom) tooth pulled! To help you out, we at Temple Choice Dental have placed answers to some frequently asked questions below. They’ll give you key details about wisdom tooth extractions in Temple.
Don’t worry if you don’t find the facts you want in the listed questions. Should that happen, feel free to contact our office — we’d be happy to walk you through things!
Is the Extraction Process Painful?
While you might think wisdom tooth surgery would hurt, the process is actually painless.
You see, your dentist starts treatment by numbing your mouth with a local anesthetic. As such, you’ll be sedated and your oral cavity won’t feel pain. At most, you might experience slight pressure as the wisdom tooth is rocked back and forth in its socket.
Granted, you’ll likely feel soreness or discomfort after the treatment. As long as you follow proper aftercare, these symptoms will fade in mere days.
How Long Does Wisdom Tooth Surgery Take?
In and of itself, extracting a single wisdom tooth takes about 15-20 minutes. That said, the exact time will depend on the pearly white’s location, position, impaction, and so on. Your dentist can give you a rough estimate of how long they’ll need at your consultation.
Still, you can count on treatment feeling pretty fast. You’ll be sedated during the extraction, so you won’t notice much time pass during the process.
How Should I Prepare for My Extraction?
While your dentist will do most of the work, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t prepare for the surgery. Feel free to ask your practice any questions you have on the matter, no matter how minor. As they say, you can never be too prepared!
Whatever your situation, the dentist will guide you on what to do before treatment. In particular, you can expect tips like the following:
- Have someone take you to and from your appointment. Since the procedure involves sedatives, you won’t be fit to drive yourself home.
- If your extraction will involve general anesthesia, don’t eat or drink after midnight the night before it.
- Tell your dentist about any medications you take, as well as your drinking and drug habits. They’ll need this information to administer the right dose of anesthesia.
- Don’t smoke for at least 12 hours before the procedure.
What Can I Eat After Surgery?
It’s essential that you follow a proper diet after your wisdom tooth surgery. Otherwise, you might not make a quick and seamless recovery.
For instance, you’ll want to avoid hot foods or drinks after treatment. Your mouth will still be numb for a while, so having these items would risk burning your tongue and cheeks.
Your best bet is to follow a soft food diet for a few days as you heal. Products with small, sharp pieces, including popcorn, could irritate your gums or get stuck near the extraction site. In contrast, things like yogurt, applesauce, and cottage cheese are mild and less likely to upset the healing process.
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