Are you experiencing pain or discomfort in your mouth and suspect that it may be due to your wisdom teeth? Wisdom teeth, also known as third molars, typically develop between the ages of 17 and 25. While some people may have enough room in their mouths to accommodate these teeth, others may experience pain and discomfort due to their misalignment, impaction, or other issues.
Why Remove Wisdom Teeth?
There are several reasons why Dr. Campbell may recommend the removal of your wisdom teeth, including:
- Impacted Wisdom Teeth: Wisdom teeth can become impacted, meaning they are unable to emerge fully from the gum line. Impacted wisdom teeth can cause pain, swelling, and infection.
- Crowding: Wisdom teeth can push on surrounding teeth, causing them to become misaligned and crowded.
- Gum Disease: Wisdom teeth can be difficult to clean properly, leading to gum disease and tooth decay.
- Cysts and Tumors: In rare cases, wisdom teeth can develop cysts and tumors that can damage the jawbone and surrounding teeth.
Wisdom Teeth Removal Procedure:
Before the procedure, your dentist will take an X-ray to determine the position of your wisdom teeth. Based on the X-ray, Dr. Campbell will decide whether to use local anesthesia, IV sedation, or general anesthesia during the procedure.
During the procedure, Dr. Campbell will make an incision in the gum tissue and remove any bone blocking the wisdom teeth. Once the teeth are removed, he will stitch the gum tissue back into place. Then he will divide the wisdom teeth into smaller pieces for easier removal.
Watch Samantha’s video describing her experience with wisdom teeth removal
Wisdom Teeth: Examination Appointment
Best practices dictate that wisdom teeth-related problems should be identified and treated before they have the opportunity to manifest. This avoids a host of complications that can impair your health later in life and be quite painful. Campbell Oral Surgery & Dental Implant Center offers wisdom teeth examination appointments to check for potential issues. Using advanced technology, such as our in-office 3D cone-beam CT scanner, Dr. Campbell is able to detect hidden and/or future problems. Possible issues range from the shape of the mouth and the size of the jaws accommodating the wisdom teeth to the wisdom teeth growing in at irregular angles that can cause damaging contact with adjacent healthy teeth.
What are wisdom teeth?
The last teeth to enroot are generally the Third Molars. They are the last teeth in terms of placement, as well — in the back of the jaws behind the second molars. Most people’s third molars appear from midway through their teen years to their early twenties. Since we mature into adulthood during this same time, these teeth have come to be known as “wisdom teeth.”
Even though the four wisdom teeth are counted among the standard 32, it’s common for there to be too little room for them in the jaws. When there isn’t enough space for a wisdom tooth to erupt — fully or sometimes even partially — we say it’s impacted. This condition frequently becomes painful and requires professional extraction of the impacted tooth. As the leading Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon in the Columbus, GA and Phenix City, AL metro region, Dr. William Campbell is the obvious choice for expert wisdom teeth removal.
Wisdom teeth treatment explained
Wisdom teeth: Types of impactions
There are three types of impactions Dr. Campbell will look for at your wisdom teeth exam:
- Soft Tissue Impaction: The jaw is too crowded for the wisdom tooth to properly break through the gum. This presents a significant cleaning problem that can lead to extensive tooth decay and gum disease.
- Partial Bony Impaction: As the name implies, the tooth has partially erupted, but it’s not enough to be useful in chewing or allow for proper cleaning. It’s healthier to remove the tooth than leave it in this precarious condition.
- Complete Bony Impaction: This occurs when the tooth doesn’t have room in the jaw to erupt at all, or — if it’s barely detectable — removing it will require a complicated procedure. Here’s where Dr. Campbell’s oral surgery training and experience makes all the difference in your care and comfort — ensuring that you receive the best of both.
Other reasons wisdom teeth are removed:
Other problems of the wisdom teeth — either currently present or that can reasonably be expected based on our exam findings — may also necessitate extraction. They include:
- Threatening Other Teeth: As stated, wisdom teeth can create damaging contact with healthy adjacent teeth.
- Harmful Cysts: These can develop around new wisdom teeth. Left untreated, they can destroy your jawbone and nerves at the site.
- Sinus Complaints: Wisdom teeth troubles can trigger sinus pain, pressure and congestion.
- Gum Irritation: Inflamed gums threaten your overall oral health and can be painful.
- Decay: For multiple reasons, wisdom teeth present a cleaning challenge that often ends in decay and damage.
- Overcrowding: When there isn’t enough room in the jaw, wisdom teeth push other teeth out of alignment as they attempt to grow in.
Wisdom Teeth: Removal Appointment and Anesthesia
Uncovering and extracting problematic wisdom teeth is a specialty of Campbell Oral Surgery & Dental Implant Center. Dr. Campbell’s oral surgery expertise guarantees that every removal procedure will be as safe, efficient and comfortable as conceivably possible. Many people don’t realize that age plays a role in the complexity of removing wisdom teeth. As you age, the bones in your mouth get harder, making your teeth more difficult to extract. This is why we strongly encourage wisdom teeth exams for teens and young adults, even though they may not feel the effects of an impaction for some time.
These are just a few key details to be aware of when you’re scheduled to have your wisdom teeth removed:
- Avoid the use of aspirin and aspirin products, including Anacin, Bufferin and Alka-Seltzer, for at least three days prior to surgery. Tylenol is an acceptable substitute.
- Do not have anything to eat or drink, including water, after midnight the night before your appointment. If you have any medications to take, whether prescribed by Dr. Campbell or another health care provider, you may do so as directed using small sips of water only.
- A responsible adult will need to accompany you to your appointment, get you home safely and stay with you until the anesthesia has worn off. In the case of minors, a parent or legal guardian must be present to give consent for treatment. Surgical extractions generally take between 30 minutes and an hour of chair time.
- You should not drive a vehicle or operate machinery for the next 24 hours after your appointment.
- Detailed pre- and post-operative instructions can be found on our website under the “Surgical Instructions” tab. You can read them on the page or download and print them.
Anesthesia options for your wisdom teeth extraction:
- Local Anesthesia via Injection (e.g., Novocaine, Lidocaine, etc.)
- Local Anesthesia with Nitrous Oxide (“laughing gas”)
- Intravenous (IV) Sedation (“general anesthesia”)
Dr. Campbell is a member in good standing of the American Dental Society of Anesthesiology and is exceptionally experienced with all forms of anesthesia. His surgical team and clinical staff are also well trained in this area to ensure your safety and comfort. The type of sedation that will be used for your extraction will be planned and agreed upon at your wisdom teeth exam. The equipment that’s used to administer and monitor your anesthesia is state-of-the-art. You’ll experience an unparalleled level of care at Campbell Oral Surgery & Dental Implant Center.
Removal cost, insurance, and financing
The cost of your wisdom teeth extraction at Campbell Oral Surgery and Implant Center will depend on a few crucial details. Among these considerations are two key factors: How complicated the extraction will be, and the type of anesthesia you will require. When all the details have been settled, you will receive an accurate estimate of your costs. Our staff will assist you in getting the most coverage possible from your insurance provider.
If you need help paying for your extraction procedure, consider financing it through CareCredit, Proceed Finance or Alphaeon. Each company provides low- and no-interest financing for medical services, including wisdom teeth removal. Each lender’s application process is simple and can be completed in a matter of minutes. If you need assistance or have any questions, customer service reps with the respective businesses will be happy to help. In most instances, lending decisions are rendered quickly and, when applicable, funds are available soon after.
