Tooth Extractions

The decision to extract a tooth is never taken lightly. Your Beautiful Smiles dentist will talk with you about what treatments are available, and only if extraction is the best option for your health, will it be considered as an option.

The reasons tooth extraction may be considered vary considerably. In some cases, it’s advised as a precaution against infection, and in other cases it may be the best option for overcrowding. Here are some of the main reasons why the dentists at the Beautiful Smiles Dental Center in Chicago may advise tooth extraction:

• Do Root Canal Treatments Always Work?

A very large percentage of root canal treatments are successful, and once the treatment has finished, the results can be expected to last for a very long time; root canal treatment will often last for up to 10 years but can potentially last forever. If the treatment is unsuccessful, then your Beautiful Smiles dentist will suggest alternative options, such as performing the procedure again or dental extraction, to help stop the infection causing further damage.

• Is Root Canal Treatment Painful?

While root canal treatment is often thought of as a painful dental procedure, the pain that you’ll feel during the procedure is actually only very moderate. Root canal treatment is performed with anesthetic, so the pain experienced will likely be very similar to that of a standard dental filling.

• Are There Any Possible Complications with Root Canal Treatment?

Root canal treatment does come with some potential complications, some are avoidable, such as by taking good care of the treated area after the procedure, and some are not always so easy to avoid. It’s possible that the sealing may breakdown eventually and cause the infection to reoccur, and the bacteria may also be able to re-enter the inner tooth if the materials used during the restoration are defective.

Undetected cracks can also lead to bacteria re-entering the area and an excess of root canals can lead to problems resurfacing and the treatment being unsuccessful. Due to the severity of the potential complications, it’s very important to have root canal treatment preformed at a reputable practice by experienced professionals.

• Extraction may be advised in cases where a tooth has been severely broken and there are no feasible options for repair.

• If a tooth has suffered from severe decay, or there’s a great risk of infection, then extraction may be the only option.

• When baby teeth don’t fall out as they’re supposed to, then extraction could be suggested to prevent future problems with overcrowding, and possible misalignment issues.

• If orthodontic treatment is required, but there’s not enough space in the jaw due to an excess of teeth, then preparation for orthodontics may need to include extraction.

• Impacted wisdom teeth often require extraction, and extraction may also be advised if there’s the potential of future problems with wisdom teeth.

• If there’s an abscess around the teeth or gums, then extraction could be the best solution.

• Where gum disease has severely affected a tooth, there’s the possibility that the tooth may need to be removed to prevent the spread of bacteria.

Even in situations where the damage to teeth is severe, there are often alternative solutions to tooth extraction. However, where tooth extraction is required, the procedure will be made as painless as possible by the dentists at the Beautiful Smiles Dental Center. If you have any concerns about the health of your teeth, then don’t let worries over the possibility of extraction stop you from contacting our friendly Chicago-based team.

How Serious Is Tooth Extraction?

Tooth extraction is a fairly serious dental procedure, as very often, the reason behind the extraction can be quite severe, or have the potential to cause serious problems. All tooth extractions should be performed by a professional, as there are a number of complications that could occur if the procedure is performed incorrectly.

Having a tooth removed can make chewing more difficult, cause serious dental health issues to arise, and lead to jaw problems, especially if the procedure isn’t followed up by professional treatment to replace the tooth (with the exception of wisdom teeth).

At the Beautiful Smiles Dental Center, our expert care covers a full consultation of the treatment options available to you, professional treatment during every procedure, and aftercare to make sure that tooth extraction doesn’t inhibit your ability to eat or cause problems in the future.

We can also provide a number of solutions for tooth replacement after recovery, including bridges and dental implants, both of which can restore function to your mouth and help to improve your oral health going forwards.

Will the Procedure be Painful?

Tooth extractions have a long history of association with pain, but dentistry has come so far that the fear of pain certainly shouldn’t put you off having a tooth extraction today. Tooth extractions are moderately painful, but perhaps not in the way that you might expect.

Prior to the extraction, there’ll be a number of injections that are designed to numb the area where the extraction will take place. The first one or two of these injections will be slightly painful, but afterwards the area will be so numb that you’re unlikely to feel anything but pressure during the tooth extraction.

Throughout the entire procedure, which can take as little as 3-5 minutes for each tooth, you’ll be constantly monitored to ensure the area stays numb. If feeling starts to return to the area, then more medication can be administered if necessary.

In the event of multiple tooth extractions, or extractions that are slightly more complicated, the procedure can be undertaken whilst you’re under a general anesthetic. Whilst under a general anesthetic, you won’t be able to feel any part of the procedure, but the recovery time is likely to be longer.