As a patient that wants to visit a dentist, hearing the words ‘teeth extraction’ can be terrifying. You may require a tooth extraction if you have a problematic wisdom tooth, extensive tooth decay, severely fractured tooth, or tooth trauma.
Most patients want to recognize the discomfort caused by tooth extraction. Luckily, today’s tooth extraction is safe, fast, and comfortable, thanks to the availability of cutting-edge technology and modern dentistry procedures.
Reasons for Tooth Extraction
Crowded Mouth
In some cases, dentists extract teeth to prepare your mouth for orthodontia. Merely put, orthodontia’s main objective is to align your teeth properly, and this procedure is sometimes challenging if you have enormous teeth for your mouth. Similarly, dentists may recommend the extraction of a tooth that cannot quickly erupt due to insufficient room.
Tooth Disease
Dentists might opt to try saving the tooth first before extraction if it’s a tooth disease. So, a dentist can sometimes choose to attempt the root canal process before removing your tooth.
Dental Trauma
Any damage to your mouth can lead to damage to teeth or associated tissue, bone, or ligaments. This may necessitate tooth extraction to correct the problem.
Infection
If tooth damage or decay extends to the pulp, bacteria can enter this central location and result in infection. While medics can use root canal therapy to solve this problem, a severe infection demands tooth extraction to deter the further spread of the infection.
What to Expect During Tooth Extraction
Two main types of tooth extraction exist: First, simple extraction entails the removal of visible teeth in your mouth. All dentists can perform this process. Second, surgical tooth extraction needs to be completed by an oral surgeon and entails the extraction of the invisible tooth or those that are yet to erupt. Here are the steps involved in teeth removal:
Anaesthesia
Most tooth removal demands only local anesthesia. However, some dental experts may use sedation or offer anti-anxiety medication to make you much more comfortable. Some surgical extractions, on the other hand, requires general anesthesia to put customers into complete sleep.
Extraction
Dentists use forceps or another holding instrument to grip the tooth and then slightly move it from one side to the other until it slackens from its socket. During this process, you will not face any pain, but you may encounter a slight tug. A stuck tooth requires a dental professional to remove the bone tissue and gum covering it before slackening from the jawbone. In some cases, stubborn teeth require individual extraction.
Repair
Following extraction, a blood clot forms in the socket. A dentist places a couple of self-dissolving stitches to fill the gap and deter further bleeding.
Recovery
Based on the type of extraction, the recovery period takes 2 to 7 days. The best thing is that most dental professionals offer directions to maintain your oral health and maximize the healing procedure. Thus, it’s advisable to follow the outlined instructions keenly.
What to Tell Dentists Before Tooth Extraction
While tooth extraction is a safe process, it sometimes allows bacteria into your bloodstream. Besides, your gums are at a high risk of infection. Therefore, it’s sensible to take antibiotics before and after tooth removal if you have an underlying condition that puts you in a risky position of developing a severe infection.
Give the dentist your comprehensive medical history, and let them know about the supplements and medications you take. Some of the conditions you need to let dental experts know include:
- Congenital heart defect
- Damaged or man-made heart valves
- Liver disease
- Impaired immune system
- History of bacterial endocarditis
- Artificial joint like hip replacement
Tooth Extraction Complications
You should expect a slight soreness or pain following tooth removal, and the bleeding may take a couple of hours to stop. All in all, watch out for these complications:
Dry Sockets
Having a dry socket is one of the primary reasons why most people feel pain after teeth removal. Your gums will generate a clot that fills the space left by the extracted tooth’s roots. Over the next few weeks, the clot will heal and solidify into your gum and jaw. However, you can prematurely dislodge this clot if you:
- Smoke a cigarette
- Suck a drink through a straw
- Drink carbonated beverage
- Blow air through pursed lips
The loss of this clot means you have exposed nerves, which can be agonizing. Typically, Advil and Tylenol can relieve this pain until the gum heals down into the extraction space.
Fractures
In some circumstances, hard-to-pull teeth may break during removal. However, this is not a big problem because the tooth was being extracted. However, an issue may occur if a piece of your tooth remains behind, leading to cysts or infections.
Likewise, excessive pressure can break jawbone or neighboring teeth. This often occurs if you have periodontal disease or a weak jawbone. Luckily, your dentist informs you about this before the commencement of the extraction procedure.
Infection
The mouth hosts plenty of bacteria, meaning all wounds are vulnerable to infections. Although a dentist may prescribe an antibiotic as a preventive measure, it’s advisable to keep your mouth clean and care for all mouth areas. Consider contacting your dentist right away if you start noticing pus or pain around the extraction area.
Nerve Damage
During a tooth extraction, you might receive trigeminal nerve damage, which is vital for chewing. Although it’s rare, this nerve damage results in various symptoms, such as tingling, numbness, and pain to the chin, teeth, gums, and tongue.
The damage only settles when the nerve heals after a couple of weeks or months. Here is where visiting experienced dentists come in handy as they will take all the essential precautions to avert all potential nerve damage.
How long does the Pain Last?
Some bleeding can last for over 24 hours following tooth removal, and you should not do anything to disrupt the clot that fills the space left by the pulled tooth. This pain tends to diminish after the third day for most individuals.
A dentist may give you a follow-up appointment to evaluate your healing and make sure you have a stress-free recovery process. If you underwent a wisdom tooth extraction, the healing could take a couple of weeks.
The First 48 Hours After Tooth Removal
The crucial attention and aftercare are necessary for the first two days. Some tips to utilize during this period include:
- Let the gauze placed in the mouth stay there for a couple of hours allow the blood to clot. Afterward, you can change if needs be.
- Gently raise your head when lying down.
- Rest for at least a day after removal.
- Avoid spitting and drinking with a straw.
- Do not rinse your mouth immediately as this can displace the clot that’s forming.
- avid alcohol and hot liquids.
- Avoid sneezing and blowing the nose if possible.
- Stop smoking or using any tobacco products for at least three days after the procedure.
- Place an ice pack on your cheek for a few minutes to minimize swelling.
- Take pain relievers as prescribed by the medic to lower inflammation.
What Happens after Day 3 and Beyond?
Here are the precautions to consider once the blood clot forms to avoid other problems:
- Use warm salt water or a saline rinse to rinse your mouth and kill bacteria.
- Eat healthy, soft snacks and foods such as yogurts and soups as they do not need plenty of chewing. Stay away from foods such as hard candy, nuts, and steak.
- Maintain your regular brushing, but avoid brushing the teeth next to the removed teeth.
When to Contact the Dentists
It’s typical to feel some light pain once the anaesthesia diminishes. You should expect some residual bleeding and swelling after having a tooth extracted. However, consider contacting a dentist if the pain or bleeding is still severe a couple of hours after extraction. Besides, contact your dentist if you feel the following:
- Vomiting or nausea
- Signs of infection like chills and fever
- Swelling, excessive discharge, and redness from the affected section
- Shortness of breath, cough, severe nausea, or chest pain
- Severe pain that spreads to your ears
- If the pain increases instead of decreasing
The Final Say: Does Tooth Extraction Hurt?
No. Regardless of what others say on the internet or the common myth, you don’t have to worry about anything when extracting your tooth. Whether you are removing the teeth surgically or not, you should not encounter any discomfort. Usually, you may feel a gentle pinch as the area is sedated using an anesthetic.
Afterward, you will not feel anything until the procedure’s completed. Before the procedure commencement, professional dentists will always test the area and the surrounding gums to determine whether it’s totally numb and ensure you have no sensation. After the tooth removal starts, you may feel a gentle pressure and pulling sensation. Nevertheless, this is the only pain you should feel.
