So You Are Facing Dental Surgery? Here Is What You Can Expect
Dental surgery is very common in today's society. From dental implant surgery to cosmetic dental surgery, people are having surgical procedures done on their teeth on a regular basis. Some of these are medically necessary, while others are completely cosmetic in nature. Regardless, if you are facing dental surgery, you should know a little bit about what to expect.Surgical Tooth Extraction
Having a tooth removed is one of the most common types of dental oral surgery. Many people, for instance, need to have their wisdom teeth removed. Wisdom teeth are the molars that grow in when someone is nearly an adult. Often there is insufficient room in the mouth for these teeth to push through, and they become stuck between the gums and the jawbone. This is known as having an impacted tooth, and an impacted tooth can cause serious problems like gum disease, pain, and swelling.Most teeth, including wisdom teeth, can be removed without an incision in the gums. However, if the tooth is stuck underneath the gum line, you will need to have an incision to remove it. You may be put under general anesthetic before the procedure. You will have the area numbed during the procedure, and the dentist will remove the tooth with as few incisions as possible.
Dental Implant Surgery
If you have lost teeth due to disease or injury in the past, this can cause problems with the alignment of the rest of the teeth in your mouth. In these situations, you will likely need dental implant surgery. Dental implants are synthetic substitutes for the roots of the teeth that are imbedded into the jawbone. They are attached to artificial teeth, so after dental implant surgery you will have a fake tooth firmly rooted into your jaw. This will function quite like the tooth that is being replaced.Dental Surgery on the Jaw
Dentists do not just focus on treating your teeth. There are many types of dental surgery that work to fix problems in the jaw as well. One common type of dental oral surgery performed on the jaw is TMJ surgery. TMJ stands for temporomandibular joint, and this is the small joint that connects the top half of the jaw to the lower half of the jaw. When this area is not functioning properly, it can cause pain in the face as well as severe headaches. Surgery is sometimes used to correct serious TMJ problems.Sometimes the jaw does not grow as it should. When this happens, pediatric dental surgery may be required. If the jaw is misaligned and cannot be fixed via braces and headgear, surgery may be the only option to correct the problem. In most cases these malformations are treated with pediatric dental surgery so that the poor growth pattern can be corrected before permanent eating or swallowing problems are established.
Laser Surgery
Sometimes areas of infection can be treated quite simply with dental laser surgery. Dental laser surgery uses the energy of a concentrated light beam to remove diseased gum tissue or other areas of infection. This requires fewer anesthetics because it is a fairly painless procedure, and the recovery time for this type of dental oral surgery is much quicker than traditional surgery where the diseased tissue is cut out using incisions.Cosmetic Dental Surgery
Cosmetic dental surgery is a completely different category of dental oral surgery. These types of dental surgery are not done for any medical reason. There is not a malformation or alignment issue that requires treatment. Instead, the patient wishes to have his or her teeth look better and therefore signs up for surgery.Cosmetic dental surgery includes procedures like tooth veneers, non-medically necessary dental implants, dental bonding, and tooth contouring and reshaping. The goal of these procedures is to create a more beautiful smile. Cosmetic gum surgery is another type of cosmetic dental surgery. This surgery is sued to correct an overabundance of lack of gum tissue that is creating an abnormal smile.
Considerations When Facing Dental Surgery
Before you decide to have a dental procedure done, you need to decide if the risk of potential dental surgery problems is worth the potential benefit. If you are going to go under general anesthetic, you face the risk of a potentially deadly reaction to the medication. Also, you face risks such as pain, bleeding, broken teeth, or numbness around the surgery site. To reduce the possibility of these types of dental surgery problems, be sure to choose an oral surgeon who has experience and a good reputation.If, however, your dental problems are causing severe problems in your day-to-day life, you probably want to consider dental oral surgery as a solution. Dental surgery problems are rare, and the benefits of important procedures like dental implant surgery or the various pediatric dental surgery options usually outweigh this slight risk. Find a dentist with a good reputation, talk to him about the potential risks, and make an informed decision about whether or not dental surgery is right for you.
