When you come to Meadowmont Dentistry for your implant or extraction, you can expect to be welcomed warmly by our friendly staff. We’ve created a soothing office environment that will help you relax and feel comfortable from the moment you come through our door. Everyone here wants you to be at ease and enjoy your time with us, no matter what type of procedure you’re having. Find more information about our dental implant and tooth extraction surgeries below.
Tooth Extractions
There are a variety of reasons why a tooth may need to be removed. In younger children, it could be a baby tooth that’s still adhering and interfering with the proper growth of adult teeth. Teens who are about to get braces or other orthodontic treatment might have overcrowding that needs to be addressed. Sports injuries, accidents, and other trauma to the face can crack teeth and render them unfixable. Wisdom teeth can be positioned poorly and become impacted, risking infection or other damage to the surrounding tissues. Or, it could be years of decay requiring a tooth to be extracted when it’s beyond repair.
No matter what the reason, if we believe that tooth removal is in your best interest, we’ll start with x-rays to examine its position and see if there might be any complications. We’ll assess your medical and drug history and discuss your options for anesthesia with you. We generally use local anesthesia, numbing the tooth as well as the surrounding gums and bone, but we may use additional sedatives, as needed. During the removal process, we’ll make sure the surrounding tissues aren’t damaged. In some cases, we’ll add bone-grafting material to the socket to preserve proper bone volume.
After your tooth extraction procedure, we’ll use gentle pressure to control any bleeding or small stitches, if necessary. Mild to moderate discomfort or swelling is normal, and normal over-the-counter anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen or aspirin should be sufficient to manage these symptoms. We may also recommend antibiotics to prevent infection, in some cases. You may need to ice the jaw and eat softer foods, but you should feel totally normal within a few days.
Dental Implants
State-of-the-art titanium dental implants are an outstanding long-term option for replacing teeth that have been lost or removed. It’s a surprisingly minor procedure, performed under local anesthesia with or without a sedative, as needed by the patient. The result will be a natural-looking tooth that looks and functions just like the natural teeth around it.
In most cases, dental implants involve inserting a small, screw-shaped titanium post directly into the bone of the jaw to replace the missing tooth’s roots. After a healing period lasting a few months in most cases, the post will actually fuse directly to the surrounding bone and form a robust anchor for the custom-made crown that will be attached.
We can use dental implant procedures to replace single teeth, multiple teeth with a bridge, all teeth permanently, or a supported set of removable dentures. These procedures have success rates better than 95%, making them by far the most viable tooth replacement option for many of our patients. The only risks following these surgeries is poor ongoing oral hygiene, causing bacterial infection, or the use of excessive biting force. Ultimately, you can expect your dental implant and custom-matched crown to last many years with proper oral hygiene and regular dental cleanings and exams.
