Recovery After Dental Extraction

Our dental practice no longer extracts as many teeth as once was common. As restorative treatment options continue to improve, dental extractions tend to decline. However, there are still circumstances where pulling a tooth is the best option for you. You can rest assured we will provide gentle and efficient care to make the experience as comfortable as possible.

There are several reasons our dentist in Van Nuys may suggest an extraction. One of the most common reasons is that you have no room in your mouth for more teeth. This frequently happens with the third molars, commonly known as wisdom teeth. Another circumstance leading to extraction is a severe injury or trauma to a tooth. If the tooth is rendered unrepairable, our dentist may opt to pull the injured tooth and place a dental implant after the site heals. Excessive periodontal disease is frequently the reason to extract a tooth before it breaks or falls out.

A dental extraction is a straightforward procedure. If you are having a single tooth removed, you will most likely get an injection of a local anesthetic. This will numb the area around the tooth, but you will be awake throughout the procedure. If our dentist is removing several teeth or impacted teeth, you will receive general anesthesia. Once you are numb or asleep, our dentist will use forceps to remove your tooth. You may get a few dissolvable stitches to close the area.

For a smooth recovery, it is essential to follow the direction of our dentist. A blood clot will form over the empty socket. You should avoid disturbing the clot. This aids the healing process and prevents an extremely painful condition known as dry socket.
Additionally, plan on resting for at least 24 hours after the procedure. Do not smoke or use a straw because both are known to dislodge the clot covering the empty socket. Use an ice pack for 10 minutes at a time to reduce pain and swelling. Take any prescribed pain medication as directed. Limit your diet to soft foods for a few days.

A typical extraction takes a week or longer to heal fully. Do not try and rush the healing process. If you experience any unusual bleeding or extreme pain, call our office right away. While no one likes having a tooth pulled, we will do all we can to make it an uncomplicated process.

What is Crown Lengthening?

When a tooth needs to be fixed from breakage or a crown or filling falls out of a tooth, sometimes there is not enough tooth to fix the problem. However there are procedures that can help. A dental professional can talk to you about crown lengthening. This procedure requires a surgeon to remove gum tissue, bone or both to expose more of the tooth that needs to be fixed.

To replace a filling or crown that has fallen out, a dentist needs to expose more of the tooth. Some patients have a “gummy smile” where they have a lot of gum tissue around their upper teeth. This is where the lengthening procedure can help. Our dentist in Van Nuys can walk you through this process so you can decide if it is appropriate for your smile.

The procedure starts with some preparation. First a patient must visit our periodonist where they will review their medical history and x-rays. A date for the surgery can then be scheduled. It may be recommended to get your teeth cleaned before the surgery can be done. A dentist may put on a temporary crown to protect the tooth during this process. This gives the periodontist an advantage because they will be able to see how much soft tissue or bone needs to be removed.

Once a patient is ready for the procedure, a local anesthesia will be used. The length of time it takes for this surgery depends on the number of teeth that need to be fixed. However, most likely more than one tooth will be affected. It could be as simple as removing a little gum tissue to expose the tooth so the dentist can place a crown filling over it. But in most cases some bone will have to be removed around the roots of the teeth. Once the periodontist has enough tooth to work with, the gums are sanitized and then stitched back together. Not to worry, your dental professional can prescribe pain reliever and mouth rinse once this procedure is done.

A patient will go back to the periodontist 7 to 10 days after the surgery to have the stitches removed. After about 4 to 6 weeks, there will be a follow up visit to make sure the gums have healed nicely. Gums heal in about three months. After this time period the dentist can prepare the tooth for the final crown. 

Obtener las llaves una segunda vez

Si usted es un adulto interesado en mejorar la alineación de su sonrisa, sepa que no está solo. De los pacientes que reciben tratamiento ortodóncico en los Estados Unidos, aproximadamente el 25% son adultos. Algunos adultos buscan el tratamiento inicial en sus 20's y 30's, mientras que otros pueden haber tenido aparatos como adolescentes, pero experimentaron cambios porque no usaron sus retenedores. Independientemente de su situación, hay un montón de opciones disponibles. 

¿Es usted consciente de cómo conseguir llaves en sus 20? Si es así, puede que desee considerar opciones discretas como llaves linguales, llaves de cerámica y Invisalign, que son increíblemente sutiles. 

Lingual-braces: se aplican a la parte posterior de sus dientes, frente a su lengua. Ellos mejorarán su sonrisa con la misma eficacia que las llaves tradicionales. 

Aparatos de cerámica: Se aplican de manera similar a los aparatos ortopédicos tradicionales, pero incluyen soportes hechos de cerámica de color de dientes que se mezclan con su sonrisa. 

Invisalign: Un sistema que utiliza bandejas de plástico transparente que descansan sobre sus dientes y gradualmente los mueven a su posición correcta. 

Para los pacientes adultos, uno de los principales factores que entran en juego es la programación. Muchos profesionales que trabajan no quieren dedicar varios días al año a las citas del orthodontist. Si usted tiene una línea de tiempo muy ocupado, es posible que desee considerar Invisalign como su método de elección. No sólo tendrá menos citas programadas, sino que podrá entrar y salir.  

Llame a nuestra oficina con cualquier pregunta que tenga sobre tirantes para adultos o para programar su consulta.