Wisdom Tooth Removal - Huntington Beach, Ca

Because each patient’s needs are unique, it’s important to discuss your options with your doctor. During your consultation, your doctor will discuss how many wisdom teeth need to be removed in order to prevent future dental issues. The doctor may choose to remove all wisdom teeth at once or just remove a few potentially problematic teeth.

Our office uses different types of general anesthesia during wisdom teeth extractions. To learn more about the various forms of sedation we offer, visit the Sedation page of our website.

The duration of your procedure depends on how many wisdom teeth are being removed. Usually, the procedure lasts 1 to 2 hours.

Complete healing doesn’t fully occur for a few weeks to a few months after extraction. Usually, after about two weeks, your mouth will be reasonably comfortable.

There are two potential complications that may occur post surgery. Dry socket is a common complication that occurs when a blood clot has failed to form in the extracted tooth socket or when a clot has been dislodged. Dry sockets usually occur 3-4 days after the extraction and are accompanied by pain and a foul mouth odor. Dry sockets are easily treated by placing a medication in the socket.

Paresthesia is a less common complication that occurs when nerves in the jawbone are bruised or damaged during the extraction process. This may result in numbness (paresthesia) of the tongue, lip, or chin that can last days, weeks, or be permanent.

Most patients usually have to miss at least 1-2 days of work or school after their wisdom teeth are extracted. Your doctor may prescribe painkillers that will make it difficult to focus as they may make you dizzy or sleepy. Patients are asked to keep ice on the outside of their face for at least 24 hours to prevent inflammation or swelling. Your doctor will also usually recommend relaxing as physical activity, even as minor as walking, may increase bleeding. However, after a few days of recovery, most patients are able to return to their day-to-day activities with little to no problem.

Oral and maxillofacial surgeons (OMS’s) are the only dental specialists recognized by the American Dental Association who are surgically trained in a hospital-based residency program for a minimum of four years. OMS’s train alongside medical residents in internal medicine, general surgery and anesthesiology, and spend time in otolaryngology, plastic surgery, emergency medicine and other specialty areas. Their training focuses almost exclusively on the hard (i.e., bone) and soft (i.e., skin, muscle) tissue of the face, mouth, and jaws. Their knowledge and surgical expertise uniquely qualifies them to diagnose and treat the functional and esthetic conditions in this anatomical area.

Because each patient is unique, the ideal age to remove wisdom teeth may vary. Most doctors will recommend having them removed before they are fully developed to prevent crowding after eruption. Younger patients also tend to heal faster and with fewer complications than older patients.

Even if you chose to wait to have your wisdom teeth removed, it is important to continuously monitor them. Your mouth is constantly changing over time and it is possible to develop problems later in life. As with many other health conditions, as people age, they are at a greater risk for health problems and that risk includes potential problems with their wisdom teeth.