Dentist sending me to a specialist to get teeth extracted?

I was at the dentist last week and I have to get a filling in a molar tooth, which is fine, but 3 of my wisdom teeth are very badly decayed, both on the top and one on the bottom and they need to be extracted.





The dentist showed me the x-rays and basically although the wisdom teeth don't look too bad on the outside, inside they're almost totally rotted away. The strange thing is, they don't hurt at all. Anyway, he says that if he tries to extract them the normal way, they are likely to break because they are so badly decayed inside, so he said he would refer me to a specialist to have them extracted.





What kind of specialist is he going to send me to and what will they do to get the teeth out? Will it still be under local anaesthetic or will I need to have an operation? I really don't want to have an operation!!

Dentist sending me to a specialist to get teeth extracted?
The specialist your dentist will refer you to is an oral surgeon.





An oral surgeon is a dentist who has undergone additional training after dental school in complex surgical procedures involving the mouth and face (oromaxillofacial surgery, or OMFS), and they are very proficient at doing difficult extractions.





The majority of wisdom teeth can be extracted under local anesthesia (you stay wide awake, they just numb the area being worked on). If you are very nervous, then you can ask to be put under (conscious sedation or general anesthesia, depending on the situation), but it will cost you a lot more.





Hope this helps, and good luck.
Reply:He is sending you to an oral surgeon who has the skill, tools and expert special assistants that are able to deal with it. If the roots are curved or if they penetrate into the sinus cavity or if they fracture, he is trained in opening up the gums and bone to get at them and then closing and suturing properly. I would much rather have an oral surgeon doing this on me than a standard DDS given your situation...and, unless it's really bad, local anasthetic should be all thats necessary. It is a form of an operation...but letting them rot away isn't the dentists' fault.
Reply:maxillofacial surgeon





I had to go to one for my wisdom teeth ~ they never did hurt, but they were all impacted. I went as an outpatient so I was out for the whole thing.
Reply:He will send you to an Oral Surgeon. This is a very good thing!! The Oral surgeon will probably put you out, with a general anesthesia, to prevent you from any unnecessary discomfort during the procedure. Oral surgeons are by far the best option in a case like this. This is what they do, their specialty, so it will be done with the least discomfort, during and after. While you may have the greatest general dentist in the world, you are much better off in the hands of a specialist. They deal with this type of thing day in and day out and are especially trained to deal with difficult procedures. General dentist are best at general dentistry, this is not "general". By seeing an Oral Surgeon, you'll be feeling fine in no time. Good luck!
Reply:Sounds like he's sending you to an oral surgeon and they should be able to do the extraction in his office under local anesthesia.





Advice: if your dentist and his staff only told you "we are sending you to a specialist to have those pulled" and he didn't explain who the specialist was or answer basic questions about the procedure, then I'll really consider getting a different dentist to look at my wisdom teeth before I had them extracted. I'm sure your dentist is top-notch and the teeth do need to be removed, but I'd be cautious since there is no pain or external sign of trouble.





I'd hate to think you were going to have your wisdom teeth retracted because the oral surgeon is a fishing buddy of your dentist and he asked for a few referrals. A second opinion never hurts and you don't have to tell your dentist or the "specialist" that you saw someone else.
Reply:He will more than likely send you to an oral surgeon. Any dentist worth a darn will give you options as far as anesthesia goes. Myself, being the original coward, would go for being put under. I had it done with my wisdom teeth and had no problems. The gave my an IV w/the sedative and the next thing I knew, I was waking up in the recovery room. I was completely lucid- no grogginess or nausea. Now I know it will vary from person to person, but you should definitely discuss it with the dentist. Don't be afraid like I was, dentistry has come a LONG way, and so has anesthesia!
Reply:Heya - I had my lower left wisdom tooth removed at 9am this morning! I was in pretty much the same position as you - no pain coming from the wisdom tooth, but x-rays showed it was decaying. I was extremely nervous about having the surgery done to remove it, especially since I was told that I couldn't have a general anaesthetic and had to have a local... but honestly there's nothing to worry about! Barely felt the injections going in, after 30 seconds I was nice and numb :)





The specialist (usually this is done at your local hospital), basically inserts small metal stints around the tooth so that the socket is widened slightly. Using a clamp they then remove the tooth, placing a swab over the socket to stop the bleeding. We actually timed it, and it took 5 mins and 11 seconds from start to finish to extract the tooth.





As for after-effects, I've had virtually no pain at all and am feeling absolutely fine! - (This being a major advantage of having a local anaesthetic over a general. I have a mate who had a wisdom tooth out two weeks ago and had a general, and she had to stay in hospital all day and then felt a bit rough after.) It's entirely your right though to have whichever anaesthetic you'd prefer. Either way good luck having it done, and don't worry about it! :D Hope that puts your mind at rest! xxx
Reply:Probably sending you to an oral surgeon like the others said. My orthodontist (braces) sent me to one to have all four wisdom teeth removed to make more space. It took about 1 hour, I was sedated and thus didnt feel anything. The sedation is general anesthesia, given within the office so I suppose you should get the image of a big operating room out of your head lol. Mine was in his office which had several rooms and the doctor just went from one to the other pulling teeth out all day.


Afterward the removal, I could only do liquids for a few days but the swelling and pain were minimal.