Tips to Prepare for Your Oral Surgery Consultation

oral surgeon

If you’ve never had a consultation with an oral surgeon before, you may not know what to expect. That unfamiliarity can cause anxiety. But there’s really no cause for worrying about your first appointment, and when you are prepared for the process, it can put your mind at ease. You should bring your referral slip to the first appointment with your oral surgeon, as this information is important in the treatment planning process. It will indicate the specific nature of your problem and possible treatment options to consider, such as the placement of dental implants at the site of tooth loss or corrective jaw surgery to address a malocclusion. Your oral surgeon will then gather additional information needed to develop the treatment plan. This likely will involve a visual examination of your teeth and jaws along with x-rays to get a better view of the proposed surgical site. For example,…

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Wisdom Teeth Removal Helps to Keep Your Smile Straight

wisdom teeth extraction

Whether you were naturally graced with a straight smile or achieved one through orthodontic treatment, it’s important to consider wisdom teeth extraction in order to keep your smile looking its best. Impacted wisdom teeth can interfere with the alignment of your teeth as they continue to attempt to erupt into a jaw that does not have enough room to accommodate them. The teeth that are already in your mouth will still shift to try to make space for the wisdom teeth, though. The end result of this process can be a crooked smile. However, if you have an oral surgeon remove your impacted wisdom teeth before it reaches this point, you can avoid this outcome and keep your smile perfectly aligned. Why choose an oral surgeon? An oral surgeon typically removes impacted wisdom teeth because it is often necessary to remove surrounding bone before the tooth can be removed. This…

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Wisdom Tooth Extraction: What are the health benefits?

tooth extraction

A wisdom tooth extraction presents many health benefits to a person – especially from a preventive aspect. Wisdom teeth are troublesome to oral health because they contribute to an increased risk for gum disease, tooth decay, oral infections like abscesses, TMJ disorder, worn dentition, and orofacial pain. By have a wisdom tooth extraction, patients can prevent these unwelcome side effects and enjoy greater chances of maintaining vibrant oral health. Why are wisdom teeth detrimental to my oral health? Wisdom teeth are detrimental for a few reasons. The issues they cause stem from the fact that they arrive during adulthood while the rest of teeth come in during adolescence. Wisdom teeth’s late arrival leads to a crowded situation in the mouth and many times, wisdom teeth become stuck (impacted) in the bone and/or gums. Since they cannot erupt properly, the tooth may only come through the gums partially. A partially erupted…

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Top 5 Benefits of Dental Implants

dental implants

An increasing number of patients who have experienced tooth loss are turning to dental implants to restore their smiles. These devices can be used in a variety of tooth loss scenarios, as they can support a single crown, a dental bridge or an entire denture. Dental implants have a number of benefits for patients, including the following. Dental implants help to preserve jawbone stability. After the oral surgeon inserts the dental implant in the patient’s jaw, the surrounding bone forms a bond with the titanium implant, which makes it structurally similar to a biological tooth’s root. Therefore, a dental implant helps to secure the jawbone in the same way that a tooth’s root does. As a result, an implant-supported appliance is more durable and will not lose its fit as the jaw’s shape changes. Dental implants are nearly as effective at chewing as biological teeth are. That bond between the…

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3 Reasons to Have Corrective Jaw Surgery

jaw surgery

Jaw surgery can be a frightening prospect for patients, but it’s often not as big an ordeal as they initially envision. The procedure, which may also be called orthognathic surgery, can often be performed in an outpatient setting. Many patients are able to resume most of their normal activities in a matter of days, although some may face slightly longer recovery periods depending on the specific nature of the surgery. Here are three main reasons that an oral surgeon may recommend jaw surgery: To eliminate pain and other symptoms of temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorder: A misaligned jaw does not move properly, which puts strain on the muscles and tendons surrounding the jaw. Structural defects associated with TMJ disorders also can contribute to discomfort. Surgical procedures that address these problems can give patients relief from the symptoms of TMJ disorders. To improve the smile’s aesthetics: Malocclusions such as underbites, overbites or…

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How soon can I resume normal activities after an All-on-4 procedure?

All-on-4

One of the many benefits of All-on-4 dental implants is that the treatment is completed in such a short period of time – just a few hours. Of course, patients are concerned about the recovery period in addition to the amount of time they spend in the dental chair, and All-on-4 is appealing here, too. Patients often can resume much of their normal routine within a day or two of the procedure. Of course, this depends on your definition of “normal routine.” If you work in a highly active job or play sports or exercise vigorously on a regular basis, you may need to take a few more days before resuming that type of activity so that it doesn’t interfere with your healing process. Your oral surgeon can give you more detailed guidance on what activities to pick back up at what time. You should closely follow the post-operative instructions…

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FAQs About Wisdom Teeth Extraction

wisdom teeth extraction

Wisdom teeth extraction is one of the most common oral surgery procedures that patients undergo. However, patients still may have questions about the process if they don’t have any prior experience with it. Here are some of the most common questions that we get about wisdom teeth extraction. If my wisdom teeth aren’t bothering me, why do I need to have them extracted? Impacted wisdom teeth have the potential to cause a number of issues – cysts, abscesses, infections and discomfort to name a few – even if they’re not immediately symptomatic. It’s impossible to predict when any one of these problems would emerge, so many patients choose to have an oral surgeon remove their wisdom teeth as a preventive measure. Why do I need to have an oral surgeon remove my wisdom teeth instead of my general dentist? When the wisdom teeth are impacted, they must be removed surgically…

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What kinds of problems can arise from having a misaligned jaw?

jaw surgery

A patient’s jaws can be misaligned in any number of ways, including overbites, underbites, crossbites and open bites. When such a malocclusion (“bad bite”) is present, the patient can experience a number of problems. Misaligned jaws often contribute to temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders, which can be associated with significant discomfort for the patient. Any time the jaw doesn’t function properly – as is the case when the upper and lower jaws don’t meet correctly – the surrounding muscles will compensate and become stressed, which can cause pain. Other TMJ symptoms include clicking, popping or locking of the jaw as well as facial or ear pain. Misaligned jaws may also be less effective at chewing, so you may be missing out on important nutrition if you’re not processing your food completely even if you eat a healthy diet. There may also be some sort of relationship between malocclusion and bruxism, or…

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Achieve a Full Mouth Restoration with All-on-4

All-on-4

All-on-4 is a unique treatment method that helps edentulous patients fully restore their smiles with just four dental implants per arch. Those four implants are sufficient to support an entire denture that is specially designed to slide into place atop them. Using this treatment approach, an oral surgeon will place four dental implants toward the front of the patient’s jaw. The outer two implants are angled beneath the gum line to support the weight of the rear section of the denture. Over the course of the several months after the dental implants are placed, the surrounding jawbone forms a permanent bond with them. The dental implants become root-like fixtures in the jaw. Accordingly, an implant-supported denture can stay in place for decades with proper care. The dental implants’ role as artificial tooth roots gives important functional benefits to All-on-4 patients. Their appliances are more effective at chewing and feel more…

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Enjoy Your Favorite Foods with Dental Implants

dental implants

Has tooth loss made eating food – especially your favorite meals – difficult or uncomfortable? Do you fear wearing bridges or dentures because they may not provide the durability or stability you want in your replacement teeth? There is a solution available that restores oral function in a way that conventional prosthetics cannot. With dental implants, patients can enjoy all their favorite foods without difficulty. Moreover, dental implants will not impair one’s speech. Read on for helpful information about these revolutionary replacement teeth. What Are Dental Implants? Dental implants are prosthetics designed to replace the lost roots of teeth. Unlike other prosthetics that only rest on top of the gums, dental implants anchor replacement teeth like crowns or bridges within the jawbone. An implant is a small, screw-like post made from titanium. This metal is biocompatible and allows for osseointegration – the process where bone generates new tissue to fuse…

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