Common Reasons for Tooth Extractions

Has your dentist referred you to an oral surgeon for a tooth extraction? Do you ever wonder why teeth sometimes need to be extracted? There are a few reasons why an oral healthcare provider might want to extract teeth. Sometimes teeth are removed because they are diseased and damaged beyond repair. In other instances, teeth like wisdom teeth are extracted to improve a person’s bite or overall wellbeing. Lastly, teeth might be extracted to facilitate tooth transition during childhood or create room for tooth movement with orthodontic treatment. Tooth extractions are an important oral surgery that can protect your health and improve your quality of life.

Extracting Diseased and Damaged Teeth

Our teeth are made of living tissue and living tissue can become diseased. When a tooth is diseased or damaged to the point that it cannot be restored and threatens oral health, its removal is necessary to preserve one’s wellbeing and comfort. For instance, removing damaged teeth can prevent an abscess from spreading to (and damaging) other tissue.

Wisdom Tooth Removal

Wisdom teeth are commonly removed because these types of teeth contribute to a host of oral and dental issues. Third molars (wisdom teeth) erupt during adulthood. They often have very little room to come through the gums because the rest of a person’s adult teeth have been well established for years. With little room to erupt, wisdom teeth will come in partially – if at all – through the gums, often sideways. This means that wisdom teeth will be incredibly difficult to care for, are disease-prone, and can contribute to orthodontic and occlusal issues.

Tooth Extractions and Orthodontics

Removing teeth is common when children are receiving orthodontic treatment or as their adult teeth begin to replace their baby teeth. Sometimes baby teeth do not fall out fast enough to accommodate an emerging permanent tooth’s need for space and need to be surgically removed. In other cases, a tooth might need to be removed to give other teeth room to move during orthodontic treatment.

Our practice provides effective and gentle oral surgery so that oral function and quality of life can be increased. Call us today to reserve an appointment with one of our oral surgeons.