What Are The Dos And Don’ts In Preparing For Wisdom Tooth Surgery

Any type of oral surgery is crucial in its own nature. For example, wisdom tooth removal could put you at risk of a dry socket. To prevent complications during recovery time, it is important to know what to do in preparing for wisdom tooth surgery. A trusted brand like Cattani says that safety precautions must be followed to ensure proper healing.

Wisdom Tooth Removal

Wisdom teeth do not necessarily have to be removed all the time. Dentists only suggest oral surgery if the wisdom tooth is impacted and affects the alignment of other teeth. The dentist will typically request a dental X-ray to determine if the tooth needs to be extracted or not. Oftentimes, the tooth erupts slightly horizontally, this situation would require surgery to prevent damages to the nearby teeth.

Anyone, regardless of age, can undergo wisdom tooth surgery. However, dentists state that removal of the wisdom tooth under the age of 20 is much better. This is because the procedure is typically easier at this age. Having oral surgery beyond 20 years of age might put the patient at risk of several complications.

Importance Of Preparing For Wisdom Tooth Surgery

Without preparation, a patient who underwent oral surgery might suffer unlikeable consequences. Typically, a candidate for wisdom tooth removal will be informed of the things that he must do in preparing for the surgery.

Not following your doctor’s advice might lead to the following complications:

• a dry socket
• prolonged recovery time
• infection
• damaged nerves
• sinus problems
• excessive bleeding
• chronic pain
• swelling

To prevent these things from happening, ask your surgeon about the things that you should avoid while you are preparing for wisdom tooth surgery.

How To Prepare

If you have any personal concerns such as allergic reactions to general anesthesia, anxiety with dental procedures, or fear of specific tools, you can always inform your dentist. This will allow them to make adjustments before your scheduled appointment to keep you comfortable.

Initially, the dentist will discuss several matters with you regarding the possible effects of the surgery and its purpose. You will also be given pre-operative instructions as well as aftercare procedures to ensure a speedy and safe recovery.

Location of the clinic

Take the clinic’s location into consideration. If you live far from it, have some you trust to drive you home after the operation.

Clothing

Your comfortability is an important matter to think about. Be sure to wear loose clothes so it will be easier for the dentist to roll up your sleeves for the injection. The operation will not require you to change clothing so whatever you wear as you leave your house will be what you are wearing during the procedure.

Food and Beverage Consumption

This may vary depending on your dentist’s instructions. But most of the time, patients for wisdom tooth surgery are asked not to eat or drink after midnight before their appointment. You are probably wondering why. It’s because they are preventing the risk of regurgitation during the procedure. It is a serious complication that no dentist would risk their patients with.

Medication

You will most likely be prescribed medication as well. This is to help you manage the pain and alleviate discomfort. Moreover, if you have a current medication for other health issues, inform your doctor about it as it might interfere with the effects of general anesthesia. Open communication is one of the key factors to ensure your safety.

Things to Bring

Before your oral surgery, bring the documents needed or required by your dentist. Most of the time, dentists ask their patients to bring a copy of their medical history to know if they will be susceptible to any complications. For minors, consent from their guardian or parent is also needed.

Changes in Habits

For faster recovery and safe healing, your doctor may advise you to avoid smoking or drinking alcohol a day before your scheduled wisdom teeth surgery.

Other Pre-op Guidelines

Aside from the mentioned instructions, you will also be advised to:

• Prepare your room or home. Ensure that your prescribed medication is in easy-to-spot locations. Get a book or find a TV show to binge-watch for a couple of days while you are resting.
• Stock up on soft foods. One of the most important things to remember after a tooth extraction is that hard foods are a big no. They could cause damages to your healing gums.
• Ditch your accessories. Wearing earrings, necklaces, watch, or bracelets are often prohibited in any kind of surgery.
• Remove your nail polish. In case of emergency, it’s important for the doctor to see the color underneath your nails.
• Tie your hair. Just think of this as your contribution to making the job easier for your dentist and his associates.
• Find someone to drive you home. You will be highly sedated and driving by yourself after the procedure is not advisable.
• Turn off your phone. All kinds of medical facilities do not allow the use of mobile phones during treatment or surgery. Put it on silent before you lie down on the dental chair so you will not be distracted when it rings.

What To Expect

Apart from preparing for wisdom tooth surgery, it would also be helpful if you know what to expect during the procedure. Knowing the basic steps will put you at ease especially since you will be half aware of what’s going on around you. Here’s how the usual procedure concludes:

1. Sedation. The anesthetics that will be used on you will depend on your preference. Most of the time dentists use laughing gas sedation where you will stay awake and calm at the same time. IV sedation, on the other hand, usually puts the patient to shallow sleep.
2. Numbing procedure. After you’re sedated, the doctor will numb the treatment area. This is so you will no feel severe pain during the operation.
3. Removal of the tissue. All the tissues that cover the wisdom tooth will be removed.
4. Bone expulsion. In some cases, impacted wisdom teeth are cover with bones. The bone will be removed with advanced equipment before the extraction of the tooth.
5. Tooth sectioning. Your wisdom tooth will most likely be not extracted as a whole tooth. It will be sectioned into small pieces for easy ejection. Dentists remove the small pieces one by one until nothing of the tooth is left anymore.
6. Closing or stitching. To prevent bacteria from going inside the incised gum, it will be stitched respectively. Stitching is necessary to make the healing process be more bearable.

Aftercare

After the procedure, it’s imperative that you follow your doctor’s advice. Tooth extraction aftercare instructions often include the following:

• Take plenty of rest. Depending on your tolerance, you might feel great after the treatment. However, it is still better to rest for a day or two to prevent risks.
• If needed, apply an ice pack. Ice packs will help in reducing swelling and pain.
• Do not smoke for the next 48 hours as the bacteria from the cigarette might irritate the treated area.
• Don’t eat hard-to-chew foods.
• Rinse your mouth with a saltwater solution. Saltwater is a natural disinfectant and has been proven to be effective in alleviating pain.
• Drink your medicines on time.
• Avoid using straws when drinking fluids as the sucking motion might dislodge the clot that keeps your scar closed.
• Refrain from touching the treated site. Dirty hands could cause bacterial infection.