Dental Extraction
At Mint Dental we want to keep your teeth in as natural a state for as long as possible. So when you have a decayed tooth, we’ll do everything we can to save it. However, there are times when extraction is the only option. If that’s the case, we’ll do one of two things:
Simple dental extraction
If the crown part of your tooth is visible, we’ll perform a simple dental extraction. We begin by numbing the area with a local anaesthetic, then loosen your tooth using an elevator. This detaches your tooth from the fibres that attach the tooth to the gums and jaw bone. We then use forceps to remove the tooth.
Surgical dental extraction
If your tooth is buried inside your jawbone or gums and is visible but has not erupted, we’ll perform a surgical dental extraction. We’ll also follow this procedure when a grossly decayed tooth breaks during extraction and pieces of tooth are left in the bone socket. In these cases, we make a small incision in your gums so we can reach the tooth within the bone. Once we’ve retrieved the root pieces of the tooth, we stitch the wound back up.
To ensure there are no complications after your extraction, we recommend you:
- Avoid hot food and drinks on the day of the extraction
- Rinse your mouth with warm salt water at least two or three times a day from the day after extraction
- Avoid touching the wound with your tongue or fingers
- Rinse your mouth after any food or drink
- Don’t smoke