Extractions

Although we try our hardest to save as many teeth as we can, sometimes extracting a tooth is the best option. There are many scenarios where an extraction would be more beneficial to the patient, rather than trying to save the tooth. The good news is that if a tooth does need to be removed, we have different options to replace it. 

A few examples of why a tooth would need to be extracted: 

•  Large decay with very little tooth structure left
• The tooth broke and only the roots are left
• The cavity goes below the gumline or bone level 
• Little or no bone support

Teeth are held in the bone by periodontal ligaments (PDLs), and the tooth sits in the socket within the bone. In order to remove a tooth, Dr. Wollschlager will use a variety of instruments to gently separate the tooth from the ligaments and bone. Dr. Wollschlager is very advanced in extraction techniques, and attends oral surgery seminars to stay up to date with the latest techniques. These techniques are what set us apart. 

Bone grafts are often recommened to replace and fill the socket once a tooth is removed. By placing a bone graft, we ensure the option for implant placement in the future. Bone grafts are also placed when very little bone is present to begin with, to ensure that the bone will not completely resorb. At Total Care Dental, we use a type of bone graft material that promotes your own body to make bone tissue. The bone graft provides a matrix and scaffholding structure for your body to make bone and fill in the socket. 

After extractions, we want our patients to be as comfortable and feel as normal as possible. Pain control is our number one priority.

All patients will have a membrane or a collagen plug placed at the extraction site to "plug" or close off the extraction site. We also suture extraction site to ensure proper healing.