Tooth Extraction in Dedham, MA: When Your Dentist Finds It Necessary

Any dentist will do everything to preserve your real teeth. They only recommend tooth extraction when there’s no other solution available to your oral health problem. Sometimes, it is performed when your natural tooth cannot be saved anymore or when the procedure is important to oral health. Tooth trauma and extensive tooth decay are among the reasons tooth extraction may be necessary. Also, your dentist in Dedham, MA, will do it to prepare for orthodontic treatment. The following are more about when it is essential to extract a tooth:

Tooth Trauma or Disease

A seriously damaged tooth because of trauma or disease can usually be restored. For instance, a dentist can mend a tooth that no longer has enough structure with a dental crown to cover it entirely. Sometimes, root canal therapy can also save an infected tooth, eliminating the infected part and crowning it. 

But even with these treatments, a tooth cannot be saved when the infection has reached beyond the root of the tooth and into the gum and bone. In some instances, it can be hard to crown a tooth that does not have much of its structure. Also, a seriously cracked tooth that extends through the root cannot be saved. If this is the case, an extraction will be necessary.

Impacted Wisdom Tooth

Among your teeth, the wisdom teeth are the last ones to erupt. As a result, they are crowded out, and when there isn’t enough space for them to erupt, they erupt underneath the adjacent teeth or emerge sideways through your gums. In this case, you need to have the impacted tooth extracted to prevent possible damage to the other teeth. Your dentist will monitor your wisdom teeth’s development and remove them when they are impacted. 

Orthodontic Treatment

You may require orthodontic treatment when your teeth are overlapping and overcrowded. To correct proper alignment, your dentist may need to extract a tooth or more since there are too many of them to fit into your dental arch. Often, your dentist will remove the premolars first. 

While tooth extraction sounds scary, the procedure should be comfortable and relaxing when done by a good dentist. Indeed, tooth removal is a minor procedure, particularly when it involves one tooth with one root, such as the front tooth. Extracting impacted wisdom teeth or bigger molars is more complicated due to the number of roots involved. Before your dentist removes a tooth, they will take an X-ray to know the number of roots to deal with and their location. 

Clare Louise