Wisdom Tooth Extractions – Cinco Ranch, TX
Remove Troublesome Wisdom Teeth and Preserve Your Smile
Although wisdom teeth typically grow in between the ages of 17 and 25, they can potentially impact your oral health before, during, and following their arrival. Fortunately, our team in Cinco Ranch can remove troublesome wisdom teeth and preserve your smile with an extraction procedure.
Continue reading to learn more about this treatment, why it’s sometimes necessary, and who it might benefit!
Why Choose Villagio Family & Cosmetic Dental for Wisdom Tooth Extractions?
- Patients of All Ages Welcomed
- Simple and Surgical Extractions Completed in the Office
- Sedation Available to Enhance Patient Comfort
What are Wisdom Teeth?
Wisdom teeth are a third set of molars that usually arrive years after your other permanent teeth have already grown in. It’s believed that our ancestors may have developed them to subsist on a tough diet of roots, berries, raw meat, nuts, and seeds.
However, today, they’re no longer necessary for our survival, so they are considered a vestigial feature. Most people have four of these additional molars: one for each quadrant of their mouths. But some people are born with fewer, and some lucky individuals never grow them at all.
Why Do Wisdom Teeth Need to Be Removed?
You can usually count on our team to do everything we can to protect and preserve your natural teeth, leading many patients to wonder why wisdom tooth extraction is necessary. The truth is that these third molars tend to cause problems when they arrive which can put your dental health at risk.
We might recommend this treatment to address the following common concerns:
- General discomfort. These molars often cause aches in your mouth, jaw, or face.
- They are likely to push neighboring teeth out of alignment in their attempt to make a space in your gumline.
- Dental problems. They often only partially clear your connective tissues, making it harder to brush and floss them, increasing the risk of cavities or gum disease.
- If they become trapped in your jaw, they can form a cyst or infection that may require oral surgery to address.
What to Expect from the Wisdom Teeth Procedure
Although it may vary based on your unique circumstances, you can usually expect our team to start your procedure by applying a local anesthetic to numb the area. If you have severe anxiety or are undergoing a surgical extraction, we can also provide sedation to help you feel calm and comfortable throughout your visit.
Then, for a simple procedure, we’ll use a device called an ‘elevator’ to help lift your tooth from the socket so we can grasp it with forceps and gently wiggle it free. For more complex cases, we might need to create a small opening in your gums to access your tooth, which may sometimes require breaking it into smaller pieces to avoid damaging your jawbone during removal.
Recovering from Wisdom Teeth Extraction
Our team will provide detailed instructions for you to follow after your procedure which are intended to help you heal as quickly as possible while avoiding potential complications. For example, if the blood clot that forms over the extraction site is damaged or dislodged, you could develop a painful side effect known as dry socket.
Common directions often include:
- Getting plenty of rest. Avoid strenuous activities that elevate your heart rate or blood pressure, which can damage your blood clot.
- Address discomfort. It’s usually safe to apply a cold compress to the sore side of your face or take over-the-counter medications, such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen, to reduce pain and inflammation.
- Keep your mouth clean. We may ask that you rinse your mouth with salt water the day after your procedure to naturally disinfect it, then you can resume brushing and flossing more normally once your gums have healed.
- Stick to softer foods. Steer clear of hard, crunchy, sugary, acidic, hot, or spicy foods that can irritate your already-tender teeth and gums.
- Take prescribed medications. If you were given antibiotics or prescription pain medications, please take them as ordered.
If you have ongoing aches or suspect you have developed dry socket, please contact our office so we can ensure that you’re healing as intended.
Understanding the Cost of Wisdom Tooth Extractions
If you need a wisdom tooth extracted, you'll naturally wonder about the price involved. How else will you know if the procedure fits your budget? That said, the cost of wisdom tooth extractions can vary; you'll have to consult our dentists in Cinco Ranch for a precise estimate. Only then will we be able to help, ensuring your final care is affordable. For more details, simply keep reading or call us in the coming days or weeks.
Factors That Affect the Cost of Wisdom Tooth Extractions
We’ll closely examine your smile at the initial consultation. In doing so, our team can assess (among other things) factors that affect your treatment’s cost. Such elements include:
- Wisdom Teeth Number – In general, extracting multiple wisdom teeth costs more than removing just one. Every “extra” tooth adds to your treatment’s overall price.
-
Impaction – Since impacted wisdom teeth aren’t clearly visible, the price of removing them can climb high. The type impaction also affects the treatment cost.
- For example, a soft tissue impaction doesn’t cost much more than usual. A dentist can often remove a partly-emerged wisdom tooth fairly easily.
- Treating a bony impaction can get pricey, though. Removing a tooth lodged in the jawbone is a complex effort.
- Use of Sedatives – When an extraction requires sedation, it’ll cost more than it would otherwise. Adding sedatives to the mix means your care’s price will increase.
- Specialist Type – If you ultimately need a complex extraction, your treatment will become more expensive. After all, you’ll end up paying for a higher level of expertise.
Does Dental Insurance Cover Wisdom Tooth Extractions?
Insurance coverage for wisdom tooth extraction varies; some plans cover it, others don’t. Whether your own policy provides benefits will depend on your plan’s type, its provider, etc. With all that said, any coverage you have will require meeting your annual deductible and maximum first.
Please consult your insurance provider before treatment, as they’ll confirm your plan’s details. Our dental team can help you do so if necessary.
How to Make Wisdom Tooth Extractions Affordable
Thankfully, dental insurance isn’t the only way to make wisdom tooth extraction affordable. Another method is to rely on our practice’s helpful payment options, including:
- In-House Dental Coverage – You can enroll in our office’s in-house dental coverage for an annual fee. In doing so, you’d get a lower co-pay on wisdom tooth extractions.
- Flexible Financing – Our practice works with both CareCredit and Cherry, reputable 3rd party financiers. Either one would let you pay for a wisdom tooth extraction with manageable monthly installments. Plus, the reduced payments would have little to no interest.
Don’t put yourself in the “financial red” to get your wisdom tooth extraction. Instead, visit us – we’ll make sure the removal work is budget-friendly!
Wisdom Tooth Extractions FAQs
Does Everyone Have Wisdom Teeth?
Are you wondering why some people undergo wisdom tooth extractions, and others don’t? There might be several explanations for this, but one potential answer is that not everyone has the same number of these third molars.
Most individuals have four wisdom teeth; one for each quadrant of their mouths. However, some people have fewer than that, and some lucky folks never develop any at all! Although the exact reason for this is unknown, it’s believed that genetics likely plays a significant role. If a parent is missing one or more of their wisdom teeth, their children are less likely to grow all of them.
Why Do We Have Wisdom Teeth?
Wisdom teeth are so commonly removed that many patients consider it a rite of passage from adolescence into adulthood. But you’re not alone if you’re wondering why we have them in the first place.
It’s believed that our ancient ancestors developed these third molars to survive on a tough diet of hard seeds, raw meat, berries, nuts, and roots. Without cooked food, utensils, or modern oral healthcare, they likely damaged or lost some of their teeth before reaching adulthood. Wisdom teeth may have been intended to replace the others and maintain normal biting and chewing functionality.
How Can I Address Wisdom Tooth Aches?
One of the reasons these molars are frequently removed is because they’re notorious for becoming trapped in the jaw and causing aches in their attempt to push through the gumline. Extraction is the only true ‘cure’ for this discomfort, but thankfully, there are things you can do to take the edge off the throbbing while you wait for your appointment.
For instance, you can try placing an ice pack against the sore side of your face for a temporary reprieve. You might also benefit from over-the-counter pain medications, such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen, or a numbing gel that can be applied directly to your connective tissues.
Does Wisdom Tooth Extraction Hurt?
This procedure often involves making an incision to access a trapped wisdom tooth, and it’s natural to wonder whether it hurts. But our compassionate team will do everything we can to help you feel calm and confident moving forward.
For example, we’ll numb your mouth with a local anesthetic before starting your treatment, so you might feel pressure while we work, but not pain. We also offer both oral conscious and IV sedation options to help you get through your procedure comfortably.