Did you know that dentistry, like medicine, has its own surgical field? Oral surgeons undergo extensive training and experience to gain the expertise necessary for handling the most complex and demanding oral health issues. To help you understand the importance of oral surgery, we take a look at just a few of the procedures that oral surgeons are specially prepared to perform.
Replacing Lost Teeth
If you lose a tooth, there is more to consider than filling the empty gap in your smile. Remaining teeth can shift to take up the slack, and a traditional dental restoration (i.e., bridge or dentures) can help prevent the shift. However, the deeper consequences of tooth loss cannot be resolved through traditional restoration methods. Rather, experts agree that dental implants are the best and most complete choice for tooth replacement today.
Shaped similar to a natural tooth root, a dental implant is inserted into your jawbone to replace the lost tooth root. Your teeth’s roots, which are stimulated through biting and chewing, signal your body to send nutrients to strengthen and maintain your jawbone. When a root is lost, the missing stimulation results in fewer nutrients and a weaker, slowly deteriorating jawbone. A dental implant prevents the nutrient deficiency by replacing the tooth root.
Dental implants were pioneered by oral surgeons several decades years ago, and they remain the most qualified dental practitioners for dental implant placement, especially in high-risk cases.
Extracting Impacted Wisdom Teeth
Many people may be more familiar with oral surgeons for another reason—wisdom tooth extraction. While extracting a tooth is not difficult, there is a specific science in doing so while protecting the rest of your oral health. Oral surgeons are especially qualified to diagnose the need for extraction, as well as perform the procedure, when extraction is complicated by oral disease or impaction.
