Dentists would much rather save your teeth than remove them. Keeping as many of your teeth as you can is good for your oral health … most of the time. There are situations when tooth removal and replacement is the best solution for everyone.
You can complete this process safely and effectively at our dentist office in Woodbury, MN. Mark W. Wilhelm DMD, MSD, can answer any questions you may have about this treatment along with the skill and training to complete the procedure for you.
You can learn more by requesting a consultation with our online form or by calling our office.
When Tooth Removal Is Recommended
Protecting teeth and restoring damaged teeth is always going to be our preference. If you can avoid tooth decay and gum disease or treat those issues in the early stages, then tooth loss will be much less likely to become a concern.
Nevertheless, sometimes bad things happen to good people with great smiles. And sometimes the best solution is removing a tooth or teeth for your oral health.
Dr. Wilhelm can advise you on the best course of action, but here are some of the common reasons teeth need to be removed:
▸ You have a broken tooth.
To be clear, removal is not always necessary. In many situations, a dental crown can be used to replace the natural crown of a broken tooth. A dental crown can be created that looks and functions as well as a real tooth.
However, severe breaks may expose the most vulnerable parts of your tooth to infections. Some breaks can lead to cracks that weaken teeth to the point of being ineffective.
If the tooth is tooth weak or too damaged, removing it may be the best option to protect your remaining teeth.
▸ You have an impacted tooth.
This situation arises often with wisdom teeth, although it is can occur with any tooth.
Impacted teeth are not able to grow correctly. Sometimes they remain below the gumline. Other times a tooth becomes partially impacted, which means it breaks the surface of your gums, but do not come in how it should.
In either of these situations, the impacted tooth can damage nearby teeth, affect the alignment of your teeth, or increase the risk of tooth decay or gum disease.
This is a time with tooth removal is often the best course of action for your long-term oral health.
▸ You have an infected tooth.
Tooth infections generally develop as a result of another problem. Tooth decay, gum disease, and broken or cracked teeth all can create an opportunity for bacteria to infect a tooth.
In some circumstances, a root canal treatment may be enough to resolve the problem. If the infection has spread too much, however, it can leave your tooth unable to support a dental crown. That’s when a tooth extraction would be needed instead.
▸ Tooth decay has done extensive damage to your tooth.
While tooth decay can lead to an infection, it’s also possible that the decay will weaken the structure of your tooth. The could may it too difficult or impossible for whatever healthy parts remain to support a dental crown.
This may be a time when you need to cut your losses by removing a bad tooth to protect healthy ones.
Tooth Removal Should Not Be The Last Step
We mentioned tooth removal and tooth replacement in the opening of this post, and Dr. Wilhelm is as qualified as anyone to do this for you.
As a prosthodontist, he has specialized training in replacing lost, missing, and extracted teeth. With dental implants, dental crowns, and dental bridges, he has the tools to replace what you have lost so that most people won’t be able to tell you natural teeth from your artificial ones.
If you come to our office, we can replace your extracted tooth, too. A dental implant or implants will replace the missing root or roots, and crown or bridge can be used to replace your missing crown(s).
Tooth replacement helps to support your remaining healthy teeth, and it is good for maintaining a healthy jaw as well.
Talk To Us About Tooth Removal
Tooth extraction is a big step, and you should not remove teeth unless it is necessary. Dr. Wilhelm can examine your mouth and discuss what options are available. If needed, he is more than capable of performing your tooth extraction as well as your tooth replacement procedure.
To make an appointment, call our dentist office in Woodbury, MN, at 651-319-9064 or fill out our online form.
