Post-Extraction Swelling

Dental extractions are generally simple affairs at the Midtown office of Dr. Joseph Dallessandro. When patients follow their instructions, they are likely to have easy recoveries, and we’re available to help if something goes wrong. But we want patients to be able to recognize if they need additional attention, so we thought we’d provide some instructions about post-extraction swelling.

The body recognizes the removal of a tooth as an injury and triggers its inflammatory response. The swelling is usually proportionate to the “injury,” so non-surgical extractions trigger less of it. Nonetheless, the patient will experience sensitivity and swelling for a few days. During the first forty-eight hours after an extraction, the patient should try to limit swelling by holding a cold pack against their face. They should be careful to use it for no more than fifteen minutes at a time and to take fifteen-minute breaks between applications.

Swelling should peak after three days. After seventy-two hours, patients can try to reduce it by applying heat packs, again for fifteen minutes at a time with fifteen-minute breaks. Patients should seek emergency care if they are in extreme pain or notice the surgical site turning black or white, but swelling should disappear within a week.

Joseph S. Dallessandro, DDS, and Jiah Choi, DDS, operate at 360 E 72nd St, Ste B, New York, New York, 10021. To set up an appointment, call 212-988-1089, or visit Joseph Dallessandro DDS and fill out a contact sheet.

 

Reasons for Extractions

Tooth extractions at the Upper East Side office of Dr. Joseph Dallessandro are usually a simple affair. But because we work so hard to save teeth, if we’ve recommended an extraction, it means there’s a major issue. To help patients understand what they’re facing, we’re dedicating this week’s post to reasons for tooth extractions.

If a tooth’s pulp is infected, root canals are usually an effective means of treatment. Sometimes root canals can fail due to abnormalities in the tooth’s structure, but even then, a specialist would retreat it while replacing the tip of the tooth root. But if an infection has progressed too far, it poses a danger to the patient’s overall health. A tooth may also need to be extracted if it is badly cracked along the root or if the surrounding gum tissue is too compromised to support it.

What’s much more common is for teeth to be extracted due to overcrowding or difficulty erupting. The wisdom teeth, which are the largest teeth and the last to emerge, often get trapped, requiring them to be extracted. Premolars may also be removed to allow the remaining teeth to form an arch, and baby teeth may be removed if they do not fall out naturally while the adult tooth is pushing through.

Joseph S. Dallessandro, DDS, and Jiah Choi, DDS, operate at 360 E 72nd St, Ste B, New York, New York, 10021. To set up an appointment, call 212-988-1089, or visit Joseph Dallessandro DDS and fill out a contact sheet.

Dental Instruments

The Midtown office of Dr. Joseph Dallessandro is fully equipped to meet all of our patients’ general dentistry needs. There are a number of specialized tools we use to conduct diagnostics and fight decay, and in order to get patients more comfortable with oral care, we wanted to explain how some of them work.

The explorer, or probe, is the tool the patient will see us use the most often, along with the mouth mirror. The explorer has a hook at the end and is used to scrape small amounts of tartar. We use it to determine whether spots with decay still have active infections and whether tartar has accumulated beneath the gum line. Scalers are also hooked instruments that are used to scrape tartar out of the gum pockets. Hooked instruments come in a variety of shapes for different kinds of teeth.

If a tooth has decay, a drill is used to remove the damaged part. A dentist may also mix material for the filling on a tiny spatula and shape it onto the tooth with a placement instrument, which is a metal hook that flattens out at the end. When a tooth needs to be replaced, dentists use a spoon-like instrument called an elevator to loosen it and forceps to pull it the rest of the way out. The socket is then scraped clean of debris.

Joseph S. Dallessandro, DDS, and Jiah Choi, DDS, operate at 360 E 72nd St, Ste B, New York, New York, 10021. To set up an appointment, call 212-988-1089, or visit Joseph Dallessandro DDS and fill out a contact sheet.

 

Sectioning Teeth

Sometimes wisdom teeth have to be removed in order to prevent infection or preserve the alignment of the rest of the teeth. At the Upper East Side dental office of Dr. Joseph Dallessandro, we understand that patients may not be happy to hear this, but we strive to make the procedure as easy on them as we can. One way to make extractions easier is by sectioning teeth.

The molars have strong ligaments holding them in place and multiple roots. (Lower molars have two roots; upper ones may have three.) Extracting a tooth is done my rocking it back and forth in order to loosen it, but this may not be possible to do when a tooth is firmly secured into the jaw. It may also not be possible if the reason a tooth is being removed is that is not fully exposed. Furthermore, trying to yank out a tooth with an enormous amount of force could break it or hurt the patients.

As an alternative, we can use a drill to cut a large tooth into sections. The patient will be anesthetized and not feel this, but the tooth will be cleanly broken down into smaller pieces. The sections can then be lifted out individually through smaller paths without needing to be yanked or twisted as much.

Joseph S. Dallessandro, DDS, and Jiah Choi, DDS, operate at 360 E 72nd St, Ste B, New York, New York, 10021. To set up an appointment, call 212-988-1089, or visit Joseph Dallessandro DDS and fill out a contact sheet.

 

Dry Sockets

When teeth need to be extracted, most of our clients at Dr. Joseph Dallessandro and Dr. Jiah Choi’s Lenox Hill practice will experience easy recoveries and soon move on to the next stage of their treatment. However, when a complication does occur, it is usually in the form of a dry socket. This is a painful condition and poses a risk of infection, but we educate patients on how to avoid it and know how to treat it should it arise.

When a tooth is pulled, there will be a bit of bleeding in the empty socket. Ideally, this blood will congeal and seal the socket off, locking in moisture and keeping the surgical site free of bacteria. However, there are medications which may prevent clots from forming, and behaviors such as smoking may cause them to dissolve early. Patients are also warned not to sip from straws after an extraction because the suction could pull the clot off and leave the socket exposed.

Sockets usually close up quickly. The risk of dryness is highest during the first two days after the extraction. Patients in severe pain should schedule emergency appointments. If they are suffering a dry socket, we will apply moisturizing and antibiotic medication to the wound and prescribe painkillers, if necessary.

Joseph S. Dallesandro, DDS, and Jiah Choi, DDS, operate at 360 E 72^nd St, Ste B, New York, New York, 10021. To set up an appointment, call 212-988-1089, or visit JosephDallessandroDDS.com, and fill out a contact sheet.