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Legal Standpoint of Oral Surgery Complications

Posted on 30. Jul, 2010 by wisdom.

As I have written on my website, I disagree with wisdom teeth removal from a legal standpoint (in addition to scientific). Essentially what I argue is that if you have your wisdom teeth extracted and suffer a complication that is not one of the better known you may not recover any money and be left with the pain, suffering, and loss of earnings for the rest of your life.

A recent oral surgeon lawsuit after wisdom teeth removal helps reaffirm my previous remarks.  The article states that Cynthia Thompson sued Dr Princell because he did not disclose all the risks of surgery and she suffered a neurological syndrome (specifically a damaged inferior alveolar nerve) as a result of the wisdom teeth removal.

“During the trial, 3 oral surgeons told the court that they knew little about the causes of the neuropathic pain syndrome and its association with extraction of wisdom teeth, according to court documents.”

This case occurred in the state of Georgia. Hence due to the complication of nerve damage occurring to Cynthia and the fact that the only risks that need to be disclosed before oral surgery are the most common ones (of which I have previously discussed with a lawyer), Cynthia is left with permanent nerve damage as a result of elective wisdom teeth removal and receives no compensation for her suffering, pain, and loss of earnings.

I personally have a problem with this case though as inferior alveolar nerve damage is a much more well known complication of wisdom teeth removal than some of the others. I argue that it is very important for oral surgeons to take data on what complications occur by their patients and release this data to other oral surgeons so that it can be compiled. I also argue that the legal system should be change to stop rewarding American doctors for malpractice.  The norm in America is to remove healthy wisdom teeth that are impacted but this is not the norm in other countries such as Britain.

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After Removing Teeth Platelet-Rich Plasma May Aid In Faster Healing Times

Posted on 29. Jun, 2010 by wisdom.

A new study in the Journal of Oral Implantology shows platelet-rich plasma aid in speeding up healing and bone formation after removing a tooth.

If a tooth is extracted and the extraction site has poor recovery then excessive jaw bone loss  may delay the use of dental prosthetics or implants.

The study looked at patients who had their wisdom teeth removed.  One extraction site was treated with platelet-rich plasma where as the site on the other side of the mouth was served as control. The patients were examined for bleeding,  jaw bone density, healing ,pain, inflammation, and facial swelling for 24 weeks after the wisdom teeth removal occurred.

The researchers concluded the platelet-rich plasma treatment had a positive effect on bone density immediately following tooth extraction where as the control sites showed a decrease in bone density during the first week after the teeth were extracted.

The researches said it took roughly 6 weeks for the control sites to reach the same bone density as the platelet-rich plasma treated extraction site had reached by the first week.  Of note is that platelet-rich plasma did not have a substantial effect on pain, bleeding, and inflammation during the healing process.

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National Institutes of Health Wisdom Teeth Study

Posted on 31. May, 2010 by wisdom.

A new article in the Washington Post is titled “Study may shed light on when it’s appropriate to remove wisdom teeth.”

The article does a good job presenting the evidence (and lack of) for and against removing healthy impacted wisdom teeth. Even so there is apparent bias towards removing wisdom teeth in the article. This is because the article talks about the author’s daughter who had to make a decision regarding removing 2 wisdom teeth. Her daughter ending up deciding to have those 2 wisdom teeth taken out. However, the author (mother) makes it clear that there is no scientific studies to really argue in one direction. Because of this, it is argued, as the American Association of Public Health states “…the removal of wisdom teeth….should be based on evidence of diagnosed pathology or demonstrable need.” This is due to the possible risk of complications that can occur.

In this article in the Washington Post a new study by the National Institutes of Health is briefly mentioned. This study is following 750 patients for 2 years in five states,  when they make a recommendation of either for or against removing a wisdom tooth or multiple wisdom teeth from the patient. This is supposed to help shed light on what sort of complications arise and thus help build an argument for or against wisdom teeth removal.

Personally I think the time period of 2 years is just way too short to appropriately determine evidence. Wisdom teeth that are not taken out in the teenage years can in later life such as 60 or 70 years of age then cause problems. It’s not clear to me what the researchers of the study are hoping to accomplish. However, it will be interesting to see what results emerge from the NIH study.

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Third Molar Patient Information DVD

Posted on 12. Feb, 2010 by wisdom.

The American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (AAOMS)  is really trying to increase their marketing campaign to attract young adults for choosing wisdom teeth removal.

They have recently made available a Third Molar Patient Information DVD available at http://www.aaomsstore.com/p-107-third-molar-patient-information-dvd.aspx. The DVD is sold in lots of 25. The price varies depending on whether or not you are a member, part of an institution, or a non-member. The non-member cost is $135 for 25 DVDs.

A brief one minute trailer is available.

The DVD features 3D illustrations along with a comprehensive discussion of third molar (wisdom teeth) surgery. I haven’t seen this DVD so I don’t know the quality of it. However it is clearly being promoted as a marketing tool to attract patients to want to proceed with wisdom teeth removal.

Of course I disagree with AAOMS and their stance on wisdom teeth removal. I encourage you to fully explore http://www.teethremoval.com/ to learn why you should think twice before wisdom teeth removal and not buy into this marketing plan by AAOMS without doing your own research.

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Wisdom Teeth Removal Survey

Posted on 12. Feb, 2010 by wisdom.

I recently made this survey on your wisdom teeth removal experience. Please take a moment to complete it. This will help others who may elect to have wisdom teeth removed in the future. Thanks for your help!

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