Wisdom Teeth

Sepsis After Wisdom Teeth Removal

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Earlier in 2019 a case was described of a 25 year old woman from England who developed sepsis after having an infected wisdom teeth removed, see the post Risks of Keeping Wisdom Teeth: Infected Wisdom Tooth Removal Leads to Sepsis. However, having healthy wisdom teeth removed can also lead to sepsis. In May 2019, a 20 year Wisconsin woman had all four wisdom teeth removed along with a few other teeth in order to allow for orthodontic treatment. Specifically the woman was addressing having her teeth straightened and correcting an overbite. The day after the surgery the woman’s sister was concerned with her appearance and swelling and had her go to an emergency room at a hospital. Upon arriving at the hospital the woman had a temperature of 105 degrees Fahrenheit and a very low blood pressure. The 20 year old … Read more

Wisdom Teeth Removal Leads to Trigeminal Neuralgia and Temporomandibular Joint Syndrome dysfunction

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A now 25 year old Canadian woman has been left with Trigeminal Neuralgia and Temporomandibular Joint Syndrome dysfunction as a result of wisdom teeth surgery that occurred in July 2016. The woman’s joints in her jaw are described as deteriorating and has led to osteoarthritis. She has bone on bone grinding of her condyle against her upper jaw. The woman’s brother said that the Trigeminal Neuralgia left pain so excruciating that the woman would sometimes be screaming at the top of her lungs for 8 hours a day. The woman was enrolled in nursing school at the time of the surgery. She was able to complete school with some accommodation by her university but has not started working. Even so, the medical bills have added up. After the wisdom tooth surgery the woman made several trips to the emergency room, … Read more

Auctioning Off Wisdom Teeth: How Much Money Can you Make?

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It has been discussed before on this site how in some cases it may be beneficial to save your wisdom teeth if you have any of them extracted. Many companies offer the option to have your wisdom teeth stem cells cryogenically preserved for a fee. This has been discussed in the post Storing Wisdom Teeth Stem Cells. Companies such as Stemodontics have technicians crack open a tooth, remove the pulp, and then remove the stem cells. Patients are willing to pay such companies a fee based on the hope that these stem cells one day can be used to to help with dental and bone repair although this is not currently a process that can be utilized. However there may also be a different reason to save wisdom teeth: just plain money. A wisdom tooth of Edward VIII, the former late … Read more

Food Delivery after Wisdom Teeth Removal

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After having wisdom teeth surgery it is important to pay special attention to what one eats. It is suggested to only eat soft foods after having wisdom teeth removed for 2 to 3 days. You also want to avoid any particularly hard or crunchy foods for up to 2 weeks after the procedure. This information and some foods suggestions is available at the what to eat after wisdom teeth removal page. Some suggested foods include the following: milkshakes smoothies soups ice cream avocado banana rice applesauce yogurt mashed beans soft pasta You also want to drink plenty of water and possibly even Gatorade or fruit juices to stay hydrated. For those who receive sedation, you likely had someone accompany you to the surgery or at least was available to drive you home. Perhaps it was a family member or a … Read more

Studies and Opinions on Opioids After Wisdom Teeth Removal

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Recently on this site there have been several posts regarding giving patients opioids after wisdom teeth removal. In the post Do Oral Surgeons Give Too Many Opioids for Wisdom Teeth Removal? a study by Resnick et al. appearing in the 2019 edition of the Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery was discussed (titled “Do Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons Over-Prescribe Opioids After Extraction of Asymptomatic Third Molars?”). Recently some commentary in a letter to the editor appearing in the 2019 edition of the Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery has been provided titled “Opioid Prescription Following Third Molar Extractions,” written by Subramanian and Quek which questions the validity of the study by Resnick. In the article by Subramanian and Quek some very valid points are made. First, the article by Resnick only relied on voluntary reporting of opioid use and this … Read more