wisdom teeth complications

Seventeen Year Old Minnesota Teen Dies After Wisdom Teeth Extraction

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A few weeks ago in June, 2015, a 17 year old Minnesota woman died about a week after having wisdom teeth surgery. Near the end of the wisdom teeth surgery her blood pressure increased, her pulse dropped, and she went into cardiac arrest. She then was transferred to a hospital and suffered from seizures and swelling in her brain until passing about a week later. It is not clear what caused the death to occur. She could have possibly had an undisclosed heart condition that has occurred in other cases. It is possible for a patient to only become aware of an asymptomatic and abnormal heart rhythm once they come in for a surgery. I have discussed other deaths from wisdom teeth removal on this website (see http://www.teethremoval.com/death.html). Based on numerous studies and publications I have said that around 1 … Read more

A Study of Outcomes Related to Wisdom Teeth Removal

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An interesting article titled “A Prospective Study of Clinical Outcomes Related to Third Molar Removal or Retention,” appears in the American Journal of Public Health (April 2014, Vol 104, No. 4) written by Greg J. Huang and et al. The article is a companion article to another also on wisdom teeth in the April 2014 issue of the journal. I discussed the companion article last week in the blog post https://blog.teethremoval.com/practice-based-wisdom-teeth-removal-study/. The article opens by mentioning the controversy surrounding the removal of wisdom teeth. On one side some have advocated for wisdom teeth to be removed to prevent future pathology and minimize risks, others have advocated for wisdom teeth to be removed to prevent lower incisor crowding, and others have argued for wisdom teeth to be removed to prevent periodontal pathology. On the other side some have advocated for wisdom … Read more

Practice Based Wisdom Teeth Removal Study

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An interesting article titled “Recommendations for Third Molar Removal: A Practice-Based Cohort Study,” appears in the April 2014, issue of the American Journal of Public Health (Vol. 104, No. 4, pp. 728-734), by Joana Cunha-Cruz and et. al. In the article a dental practice based research network Northwest Practice-based REsearch Collaborative in Evidence-based DENTistry (PRECEDENT) is used. A total of 50 general dentists enrolled patients from May 2009 to September 2010.  In the study a total of 797 patients who had wisdom teeth (third molar) recommendations from their general dentist were used who were aged 16 to 22. However, the patients were asked to take a survey every 8 months and then a clinical visit 24 months later.  From this sample of 797 patients only 516 completed at least one follow up questionnaire. In the study the general dentists reported that … Read more

Considerations For the Cost of Wisdom Teeth

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In a recent post, I discussed the cost of wisdom teeth management based on an article that appeared earlier this year in the Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (see https://blog.teethremoval.com/the-costs-of-third-molar-wisdom-teeth-management/) Another article discussing wisdom teeth costs also appeared in the Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery in 2012 (see https://blog.teethremoval.com/the-costs-associated-with-third-molars-wisdom-teeth/). In both articles the authors conclude the costs of non-operative management of asymptomatic, disease-free, wisdom teeth exceeds the cost of operative management. I take issue with their conclusions as I believe they make too many simplifications in their analysis. I argue that the authors are ignoring the real risks of having wisdom teeth extracted that are not going to likely occur with non-operative management. Removing wisdom teeth has complications that can result. Some of these can be serious, permanent, and lasting, and cause considerable cost to both the patient … Read more

Familarize Yourself with the ADA’s Principles of Ethics and Code of Professional Conduct

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The American Dental Association also know as the ADA, in 2012, update their Principle of Ethics and Code of Professional Conduct document. It is available over at http://www.ada.org/~/media/ADA/About%20the%20ADA/Files/code_of_ethics_2012.ashx. As many Americans make trips to the dentist, it is useful to familiarize yourself with the ADA’s document to better determine if your dentist is being ethical and serving your needs well. If you don’t feel this is the case you have options to report your dentist and of course you can find a new dentist. Additional comments on the ethics and professional conduct of the ADA and it’s members is over at http://www.ada.org/en/about-the-ada/principles-of-ethics-code-of-professional-conduct. It states “The dental profession holds a special position of trust within society. As a consequence, society affords the profession certain privileges that are not available to members of the public-at-large. In return, the profession makes a commitment … Read more