Is there a Difference in Complications following Wisdom Teeth Removal when using Local Anesthesia versus General Anesthesia?

An interesting article titled “Retrospective multivariable comparison for complications of third molar surgery performed under general versus local anaesthesia” written by Beteramia et al. appears in Oral Surgery in 2019 (vol. 12, pp. 96-103). The article seeks to explore if there is a difference in the amount of complications that occur during or after wisdom teeth surgery when using local anesthesia or when using general anesthesia. In the article the authors discuss complications that can happen during wisdom teeth removal including excessive bleeding, injury to the inferior alveolar and lingual nerves, damage to the adjacent second molar, alveolar bone fracture, and displacement of tooth fragments into fascial spaces and complications that can happen after wisdom teeth removal including alveolar osteitis (dry socket), a secondary infection, and hemorrhage. These complications are discussed more over at http://www.teethremoval.com/complications.html. The authors further discuss how … Read more

Reasons to Avoid Amoxicillin For Healthy Patients in Conjunction with Wisdom Teeth Surgery

An interesting article titled “Dental Care Professionals Should Avoid the Administration of Amoxicillin in Healthy Patients During Third Molar Surgery: Is Antibiotic Resistence the Only Problem?” appears in the 2016 edition of the Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (vol. 74, pp.1512-1513) written by Aragon-Martinez et al. The article discusses some of the reasons why antibiotics such as amoxicillin should not be given to healthy patients having wisdom teeth extracted. The topic of whether or not to have antiobitics before or after wisdom teeth surgery has been discussed on this site before, see for example 1) Antibiotics for Dental Use Contributing to SuperBugs 2) Patient’s Perception of Antibiotic Need After Teeth Removal, and 3) The Effect of a Single Dose of Antibiotics Prior to Wisdom Teeth Surgery. In the article by Aragon-Martinez it is discussed how amoxicillin dosages for wisdom … Read more

Ozone Therapy for Wisdom Teeth Surgery

An interesting article titled “Does Topical Ozone Therapy Improve Patient Comfort After Surgical Removal of Impacted Mandibular Third Molar? A Randomized Controlled Trial” appears in the 2017 edition of the Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (vol. 75 no. 51.pp. e1-51.e9) written by Sivalingam et al. The article explores using topical ozone for patients after wisdom teeth surgery. In the article a discussion is made of how medical grade ozone has been used to help with surgical treatment and with several diseases such as infections and burns. The author devised a study to see if topical ozone therapy improves patient comfort after wisdom teeth removal when compared to systemic antibiotics. The authors sought to explore if ozone gel was able to decrease postoperative pain, swelling, and mouth opening after wisdom teeth surgery. The authors set up a split-mouth study where … Read more

Large Study of Complications after Oral Surgeries

An interesting article titled “Study on post-operative complications after outpatient treatments” written by van der Sleen et al. appears in the 2013 edition of Oral Surgery. The authors were interested in evaluating the post-operative problems or complaints after surgery by oral and maxillofacial surgeons and the frequency of follow up phone calls or visits after the surgery. The authors devised a study to look at all patients who visited Isala Clinics located in the Netherlands in April 2009. All surgeries were performed by six oral and maxillofacial surgeons and two senior residents and done under local anesthesia. All patients received an antiseptic, chlorhexidine 0.12%, to rinse their mouth with 3 times a day for 7 days after surgery. All patients were also given prescriptions for ibuprofen 600 mg to control pain as needed. The surgeries were grouped into four separate … Read more

Wisdom Teeth Complications Among Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Residents

An interesting article for a poster session titled “Complications Following Third Molar Extractions By Residents: A Five-Year Retrospective Monocentric Analysis,” appears in the 2017 edition of the Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (vol. 75, no. 10, Supplement, pp. e-377-378) written by Momin et al.. The authors attempted to determine if differences in complications after wisdom teeth surgery arise from differences in the training of oral and maxillofacial surgery residents. In the study the authors reviewed electronic medical records of 1,992 patients that had 5,466 wisdom teeth extracted over 5 years from July 1, 2011 to June 30, 2016 by oral and maxillofacial surgery residents at the University of Illinois at Chicago. From the 1,992 patients, a total of 1,855 patients with 5,103 wisdom teeth had data that was analysed in the authors study. The average age of these patients … Read more