wisdom teeth removal

Laser therapy can reduce pain after wisdom teeth removal

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An interesting article titled “Extraoral low-level laser therapy can decrease pain but not edema and trismus after surgical extraction of impacted mandibular third molars: a randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial,” appearing in BMC Oral Health is written by Ehsan Momeni and et. al. (September 20, 2022, Vol. 22, 417). The article seeks to explore the impact of using a low-level diode laser on pain, swelling (edema), and jaw opening (trismus) following surgery to remove impacted lower wisdom teeth. This topic has been covered before on this site see for example the articles Laser Therapy to Reduce Pain and Improve Healing After Tooth Removal and Using Laser Therapy after Tooth Extraction to Improve Wound Healing. In the article the authors explore laser therapy as a possible alternative to techniques such as medication, cryotherapy, and surgical closure techniques to minizime complications, pain, and … Read more

Woman in Singapore Dies After Wisdom Tooth Removal

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A 24 year old woman in Singapore died after having four wisdom teeth extracted in 2019. The woman had visited the National Dental Centre Singapore first in August 2018. At another visit in April 2019 she complained of severe pain in the upper and lower right side of her mouth. While at the appointment, it was determined that the pain could be due to her four impacted wisdom teeth. The woman decided to have wisdom teeth surgery under general anaesthesia. The woman had no known drug allergies and had previously been given general anaesthesia without any side effects. In May 2019, the woman was admitted to a hospital where she was given a pre-anaesthetic assessment where nothing out of the ordinary was noted. However it was noted the woman was obsese and had a skin condition known as hidradenitis suppurativa. … Read more

Factors that Influence Opioid Prescribing After Teeth Removal

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An interesting article titled “Factors influencing opioid prescribing after tooth extraction,” appears in the  Journal of the American Dental Association written by Douglas R. Oyler and et al. (published June 9, 2022). The article seeks to look at specific characteristics that infuence opioid prescribing after tooth extractions to help potentially lead to less opioid that are uncessarily prescibed. The subect of opioids and wisdom teeth extractions has been covered on this site frequently before, see for example the posts, Record Numbers Predicted to Die from Opioids in the US and Dentists Overprescribing Opioids to Adults in the U.S.. Patients in the U.S. are often first exposed to an opioid prescription from a dentist or dental care provider. Even so nowadays many dentists recommend nonopioid analgesics as the first option against pain reflief. In the article the authors reviewed records from … Read more

Shared Medical Appointments for Wisdom Teeth Informed Consent

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In the past informed consent for wisdom teeth surgery has been discussed on this site, see for example the post Informed Consent in Dentistry: Can Change Impact Personal Injury Cases? Often when it comes to have wisdom teeth surgery patients are shown a video discussing risks and benefits and treatment options related to wisdom teeth, then have an opportunity to discuss with their surgeon and ask any questions, and then sign a document acknowledging that they understand the risks and benefits. Such interaction typically places in a one on one setting with just the patient and the doctor. The patient is of course then billed for this appointment and must either pay out of pocket or pay what is remaining from their insurance plan and after meeting any insurance plan deductibles. There are some ways to possibly decrease the cost … Read more

Incorrect Tooth Extraction Protocol

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An interesting article titled “Incorrect tooth extraction – Never say never?” written by McKernon et al. appears in Oral Surgery in 2017 (vol. 10, pp. 30-35). The article discusses development of a protocol for dealing with cases of extracting the wrong tooth. Extracting the wrong wisdom tooth is a possible complication of removal and has occurred before, see http://www.teethremoval.com/complications.html. In the article the authors discuss how checklists are now used during surgery in an attempt to decrease medical errors. Even with these checklists reports of wrong tooth extraction still occur. The authors state that cases of wrong tooth extraction occur about once a week among all dentists in the U.K. The most common reasons for extracting the wrong tooth include cognitive failure and miscommunication. The authors state “We suggest…as human error can never be completely eradicated, a protocol must be … Read more