Impacted Wisdom Teeth Removal

Jim Du Molin over at The Wealthy Dentist is one of the leading Internet marketing experts for dentists in North America. He often does surveys and the latest one he has done and shared involves impacted wisdom teeth and their removal. http://www.thewealthydentist.com/SurveyResults/195-Impacted-Wisdom-Teeth.htm His recent survey of 230 dentists showed the majority (53%) of the dentists surveyed felt that wisdom teeth should usually be removed, but not always. A full 7% said that impacted wisdom always ought to be extracted. On the other side 20% of the dentists surveyed said many impacted wisdom teeth do not need to be removed.  Jim also published many comments from the dentists regarding the survey which are available on his website to view if you are interested. As is clear from teethremoval.com, I go into detail demonstrating how there is no current scientific evidence to … Read more

Wisdom Teeth Extraction Videos on Youtube to Promote Dental Practices

I found some interesting videos showing how a dentist extracts a wisdom tooth on youtube. While these videos may appear to be innocent, they actually are designed to promote the dentist’s office and practice. Even so they are informative for those interesting in learning more about wisdom tooth surgery. The first video shows Jonathan H. Kim. D.D.S. who is a San Jose, California, dentist. The second video shows Dr. Jerry Gordon who is a dentist in Bensalem, Philadelphia. In the first video a woman has two wisdom teeth extracted. At the end of the video she says the surgery was painless and says that others should stop by. In the second video a woman has an upper wisdom tooth that has been bothering her removed.  At the end of the video the woman says the surgery didn’t hurt and she … Read more

Darvon and Darvocet banned in U.S.

I find it interesting to hear that the drug commonly known as Darvocet and also similarly Darvon has been banned in the U.S. as of November 19, 2010. The formal name of the drug is Dextropropoxyphene and is in the opiod category of drugs. If you know someone who wants to help a drug addicted friend or loved one, refer them to this website so they can see what they can do to help. This ban came by the FDA in response to research that suggests the drug Darvocet can lead to heart problems such as heart arrythmias. The drug is also known to be addictive and is associated with some deaths. It is commonly prescribed in the treatment of pain. I personally was prescribed darovcet in 2008 in an attempt to treat my chronic 24/7 headache caused by the … Read more

The American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons Fails to Use Basic Statistics in Research on Wisdom Teeth

I have previously reported how the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (AAOMS) recently had a press conference on wisdom teeth in Washington, D.C. See https://blog.teethremoval.com/third-molar-multidisciplinary-press-conference/ for more information. Shortly after the press conference they issued a press release available at http://www.aaoms.org/docs/media/third_molars/press_release.pdf which is titled “Conventional Wisdom about Wisdom teeth Confirmed: Evidence Shows Keeping Wisdom teeth May be More Harmful than Previously Thought.” One of the additional key findings listed in this press release  is “Most patients (60 percent) with asymptomatic wisdom teeth prefer extraction to retention.” This finding comes from a recent article in the Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, titled “Most Patients With Asymptomatic, Disease-Free Third Molars Elect Extraction Over Retention as Their Their Preferred Treatment.”  The article is by Brian E. Kinard, BS and Thomas B. Dodson, DMD, MPH.  It appears in the December 2010 … Read more

Do Wisdom Teeth Cause Crowding?

For some reason which is not clear to me, people still often ask the question: do wisdom teeth cause crowding of anterior teeth? The answer to this question is a plain and simple no. Thomas B. Dodson, DMD, MPH says “extracting third molars to prevent or alleviate crowding of the dentition is not usually justified.” Jay Friedman, a retired dentist, says “It is not possible for lower third molars, which develop in the spongy interior cancellous tissue of bone with no firm support, to push 14 other teeth with roots implanted vertically like the pegs of a picket fence so that the incisors in the middle twist and overlap.” Dr. Jeff , a dentist, says “Wisdom teeth will not cause lower anterior crowding, ask any competent orthodontist, or just think about it from a logical standpoint. Realistically can a tooth … Read more