Wisdom Teeth

Chances of Nerve Injury After Wisdom Teeth Removal

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An interesting article titled “Investigation of nerve injury after lower third molar removal” written by Moosa and Malden appears in the 2018 edition of Oral Surgery (vol. 11, pp. 22-27). The article seeks to address how many patients develop inferior alveolar nerve or lingual nerve injury after wisdom teeth removal at a dental clinic in Edinburgh, UK. Nerve injury is a type of complication that is known to occur after wisdom teeth removal. Two nerves that are often damaged include the inferior alveolar nerve and the lingual nerve. When the inferior alveolar nerve is injured there can be tingling, numbness, burning, or painful sensations near the lower lip, chin, and teeth. When the lingual nerve is injured there can be tingling, numbness, burning, or painful sensations near the tongue and loss of taste can occur. According to the authors prior … Read more

How often do Deep Fascial Space Infections Occur After Wisdom Teeth Extraction?

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An interesting article titled “Incidence of deep fascial space infections following lower third molar removal” written by O’Connor et al. appears in the 2018 edition of Oral Surgery (vol. 11, pp. 17-21). The article seeks to explore how many infections of the deep fascial spaces occur after wisdom teeth removal. The authors say that while an infection is commonly disclosed as a complication following wisdom teeth surgery many patients may not be familiar with the fact that when an infection occurs they may have to be hospitalized, given intravenous antibiotics, and require surgery under general anesthesia which could lead to scarring. These systemic infections can involve deep fascial spaces of the neck, which can lead to endotracheal airway protection, systemic sepsis, and death. In the article a study is conducted using 723 patients who had lower wisdom teeth extracted in … Read more

Do You Need to Extract Wisdom Teeth Before Getting Invisalign?

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More and more people now are choosing Invisalign over braces when it comes to straightening their teeth. Why not? No one can tell that you are fixing your teeth with its clear plastic structure because it’s almost invisible.  Aside from being a highly effective remedy for teeth straightening, it also corrects crowded teeth, irregular spacing, open bite, underbite, and overbites. One of its advantages is closing the gaps the fastest way, as you keep the same lifestyle. Plus, it proves to be the most hygienic solution because you can remove it when you eat. It’s also easy to clean, remove and put back again.  The Challenge? One of the challenges, however, is that a lot of people are getting Invisalign while they are teenagers – just before wisdom teeth start sprouting out of their gums.  Thus, the question of whether … Read more

Quality of Life Following Injury to the Inferior Alveolar Nerve or Lingual Nerve During Wisdom Teeth Surgery

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An interesting article titled “Quality of life following injury to the inferior dental or lingual nerve – a cross-sectional mixed-methods study” written by Patel et al. appears in the 2018 edition of Oral Surgery (vol. 11, pp. 9-16). The article seeks to explore the impact of nerve damage that occurred during wisdom teeth removal on a persons quality of life. In the article the authors discuss how the most common reason for injury to either the inferior alveolar nerve or lingual nerve is wisdom teeth removal. Even so these types of injuries can also occur during other types of procedures such as anesthetic block injection and dental implant placement. There are different management options to deal with the nerve injury such as counselling, topical and systemic analgesia, or surgical intervention. Nerve injuries can result in altered sensation and/or pain and … Read more

3D Printing for Impacted Wisdom Teeth

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An interesting article titled “The use of 3D model planning in the management of impacted teeth” written by Scott et al. appears in the 2018 edition of Oral Surgery (vol. 11, pp. 125-130). The article discusses using surgical planning using a 3D printed model for removal of an impacted wisdom tooth in a 61 year old man. 3D printing for wisdom teeth removal has been discussed on this site before see the post 3D Printed Models for Wisdom Teeth Surgery Planning. In the article by Scott a discussion is made of how computed tomography scans can be taken of the mouth to determine the exact position of a lower wisdom tooth in relation to the inferior alveolar nerve. Using stereo lithography it is then possible to manufacture 3D printed models from the scans. This allows one to simulate the exact … Read more