Extractions

Reasons for Removing Teeth

Despite adult teeth being considered permanent, extractions are a common procedure to make sure a patient’s oral health is optimal and that they experience no pain or discomfort while chewing, biting, swallowing or speaking.

Reasons for needing a tooth extracted, include:

Overcrowding

Crowding, caused by teeth being too big or unevenly shaped, can cause misalignment. Extracting a tooth is sometimes necessary to make room for other teeth. Overcrowding can also prevent teeth from erupting through the gum causing severe pain for the patient.

This can also be an imperative step before a patient undergoes various orthodontic work.

Infection

If a tooth is severely damaged with the pulp tissue (nerve endings and blood vessels) infected, an extraction may be necessary. When you have a dental infection, your dentist might first prescribe antibiotics but they are often ineffective against more severe infections. To prevent infection, an extraction is needed.

Periodontal Disease

Periodontal disease is when the tissues and bones that hold teeth in place become infected or inflamed.This can force tooth roots to loosen, resulting in the need for an extraction.

Injury

If a patient's tooth is damaged as the result of an accident, they may require a tooth extraction. If this happens, a dentist will try to preserve their patient’s teeth and alignment. If a tooth cannot be saved, then an extraction will need to take place.

A Root canal procedure is preferred over-extraction because it is always better to maintain the existing structure of a tooth and preserve your natural smile. Root canals allow for just that. Extracting and replacing a tooth involves more time, expense and risks impacting neighboring teeth and supporting gums.

Root Canal is an Endodontic treatment, Greek for “ inside tooth.”

The tooth illustration shows you inside the tooth, under two hard layers (enamel and dentin) is a soft tissue called the pulp. 

During Growth and development of the tooth, pulp is important but once mature, the tooth can survive without the pulp.

When damage or decay goes deep and reaches the pulp, the best practice is a root canal.