Tooth Extractions – Forest Park, OH
Safe, Comfortable Tooth Removal
Your natural teeth are ideal to chew, bite, and maintain jawbone and mouth structure. This is why our Kemper Meadow Family Dentistry dentist’s first priority is helping to save, restore, and fix your natural teeth. But, in some cases, it’s necessary to undergo tooth extractions at our Forest Park, OH dental office. A tooth extraction is where our dentist removes your tooth.
Reasons for Pulling Teeth
While your permanent, natural teeth are supposed to last a lifetime, there are various reasons why you’d need a tooth extraction. One common reason is when you have a badly damaged tooth due to decay or trauma. Other common reasons are:
- You have a crowded mouth. In some cases, our dentist will pull teeth in preparation for orthodontia. Our dentist may also recommend you have a tooth extraction if you have a tooth that can’t erupt (break through) your gum due to there not being enough room in your mouth.
- You have periodontal (gum) disease. Periodontal disease is a type of infection of your bones and tissues surrounding and supporting your teeth that has led to your teeth becoming loose. For this situation, our dentist might suggest you have a tooth or several teeth pulled.
- You have a risk of infection. If you have a compromised immune system (i.e. you’re having an organ transplant or receiving chemotherapy), even if you have a risk of infection, our dentist might suggest a tooth extraction.
- You have an Infection. If tooth damage or decay extends to your pulp (this is the center of your tooth that contains blood vessels and nerves), mouth bacteria can get into the pulp and cause infection. Generally, root canal therapy can correct this problem, but if you have a severe infection where root canal therapy or antibiotics won’t help it, you might require extraction to keep the infection from spreading.
What’s Involved in a Tooth Extraction
A tooth extraction can be simple, or it can require surgery, depending on if your tooth is impacted or visible.
Simple Tooth Extraction
With this procedure, we’ll give you a local anesthetic that will numb around the tooth area so you won’t feel pain, but only pressure during your procedure. Our dentist will use a tool referred to as an elevator to loosen up your tooth. They’ll then remove it using forceps.
Surgical Tooth Extraction
With this type of anesthesia, you’ll stay unconscious during your treatment. We’ll then make a small incision in your gum. We might have to cut your tooth or remove the bone around your tooth before we can extract it.
Follow-Up Tooth Extraction Aftercare
Our dentist will provide you with detailed instructions on what to expect after your procedure and what you need to do. A tooth extraction is a type of surgery. So, you’ll likely experience some discomfort, even if you only had a simple extraction. Typically, this discomfort is mild.
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), like Ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil), usually reduce pain following a tooth extraction. Our dentist will provide you with instructions on how to use these, but typically you’d take your first dose before your local anesthesia wears off. Then you can continue to take doses, as recommended by our dentist, for a few more days.
If you’ve had a surgical tooth extraction, you may experience more pain afterward than you would with a simple extraction. The discomfort level you experience and for how long usually depends on how hard it was for our dentist to remove your tooth. Our dentist might prescribe you a stronger pain reliever for several days after a surgical extraction and then have you follow up with NSAIDs. Your pain should go away after a few days.
Some tips you can follow to help make your recovery a little easier are:
- Avoid things that may hinder normal healing
- Don’t drink through a straw on the first day
- Don’t rinse your mouth aggressively or smoke
- Follow a diet we recommend
For your first several days, if you have to rinse your mouth, be sure to do it gently. If you notice any swelling, you can apply an ice bag or cold cloth and give us a call.
Remember, after a tooth extraction, the follow-up care our dentist recommends is in place for your comfort and benefit as well as to help promote quicker and easier healing. Call our dental office to set up an appointment for a consultation if you feel you may require a tooth extraction or need other dental care.
If you require a procedure our doctors cannot provide in our dental office, we will refer you to our trusted network of oral surgeons. This way you get your oral health needs addressed and enjoy the comfort of knowing your referral is based on trust with our doctors.
Understanding the Cost of Tooth Extractions
No matter how important a given dental procedure might be, it’s crucial to make sure that it won’t put too much of a strain on your bank account. Rest assured that when we recommend a tooth extraction, we will also give you an estimate of what the price will look like. If you have questions about the cost of your treatment or your options for paying, just let us know; in the meantime, here’s a brief look at the essential points that you will need to keep in mind.
Factors That Can Affect Tooth Extraction Cost
The price tag for the tooth extraction procedure can look different for each patient. There are several factors that play a role in determining the amount you pay:
- First of all, the number of teeth needs to be taken into account. You can expect to pay more for a procedure where multiple teeth are being removed.
- The location of the teeth in question also matters. It often costs more to have the teeth near the back of your mouth removed since there are factors that can make the procedure more complicated.
- If you require a surgical tooth extraction, you will likely need to pay more than a patient who only needs a simple tooth extraction.
- Finally, there’s the matter of having the extracted tooth replaced. Dental bridges, dentures, and dental implants all have different costs.
Does Dental Insurance Cover Tooth Extractions?
If you have dental insurance, there is a good chance that it will help pay for a tooth extraction. That being said, there are a few details that you should keep in mind.
For starters, many insurance companies classify tooth extraction as a major procedure. As such, they will likely only cover about 50% of the cost of the treatment. Furthermore, you may need to meet your annual deductible before your insurance benefits kick in.
Depending on the details of your plan, there may be a limit on how many extractions the insurance company is willing to cover, and there might be a waiting period to take into account. It’s best to read over your dental insurance plan carefully in order to ensure that you fully understand your benefits. Remember that you can always ask our team for assistance if there’s anything that you’re unclear on.
How to Make Tooth Extractions Affordable
Even if you don’t have dental insurance, we can help you figure out a way to manage the cost of a tooth extraction so that you can have the procedure performed without breaking your budget. You might benefit from signing up for a CareCredit or Lending Point financing plan, which will let you pay for treatment in a series of monthly installments with little to no interest. If you contact our office, we can give you more details about how you can apply for third-party financing.
Tooth Extractions FAQs
When it comes to dental treatment, nothing is as final as getting a tooth extraction. As a result, our team doesn’t take the situation lightly and wants to make sure you fully understand the procedure before receiving it. If you have inquiries about extractions in Cincinnati, we invite you to ask your dentist. We will be happy to answer your questions in greater detail, but here are some general responses to common questions we’ve been asked in the past by patients.
Can I Replace a Tooth Right After It’s Extracted?
Going without a full set of teeth can be unnerving, so it makes sense that you want to replace a lost tooth as quickly as possible, if necessary. In many cases, we wait until a patient is fully recovered from the extraction before we start replacing missing teeth. The site will need a couple of weeks to heal. However, it’s good to consider and decide which replacement option you want, such as a dental implant, during this time, so we can move forward with it as soon as your mouth is ready.
Are Molars Harder to Remove Than Front Teeth?
In general, teeth toward the back of the mouth tend to be more challenging to extract because they usually have multiple roots. Plus, accessing these back teeth can present more difficulty than accessible front teeth. However, regardless of where your extracted tooth is located, we will make sure you’re completely comfortable throughout the entire process and handle your case with the utmost care.
Does Dental Insurance Cover Tooth Extractions?
Most dental insurance policies do cover part of the cost of tooth extractions. Generally, insurance companies pay for about half of the total amount for major treatments including extractions. Just keep in mind that the entire amount is due at the time of service from you, and then we can submit claims for you to be reimbursed by the insurance company.
How Many People Have Teeth Extracted?
If you need a tooth extracted, you may feel embarrassed about it. The truth is that millions of people, between 5 and 10 million to be more precise, get a tooth extracted every year. In fact, about 120 million people in the US are missing at least one tooth! So, if extraction becomes necessary for your smile, you don’t have to feel alone or ashamed of the fact. We’ll guide you through the process and do what needs to be done to keep your smile healthy and confident.