Modern Extractions

The Modern Extraction

 ”There is no dignity in pain.”

-Dr. Fuad Malik

 

Ben Franklin said life without dignity is not worth living at all. Loss of control, fear and anxiety lower human dignity.

From time immemorial, the extraction of teeth is a dreaded procedure by the human population. Till today it is the most medieval of surgical procedures performed in the human body. The sight of pliers (forceps) approaching your mouth has to be dreadful.

Traditional extractions are done by expanding and fracturing the plate of bone on the cheek side. This is very precious bone. Once lost, it is exceedingly hard to regain. It also more often than not impairs our ability to restore the lost tooth by a dental implant. The bone plate on the cheek side is exquisite in its nature. It is our responsibility to cherish and preserve this bone for aesthetic and functional requirements.

So how is it done differently?

We pre-medicate the patient with anti-inflammatory and antibiotic medications a few days prior to the planned procedure. After painless and profound numbing, the tooth and bone junction is exposed by gently and carefully separating the gum tissue from the underlying tooth and bone interface. If the tooth is multi-rooted, the roots are separated with a fine rotary instrument. In case of single or multiple roots, the same fine rotary instrument is run circumferentially around the root, avoiding the bone.

We now have space between the two entities. A new style of root elevators designed by Biomechanical Engineers is used to gently tease the roots out. Fingertip movements cause the root to come out with ease. These unique instruments are one solid piece of metal with no joints. Along with their newer and more effective design, these instruments are a paradigm shift in the way we remove teeth. Karl Schumacher is the manufacturer of these instruments.

What happens next?

Do we let the patient walk around with a hole in their mouth? How comfortable or dignified is that? Our patients’ bodies are sacred temples and should be approached as such. In our practice we fill the void with bone replacement materials which have been tried and tested by leading academic institutions in our profession. The bone graft material is overlaid with resorbable collagen and the surgical site is gently and securely stitched. The combination of pre-operative medication and their modern technologies deliver a much more comfortable and pleasing result.

On average, a healing period of 12-24 weeks is enough time for the body to heal adequately and be ready to have a dental implant placed. The cost of such procedures is significantly higher than the traditional way of removing teeth. It is not for the patient who is seeking the lowest price/quality dental care. We believe in lifestyle dentistry as opposed to dentistry being a commodity-like service where prices are driven down to draw in clients.