A tooth throbbing is a dental process that involves removing the entire structure of a tooth from root to tip, leaving no particles behind in the empty socket. This operation may be required for a number of reasons and it is considered fairly routine as thousands of people in the UK undergo similar treatment on a daily basis. The procedure can differ somewhat depending on what position the affected tooth is in and what the initial problem was, and the health of the patient can also have some effect on the outcome. In general, a tooth extraction is not considered a highly invasive surgical process, and it is normally fairly simple to perform.
Why would I need a tooth extraction?
There are lots of reasons why you might need a tooth extracting, sometimes they are related to the health of the tooth and in other cases it is a matter of misalignment:
Decay – Any tooth that has succumbed to decay will have to be removed before it falls out and takes some other teeth with it. Decay spreads easily from one tooth to its neighbour, and if a root canal or a filling is impossible, then the dentist will have no choice but to remove the rotten tooth to stop the problem from escalating. If they can avoid an extraction, any good surgeon would look for other possible treatments, as empty sockets come with their own set of complications, but sometimes there is no alternative. The dentist needs to be particularly careful if the structure of the tooth has begun to break down already, or they may leave some mineral fragments behind – this leaves the patient at risk of infection.
Damage – A tooth that has been compromised structurally may be beyond saving; it can sometimes be more trouble than it’s worth to try and save a badly damaged tooth. Dental trauma that affects the roots and the supporting ligaments can be especially devastating because it is very difficult to reattach the tooth to the soft tissue successfully. As in the case of dental decay, a good dentist will attempt to save the natural tooth before resorting to an extraction, but in some instances they will have no option if physical damage has fractured the tooth down to the root.
Gum disease – Gum disease – called periodontitis in its later stages – normally goes hand in hand with tooth decay, and the two together are very destructive for the health of the teeth. Gum disease is in essence a bacterial infection, whereby harmful germs start to attack the soft tissue and eventually the alveolar bone that holds the teeth in place. As the disease progresses, the gums start to pull away from the roots of the teeth, compromising their stability and exposing the inner pulp to infection. Gradually, the bone begins to disintegrate and it can no longer support the teeth properly. With extreme cases of gum disease, it is not uncommon to have numerous teeth extracted at once, to try and stop the bacteria from spreading down the roots and into the jaw bone.
Orthodontic treatment – This is less of a health problem and more of an aesthetic issue; sometimes one or two milk teeth fail to fall out to make room for the adult teeth and the patient is left with too many teeth crowded onto the jaw line. Although this doesn’t necessarily represent a huge health risk, it doesn’t look nice, and the patient could develop complications at a later date. With orthodontic treatment, the teeth will certainly be in the way of most brace systems, making it even more difficult to align the crooked teeth. In this type of scenario, the dentist will extract the badly placed teeth to provide space for the permanent ones to break through properly and also to make room for the orthodontic appliance.
Wisdom teeth – Not all wisdom teeth will be problematic, but in some cases they can become infected or impacted, which requires an extraction. Wisdom tooth removal is slightly more invasive than a routine extraction, simply because they are large and awkwardly placed at the back of the mouth. Opinions differ on the best course of action with troublesome molars; some dentists suggest that it is better to remove them immediately, to reduce the chance of complications, and others think it is easier to leave them in place rather than put a patient through unnecessary surgery. It is generally accepted that a badly impacted wisdom tooth poses a risk to the health of the other teeth and should be removed before it starts to decay beneath the gum line.
