Pediatric Oral Surgery with KidSmiles
What is Oral Surgery?
Oral surgery is an area in dentistry that involves teeth extraction. It also includes removing abnormal growths or cysts, treating injuries, and even facial reconstruction. Some of these treatments are routine and can be done by most dentists, but other times, the procedures are more complicated, and an expert is needed. These experts are called oral and maxillofacial surgeons (or oral surgeons for short) and have the training and skills necessary to perform these more complex procedures. One of the procedures that oral surgeons are highly trained in is the removal of third molars or wisdom teeth.
When should I consider having my child’s wisdom teeth taken out?
Wisdom teeth are the farthest back teeth in the mouth and typically grow in between 18-21 years of age. However, many people need more room for them to grow in. Wisdom teeth often have unusual shapes, sizes, and positions, causing them to sometimes never or only partially grow in or have problems (like cavities) if they do grow in. When this happens, the wisdom teeth pose a risk of pain, decay, infection, and damage to other permanent teeth. Many people wait for some of these problems before having their wisdom teeth extracted, but these problems always happen at inconvenient times and can sometimes be an emergency. No one wants to wake up with a swollen jaw on the big test or game day!
Are there other reasons my child may need oral surgery?
We can often identify future problems with wisdom teeth before any symptoms (lack of space, bad position, etc). If these problems can be identified, early extraction of wisdom teeth can take care of the problem before it becomes one. Sometimes, the procedure can be easier for the surgeon and the patient. For this reason, we typically screen for problems with wisdom teeth in our patients during the high school years to help find the ideal time for them to remove their wisdom teeth, if necessary. Part of this screening is done by taking a panoramic radiograph showing us the whole jaw and wisdom teeth.
We offer Oral Surgery at our sister location, PDS Smiles
At our Spring, Texas location, Pediatric Dental Specialists and Orthodontics, we regularly bring in an oral surgeon to help our patients with wisdom teeth extractions and other oral surgery needs. Our oral surgeons are highly trained in both surgery and anesthesia. They will offer IV sedation in our office to help patients get their treatment done in a comfortable and safe atmosphere.