Dental Extractions in Belmont, MA

Belmont Family Dentistry provides dental extractions in Belmont, Massachusetts. Call 617-484-1760 or contact us today to schedule an appointment.

A dental extraction is the process of permanently removing a tooth. A tooth may need to be removed for a variety of reasons. If a tooth is severely decayed or damaged beyond restoration, it will need to be removed. Teeth are also removed for orthodontic reasons to relieve crowding in a small mouth. Wisdom teeth are often extracted because they are not really needed and rarely come in properly. 

The complexity of the extraction procedure varies from one patient to another. Some extractions can be done under local anesthesia and others may require sedation. Your dentist will make a recommendation regarding anesthesia based on your case as well as your preferences.

Dental extractions provide many dental and oral health benefits: 

• Relieve or prevent pain. A severely decayed tooth can often be painful if the nerves are exposed. Extracting the tooth can relieve or prevent a painful toothache. 

• Relieve or prevent infection. A tooth may become infected if bacteria invades the soft pulp where the nerves, blood vessels, and tissue resides. Extraction of a damaged tooth can relieve or prevent infection. 

• Make more room in a small mouth. Some patients don’t have room in their mouth for all of their teeth. Orthodontists often recommend extracting a few teeth to make room for the rest of the teeth to fit in proper alignment. 

• Prevent damage to other teeth. An infection in a tooth can often spread to the nearby teeth. Wisdom teeth that are impacted under the gums can cause damage to the roots of the back molars as they press against them, which is the most common reason they are removed. Extracting a problem tooth can help keep your remaining teeth healthy. 

If you have a tooth that can’t be saved, crowded teeth, or impacted wisdom teeth, you may be a good candidate for a dental extraction. It is our goal to restore a damaged tooth whenever possible, but when a tooth is beyond saving, extraction may be the best choice for your dental health. We also recommend replacing an extracted tooth with a dental implant or bridge. Leaving an empty place in your mouth can cause your other teeth to shift out of place. The sooner you replace an extracted tooth with an implant the better before the jaw bone begins to weaken.

Any dentist can extract a tooth, but Belmont Family Dentistry provides patient-focused care to make the process as comfortable as possible. We will do everything in our power to restore your tooth if possible, but we also know when extraction is in your best interest. We provide tooth extraction for patients of all ages as well as various replacement options.

The length of the procedure depends on the situation. A single tooth extraction may take less than an hour. Having all 4 wisdom teeth removed may take a few hours. Your dentist will give you a time estimate during your consultation.

We always recommend replacing a tooth that needs to be extracted. Leaving a gap in your mouth allows your other teeth to shift out of place and the support structures for the tooth will weaken and dissolve away. In the case of a baby tooth, a space maintainer may need to be worn to hold the place for the permanent tooth to come in.

Local anesthesia is used, sometimes in conjunction with sedation, to ensure you feel no pain during your tooth extraction. After the anesthesia wears off you may experience some mild discomfort that can be controlled with over the counter pain medication.

If the extraction is recommended by your dentist or orthodontist for a dental or oral health reason, your insurance will most likely cover it. It may not be completely covered, just a portion of the total cost. Contact your insurance provider to inquire about your plan and coverage for dental extractions.

To learn more, call 617-484-1760 or contact us today to schedule an appointment.