How to Get Emergency Wisdom Tooth Removal
When your wisdom teeth begin to come through it can be a long and painful process as your teeth shift to allow space for the new arrivals. Even worse, if there’s no space and your wisdom teeth begin to grow into the teeth next to them, known as impacted, or simply grow horizontally and never erupt from the gum, then you’ll need to have your wisdom removed.
Most of the time, wisdom teeth extractions are routine procedures that are carried out in a normal appointment, however in certain serious cases, they can be removed in an emergency.
Let’s look at how and why you can get an emergency wisdom tooth extraction.
How Do You Get Your Wisdom Tooth Removed?
In non-emergency cases, you can call up an NHS or private dental practice to make an appointment for an initial consultation where the dentist can check your overall oral health and take an x-ray of your teeth to see where your wisdom teeth are and how they’re growing. Your dentist will decide from there how urgently your wisdom teeth need to be removed and where they can be extracted simply or surgically.
They’ll usually set another appointment date to have one or two of your wisdom teeth removed at once; although you can state your preference on how many you have out in one go, eating and drinking after having all four out at once is difficult and can slow down the healing process.
For emergency wisdom tooth removals, you should call a private emergency dentist, and describe your systems and they will book an appointment at the earliest convenience, usually the same day. You can also call an NHS dentist but it will be harder to find an appointment time as they are often overwhelmed with patients.
When you attend your appointment, the dentist will assess your wisdom tooth to see if it needs an immediate extraction or whether it’s best to add a temporary resolution such as a filling, and prescribe medication until the tooth can be removed safely in a routine appointment.
Can You Get Your Wisdom Tooth Removed at the Hospital?
In very rare cases it’s possible to have your wisdom teeth removed at a hospital under a general anaesthetic. However, this is only usually for people with serious mental or physical disabilities who would find it very difficult to undergo the procedure under a local anaesthetic.
Even if your wisdom tooth needs to be extracted as an emergency, there is little that A&E can do for you. The emergency room will not extract your tooth. However, if you have experienced an accident or injury that has resulted in one of the following symptoms, you should go to A&E straight away to receive urgent medical attention.
- Swelling of the face around the eye or neck
- Swelling in the mouth or neck that inhibits breathing, swallowing or speaking
- Heavy bleeding from the mouth that does not appear to be slowing
If you are not experiencing any of these symptoms, you should call an emergency dentist to make an appointment.
Is Wisdom Tooth Removal Painful?
If you think you need an emergency wisdom tooth removal, the chances are you’re in a great deal of pain already, so you can rest assured that your wisdom tooth extraction will not be painful, but will greatly ease the pain you’re feeling. Even if you’re not in extreme pain and are having a routine wisdom tooth extraction to prevent your teeth from becoming cramped, the procedure itself is not painful.
You’ll have a numbing gel administered to your gum, and then a local anaesthetic injected into your gum surrounding the tooth. You’ll feel the needle a little, but it’s not painful and nothing to worry about. Then, once the local anaesthetic has taken effect, you won’t feel anything around the tooth as it’s cut and removed.
As you’ll be awake, you’ll feel some pressure in your other teeth around the one being removed, and your mouth may hurt a little as you have to keep it open wide for the dentist to reach your back teeth, but all in all, tooth extraction is not a painful process.
Once the anaesthetic has worn off, you will start to feel a dull ache, but this can easily be remedied with painkillers like ibuprofen, and keeping a covered ice pack over your cheek for 5 to 10-minute bursts.
How Do You Know If You Need Your Wisdom Tooth Removed?
Although having your wisdom teeth removed is a common procedure and tens of thousands of adults have the procedure done each year, they don’t always need to come out. Wisdom teeth are your third molar and were useful for our ancestors to chew harder foods like uncooked meats, plants and nuts, however, due to our modern diet, they have become largely unuseful and our jaw shape has changed as a result.
In many cases, there isn’t enough room in the jaw for wisdom teeth to erupt through the gum, causing them to grow impacted into the neighbouring tooth or tooth’s nerve. If your wisdom teeth are growing out normally with no impact on your other teeth, there’s no need to have them removed. If they’re growing into your other teeth, causing pain, or not coming out of the gum at all, then you need to have your wisdom taken out at the earliest opportunity.
If you’ve had an accident or injury that has resulted in your tooth breaking, severe pain around your wisdom tooth, pus seeping from your tooth or extreme swelling, then you should have your wisdom tooth taken out as an emergency procedure.
Is Emergency Tooth Extraction Expensive?
Emergency tooth extraction can vary greatly in price, from around £50 to £450. NHS dental procedures are subsidised so are on the cheaper end of the scale but more difficult to get due to NHS dentist shortages, while private dentists tend to be more expensive but easier to find appointment times and offering excellent aftercare.
Emergency tooth extraction on the NHS costs £70.70, but at Didsbury Dental Practice, Manchester’s number one emergency private dental practice, you can have an emergency tooth extraction from £200 including access to 24/7 emergency treatment.
Eating, Drinking and Brushing: What to Do After Tooth Extraction
Your dentist will inform you of what to expect following your wisdom tooth removal, as well as what you can and can’t do, so you should follow their specific advice for you. However, here are a few general points to take note of so you can keep your mouth clean for less pain and better healing.
- Use ice packs wrapped in a towel on and off for the first 24 hours to reduce swelling
- Take ibuprofen as per packet directions to reduce swelling and ease pain
- Eat soft foods like soup and mashed potato
- Avoid food and drinks that are very hot, very cold, crunchy or crumbly – your teeth may be sensitive and you don’t want food getting stuck in the gap in your gum
- Avoid dairy for the first 24 hours to reduce the risk of an infection in the wound site
- Don’t spit for the first 48 hours to avoid disrupting the blood clot that is helping the wound heal
- Brush your teeth gently once 24 hours have passed
- Don’t drink alcohol or smoke for at least the first 5 days after the procedure to prevent hindering the healing process
It’s natural for your face to swell on the side of the tooth extraction and for some bruising to occur, so you don’t need to worry if this happens. Keep applying ice on and off and taking ibuprofen to help reduce the swelling. If your face is still swollen after more than a week, your wound is bleeding heavily or you experience any other painful or unexplained symptoms, you should contact your dentist as soon as possible.
Emergency Tooth Extraction – Didsbury Dental Practice
If you’re in the Manchester area and require tooth extraction as a routine or emergency appointment, look no further than Didsbury Dental Practice, Manchester’s number one private dentist.
