Until we knew better, no one realized how brutal a tooth extraction was. Unless a tooth came out directly or you had massive pain to begin with, the treatment was worse than the problem. Particularly when we “dug” around a tooth to remove it. Teeth are much harder than the bone. It is easier to remove bone around a tooth or break it as the tooth comes out with forceps-pliers extraction, than to disassemble it. We were all taught to grind, dig, and/or gouge to remove teeth. This is horribly traumatic and outdated technology. I remember the mantra of an instructor in school: “Big flap, big surgeon; little flap, little surgeon”. Meaning, if you had to, make a BIG entry around a tooth to remove it. You were wasting your time otherwise.
With the technology we had then, that was true. You were lost if you didn’t have exposure of the crown/roots that were inside the bone. Fortunately, that is no longer necessary. A toothcan be sectioned or divided precisely inside the bone; without much disturbance to it. This makes a tremendous improvement in recovery. It only makes sense; if you destroy what’s going in the trash-the tooth and not what goes home with you-your jaw, you will recover much better.
If we have improved technology, why not use it? For the last decade I have been precisely sectioning teeth to remove. This requires a new mindset to do it. It is much more delicate, time consuming, and difficult. But, the benefit is great. Dry sockets, bleeding, and massive pain are things of the past. Wouldn’t you be happier to have a better oral surgery recovery? Certainly, and it is possible.
