Wisdom Tooth Removal in Murrieta

No. A wisdom tooth that is fully erupted, upright, healthy, and easy to brush can stay right where it is. Removal is recommended when the tooth is impacted, pushing on the molar in front of it, causing pain or repeat infections, or sitting so far back that you cannot keep it clean. At Promenade Dental Care in Murrieta, Dr. Bao Nguyen decides tooth by tooth from a panoramic X-ray instead of applying one rule to everyone.

The extraction itself does not hurt, because the area is completely numb before anything starts. Nitrous oxide is available if you are anxious. Afterward, most patients describe mild to moderate soreness for two to three days, handled with ibuprofen or a prescription when the case was surgical. Pain that climbs after day three instead of easing is worth a call to (951) 412-0127.

Most patients feel much better within three to four days and are fully healed in one to two weeks. Swelling peaks on day two or three, then eases a little every morning after that. The gum closes first; the bone underneath fills in quietly over the next few months, which you will not feel happening.

Dry socket is what happens when the blood clot protecting the socket comes loose before the site heals, leaving bone exposed and causing a deep throbbing ache three to five days after surgery. You avoid it by not using straws, not smoking, not spitting hard, and not rinsing forcefully for the first few days. If it does happen, we treat it in a short visit with a medicated dressing and the pain settles fast.

Any extraction, even a simple one, can lead to a complication after you go home, so the honest list is worth having. We watch for dry socket, infection at the extraction site, bleeding that restarts after too much activity too soon, temporary numbness of the lip, chin, or tongue when a lower root sits against the nerve, and a small opening into the sinus above an upper molar. Most of these resolve on their own or with one short follow-up visit. The panoramic X-ray taken before your extraction is what lets Dr. Bao Nguyen see the nerve and the sinus floor ahead of time and plan around them. Call (951) 412-0127 if anything after your extraction worries you.

Simple wisdom tooth extractions at Promenade Dental Care start at $250 per tooth. Slightly impacted teeth are quoted after a panoramic X-ray shows the tooth angle, root shape, and nerve position, because those three things decide how involved the extraction is. Most impacted wisdom teeth are referred to an oral surgeon, who quotes their own fee. Most PPO plans cover part of an extraction, CareCredit financing is available, and new patients can start with a $20 exam. Call (951) 412-0127 for a quote.

Yes, with nitrous oxide (laughing gas), and it is a common choice for anxious patients of any age. It wears off within minutes, so most people drive themselves home. If you want deeper sedation or to be asleep for it, that is a job for an oral surgeon, and I will refer you. We go through all of it at the consultation so nothing catches you off guard.

Yes, with local anesthetic alone or with nitrous oxide, which clears within minutes. Your lip and tongue will be numb for a few hours, but you are safe to drive. If I prescribe a stronger pain medicine after a harder extraction, don't drive while you're taking it.

Most patients return to light work or school one to two days after a simple extraction, and three to four days after a surgical one. Plan on two quiet days if more than one tooth comes out in one appointment. Hold off on the gym, running, and heavy lifting for about a week, since a raised heart rate can restart the bleeding.

It depends on how they are sitting. When all four are erupted or only slightly impacted, one visit often makes sense: one appointment, one round of anesthesia, one recovery. When some are deeply impacted, those go to an oral surgeon, and it is often simpler to have the surgeon take all of them at once. Dr. Bao reviews the X-ray with you and recommends whichever plan is safer and easier on you.

Soft, cool foods for the first day or two: yogurt, applesauce, mashed potatoes, scrambled eggs, smoothies eaten with a spoon, and lukewarm soup. Skip straws, chips, nuts, popcorn, and anything hot until the site starts to close, and chew on the opposite side of your mouth. Most patients are back on a normal diet within a week. There's a fuller day-by-day list on the what to eat after a tooth extraction page.

There is no single right age, but the late teens and early twenties are usually the easiest window, because the roots are not fully formed yet and the bone is more forgiving. Adults in their thirties, forties, and beyond have wisdom teeth removed routinely as well. The X-ray, not your birthday, tells us how involved the extraction will be.

Somewhat. In the late teens the roots are often still forming and the bone is more elastic, so the tooth comes out with less work and the swelling settles faster. By the thirties and forties the roots are fully formed and sometimes curved around the nerve, so the extraction is more involved and recovery tends to run a day or two longer with more swelling and jaw stiffness. At any age it's real surgery with real risks, and adults have wisdom teeth removed at Promenade Dental Care every month. The X-ray tells us which version of the appointment yours will be.

Promenade Dental Care accepts all PPO dental plans and is in-network with Delta Dental PPO, Cigna, MetLife, Guardian, Aetna, and United Concordia. Most of those plans pay a share of an extraction. We verify your benefits and tell you your out-of-pocket cost before treatment starts, and CareCredit financing is available if you would rather spread the cost out.

Dr. Bao Nguyen, DDS, performs them in our Murrieta office at 26957 Date St, Suite B4. He trained at the UCLA School of Dentistry, served ten years in the U.S. Navy Dental Corps including an Advanced Education in General Dentistry residency at Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton and deployments to Kuwait and Iraq, and has run his own practice since 2010. Erupted and slightly impacted wisdom teeth are handled in our office; most impacted wisdom teeth are referred to an oral surgeon. Complicated cases, such as a deeply impacted tooth with its roots against the nerve, are referred to an oral surgeon he trusts, with the X-rays sent ahead, and he stays involved in the plan.