Will an Emergency Dentist Remove Wisdom Teeth?

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My 22-year-old son is out of town. We’d always meant to get his wisdom teeth removed but something always seemed to get in the way and they weren’t really bothering him. Of course, now that he is in a different state visiting relatives everything blows up. One of his wisdom teeth is giving him a lot of pain. It is inflamed as well as the gums behind it. He’s been taking ibuprofen but it only helps temporarily. If I sent him to an emergency dentist would they remove his wisdom teeth?

Carolyn

Dear Carolyn,

There is no worse feeling than when we can’t be near our children when they need us. I’m sorry this is happening to your son while he is out of town. As to whether an emergency dentist will remove his teeth, it depends. They will certainly see him because he is in pain. They can get him out of pain. Then,  if there is an infection they will likely schedule a follow-up to deal with that.

You didn’t mention if the tooth is erupted, partially erupted, or completely impacted. If it has not erupted, there is a possibility this is pericoronitis, which is just a fancy medical term for inflammation around the wisdom tooth. Sometimes when a tooth is partially erupted there is a flap of gums that traps food and bacteria and can inflame the gums and even lead to an infection. This flap can be removed, which lessens the likelihood of issues such as your son is facing.

Some dentists are comfortable and skilled at removing impacted wisdom teeth. Others will send him to an oral surgeon. Either way, when you are in pain from a tooth, it is always a good idea to get it checked out by a dentist to see how urgent the situation is and be advised on how to solve the problem.

This blog is brought to you by Moline Dentist Dr. Goebel.