IMPACTED CANINES

Helping Teeth Erupt Successfully

Dedicated Care In Newport News, VA

Treatment Options To Help
Impacted Teeth

As the adult teeth grow in, they generally follow a pattern, with some teeth coming in earlier than others. When a tooth erupts later than others, that tooth may be unable to erupt or function successfully. In this case, there are treatment options to help these teeth and avoid any further issues.

Impacted Canines

Highly Trained To Treat Impacted Teeth

What Is An Impacted Tooth?

An impacted tooth simply means that it is “stuck” below the gums and cannot erupt or function properly. The most common teeth to become impacted are the third molars or “wisdom teeth” as they are the last teeth to erupt within the mouth. However, a tooth can become impacted for a variety of reasons, and can affect more than just the wisdom teeth. 

The maxillary cuspid, also known as the upper eyetooth, is the second most common tooth to become impacted. These teeth are incredibly strong. with the longest roots of any other tooth, making it an essential part of the structure and function of your smile. Generally speaking, the maxillary cuspid teeth are the last of the “front teeth” to erupt, usually arriving in early adolescence around age 13. 

While wisdom teeth rarely serve a functional purpose in the mouth, impacted wisdom teeth are often simply removed with little issue. However, these maxillary cuspids are an essential part of your smile, meaning we focus instead on helping them erupt successfully into place. 

Treatment Plans That Work For You

Early Detection And Treatment

The American Association of Orthodontists recommends that patients receive a panorex screening x-ray along with a dental examination around the age of 7, when the first adult teeth begin to erupt. At this time, your dentist can count the teeth and determine if there are any problems with the eruption of these adult teeth such as overcrowding, incorrect placement, missing adult teeth and more. This process is usually done by your dentist or orthodontist. You may be referred to an oral surgeon for extraction of over-retained baby teeth and/or selected adult teeth that are blocking the eruption of the eye teeth.

In the event that the eye tooth will not erupt even when proper space is available, our team will work with your orthodontist to get the teeth to emerge. This treatment plan is highly personalized to your exact needs, current condition and concerns.

In many cases, your orthodontist will provide you with braces to gently realign your teeth into their proper positions, leaving space open for the adult eye tooth. Once there is enough space, we will begin the process of exposing and bracketing the tooth.

Simple & Straight-Forward Surgical Procedure

What To Expect

Once your orthodontist and our team have established your treatment plan, we will schedule an appointment with you for a short procedure called: exposing and bracketing the tooth. This is a simple and straight-forward surgical procedure performed in the surgeon’s office. For most patients, we provide laughing gas and local anesthesia to ensure you don’t feel any discomfort during the procedure. In some cases, we can use IV sedation, if you desire to sleep through the process, but this is generally unnecessary.

In this procedure, the gum on top of the impacted tooth will be gently lifted up to expose the hidden tooth underneath. If the corresponding baby tooth is still present, it will be removed at this time. Once the tooth is exposed, Dr. Lee will bond an orthodontic bracket to the exposed tooth.

This bracket will be attached to a miniature golden chain, which will be guided to the orthodontic archwire, where it will be temporarily bonded. Occasionally, the tooth will be left exposed by suturing the gums high above the tooth, but this is not always the case. Most of the time, the gums will be sutured exactly as they began, hiding the tooth once more aside from a small hole where the golden chain pokes out and attaches to the archwire.

Care Team Dedicated To You

Post-Treatment Care

After this procedure, you may experience minor bleeding at the surgery site. It’s normal to feel some pain or discomfort after surgery, but over-the-counter pain medications are more than able to manage any pain you may feel. Some swelling in the lip is normal, as they are held up during the procedure. If this happens to you, you can reduce swelling by applying ice to the area for the afternoon after surgery.

Dr. Lee and our care team will take you through any additional post-operative care instructions you need to follow including activity, diet and medication after surgery. You should plan to see your orthodontist within 1-14 days after your procedure to activate the eruption process by applying the proper rubber band to the chain on your tooth.

Passionate About Offering Exceptional Care

Request An Appointment

At Oyster Point Oral & Facial Surgery, we believe that patients deserve the best, and we work hard to provide exactly that to every patient who comes through our doors. Simply fill out the form below and our team will contact you to schedule your appointment at our office. We look forward to meeting you!

Location

11842 Rock Landing Drive
Suite 105
Newport News, VA 23606

Hours

Monday – Thursday
8:30 am– 5 pm

Friday
8:30 am – 12:30 pm

Contact

Call Us:
757-596-1200