Tell me all about Wisdom Teeth surgery

[mommyoffive]

Where did you have it done?  Did you go with the dentist or did you go to the oral surgeon?

Are there pros and cons to both? 

Would you do the same or wish you would have done the other?

Is there a price difference?

Tell me all things I might not be thinking of too please. 

[ScoutTN]

Dentist referred me to an oral surgeon. Insurance covered some of it. Dh drove me there and home. No problems with the actual procedure or paperwork.
 

I would get Rx for a few day’s worth of pain meds before leaving the office! AND an emergency number!
 

I got dry socket and it was a holiday weekend, so no way to reach the surgeon or my dentist. I made do with clove oil (topical anaesthetic) and lots of ibuprofen, but it was pretty miserable. They did give me an Rx, but only for 24 hrs worth and  with the dry socket, it was not enough.

[Katy]

I had it at an oral surgeon. I didn’t have a choice as they were all impacted. I got all 4 dry sockets, had to take several weeks off work. 

I would have done it sooner. I don’t recall a price difference with my insurance. 

[teachermom2834]

Three of my four kids have had this done (one didn’t have wisdom teeth) and my dh had it done as an adult all at an oral surgeon. I had only top wisdom teeth and they had already come in and weren’t impacted- they were in just causing some pain and they were extracted at the dentist no big deal. 
 

My dh and oldest ds were about ten years ago and seems their surgeries were much more difficult with much more painful recoveries than my last two kids that did it the past two years. So I don’t know if that was just improved technology and practices or ??? But definitely get recommendations from locals that have had it recently with smooth experiences. 
 

My 15 yo dd did it 2 weeks ago at an oral and facial surgery center. It’s a large practice and they do it all day every day. Great experience. Really easy process and recovery. My two most recent experiences were able to manage their pain with ibuprofen and were given a prescription for  oxycodone if necessary but it wasn’t needed. Ten years ago the two that did it were prescribed the oxy as regular course of treatment so I think it is an improvement to only go that route if necessary.

It depends on insurance and details of the surgery/practice but ours were always between $1100-$1500 I think after insurance. 
 

After the first two experiences I was really dreading it with the last two we did but the last two were really no biggie. An inconvenience but not nearly as painful and difficult as it was when dh and oldest ds did it. 

[EKS]

Dentist referred us to an oral surgeon.

[Pawz4me]

All four of us had ours removed by our regular dentist. It wasn’t a big deal for any of us, although DH had the worst experience. But he was in his mid 30’s at the time and had started having issues (the boys and I had ours removed as teens). And his experience wasn’t a big deal, just a little worse than for the rest of us. The boys and I were pretty much back to normal the next day but it took DH a couple of days to feel normal again. 

[wintermom]

I had all 4 of mine removed by an oral surgeon a couple of years ago. It went very smoothly. The teeth apparently came out without any issues, which was good news for my recovery.

The first few hours of the recovery was the worst, with the bleeding and bandages inside the mouth. After that it was good. I kept my mouth very moist with lots of water and avoided dry sockets, fortunately.

[KrissiK]

My 20 year old DS had it done last week. All 4 and they had all come in, so it was a very smooth and easy process. He had it done with an oral surgeon, he had minimal pain (just a couple days alternating ibuprofen and Tylenol) and rinsing his mouth. He seems to be just fine now. No swelling or complications.  Honestly, I am shocked at how easily it had gone.

[Sharpie]

I only had one child who needed theirs removed.  We went to an oral surgeon.  I followed the care after religiously.  I set my phone timer so every 20 minutes I was doing something with him.  The staff instructed us to stop to get Rx pain meds in route home and then get him home and fed protein immediately.  So the first meal was scrambled eggs and some oatmeal.  Then it was bandage changes and ice packs on/off almost around the clock.  I did allow him to sleep from about 1 am to 7 am without me doing ice pack changes but then I started up again for the first 48 hours or so following surgery. 

I bought special icepacks from Amazon that fit in a sling that went around child's head.  The icepacks were flexible and I literally changed them on a timer.  I emptied my schedule so I could be a nurse/caregiver for 48 hours post surgery. 

I used my immersion blender and pulverized high protein meals so they could be eaten.  So many food options tend to be sugary and the instructions from the oral surgeon recommended more protein over sweets. 

My child only took one Rx pain killer and pain was managed with Tylenol & Advil.  They bounced back fairly quickly without the dreaded dry socket. 

[kbutton]

It varies a lot. I would always use an oral surgeon for impacted teeth or tiny mouth or other odd stuff (like having more than the normal number).

I don’t know if they use conscious sedation at the dentist, so that’s really a big factor. If there are big roots, that can be a long process. One DS had premolars out that were huge with just numbing shots. He has unique enervation, and they could not give him enough numbing medicine to get them all out at once. It took three visits. It turned out okay, but if I had been the patient rather than my kid…I don’t handle people altering my body well at all. That child hasn’t had his out yet, but he requires special precautions and has to have it done in hospital.

My older one had seven wisdom teeth, all impacted. He saw an oral surgeon, and it went very well. He did have some infection, but it was because it was so hard to rinse—his incisions and such were hard to get to due to how much carving out they had to do and where. Even the surgeon had to work hard to rinse things when we went back in for the infection. Even then, my son did so, so well. It was just a little special, lol! 

When I had mine done, the first night was the roughest (all impacted, smallish jaw). I was very nauseated, and I thought it was from the pain killers (they bother some people in the family), so I went with just Tylenol. They didn’t tell people back then to alternate with ibuprofen, so it was rough as each dose wore off. What surprised me though is that it was my throat that hurt so bad, not my teeth. After that first night it was pretty smooth. I did get a mild and not painful infection because one of the stitches got stuck (not all places do stitches), but after that first night, it really was fine, and the pain was manageable/minimal.

[gardenmom5]

For impacted, oral surgeons.
if they've erupted, a dentist can do it.

2dd has a big mouth, and she had room for her wisdom teeth, but she had to have them out when she went to South America, more as a prophylactic then because they were causing trouble.  (for many - not all - people, they cause trouble.)

[knitgrl]

FWIW, ALL of my wisdom teeth were pulled by a local dentist when I was in high school. It was miserable. Also, because he nicked a nerve or something, half of my tongue became numb, and I still have like 90% feeling in it. But he was also trained in the 1960's. I am so glad all the dentists trained then are now retired. I have not had good experiences with them. I love dentists that have been trained in this century.

[mommyoffive]

2 hours ago, kbutton said:

It varies a lot. I would always use an oral surgeon for impacted teeth or tiny mouth or other odd stuff (like having more than the normal number).

I don’t know if they use conscious sedation at the dentist, so that’s really a big factor. If there are big roots, that can be a long process. One DS had premolars out that were huge with just numbing shots. He has unique enervation, and they could not give him enough numbing medicine to get them all out at once. It took three visits. It turned out okay, but if I had been the patient rather than my kid…I don’t handle people altering my body well at all. That child hasn’t had his out yet, but he requires special precautions and has to have it done in hospital.

My older one had seven wisdom teeth, all impacted. He saw an oral surgeon, and it went very well. He did have some infection, but it was because it was so hard to rinse—his incisions and such were hard to get to due to how much carving out they had to do and where. Even the surgeon had to work hard to rinse things when we went back in for the infection. Even then, my son did so, so well. It was just a little special, lol! 

When I had mine done, the first night was the roughest (all impacted, smallish jaw). I was very nauseated, and I thought it was from the pain killers (they bother some people in the family), so I went with just Tylenol. They didn’t tell people back then to alternate with ibuprofen, so it was rough as each dose wore off. What surprised me though is that it was my throat that hurt so bad, not my teeth. After that first night it was pretty smooth. I did get a mild and not painful infection because one of the stitches got stuck (not all places do stitches), but after that first night, it really was fine, and the pain was manageable/minimal.

Can you explain what that is to me? 

7 wisdom teeth oh my.  I never knew you could have more than 4.  Wow.

[Laura Corin]

In hospital with full anaesthesia. All wisdom teeth at the same time.  No charge at the point of need. It was fine.

Edited April 11 by Laura Corin

[kbutton]

3 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

Can you explain what that is to me? 

7 wisdom teeth oh my.  I never knew you could have more than 4.  Wow.

Yes, they give you medicine that makes you not know what’s going and not remember. It’s used in place of full anesthesia for lots of things—colonoscopies, putting joints back into place, etc. I think it’s sometimes called twilight sleep also.

They can usually talk to you and get you to respond when you have conscious sedation.

[kbutton]

3 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

Can you explain what that is to me? 

7 wisdom teeth oh my.  I never knew you could have more than 4.  Wow.

Oh, and I know quite a few people who have had an abnormal number of teeth in both directions—missing them and having extra. It happens with all kinds of teeth. I might also just know a lot of quirky people, lol!

[Clarita]

I had my wisdom teeth pulled out by an oral surgeon. I was under 18 at the time so I don't know about cost or anything, my parents wanted it done then because they felt the dental insurance we had at the time covered me very well and if I recall correctly the price was somehow going to be very different (more) when I was 18+.

Later my mom needed another type of surgery on her teeth (I don't remember what), but she wanted to save money and did it at the regular dentist. She said "Never again." There were a lot of issues afterwards and the healing took a lot longer than it should; anyway she ended up having to go to an oral surgeon to fix whatever happened. My other friend also had minor surgery done by a regular dentist and she was very unhappy as well. Basically that doctor kept her in surgery all day as the dentist was going in and out performing surgery on my friend and working on her other routine patient stuff.

Based on these experiences I'd go to an oral surgeon if I need oral surgery. 

[klmama]

Mine were removed by a dentist. I had some nerve damage, but I don't know if using an oral surgeon would have made a difference. I swelled up like a chipmunk, as they didn't recommend ice packs back then. 

All three of my dc had theirs out by an oral surgeon. The one with the most swelling refused to use ice packs after the first day.  The next two were careful to use ice packs 20 min on and 20 off for two days, and they had no or very minimal facial swelling. 

[footballmom]

Our dentist has done wisdom teeth removal for my older kids - one kid had 2 impacted and the other kid had all 4 impacted. Both were back in action less than 36 hours later. The one who had 4 impacted did alternate Motrin and Tylenol for 3 or 4 days after.

We have pretty “good” dental insurance and the out of pocket was about $1700. The IV sedation wasn’t covered by dental or medical so that was a big part of the cost.

Edited April 12 by footballmom

[Bambam]

I had my wisdom teeth (only 2) as a teen with regular dentist just pulling them. No issues that I remember. 
My DH had his out in his mid-late 20s. I think regular dentist too - no issues.
Both my kids were sent to an oral surgeon, our regular dentist does not do those. Light sedation, all removed at once, went home, mostly took OTC (alternating Motrin/Tylenol) meds. One kid developed one dry socket, went back to oral surgeon, they did some magic thing, and she was better pretty quickly. Other child was pretty much normal within a couple of days. Dry Socket girl - it took her about a week to totally recover.  I don't remember the cost, but our dental insurance covered roughly half. 

[mommyoffive]

Is there less of a process at an oral surgeon?  Dentist told me it would be one week come for an appointment one week before the surgery.  Then the next week have the teeth taken out.  Then a week later come back for a follow up.  

[Miss Tick]

20 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

Is there less of a process at an oral surgeon?  Dentist told me it would be one week come for an appointment one week before the surgery.  Then the next week have the teeth taken out.  Then a week later come back for a follow up.  

All 3 of my dc had teeth removed a year ago. The dentist referred them to oral surgeons and sent the surgeon X-rays. We showed up day of procedure and I waited in the lobby. We picked up the scrip on the way home, but none of them needed it. The only follow up was a phone call from the office the next morning.

Do actually weigh your child. I guessed on the first and that may be why her anaesthesia seemed to take longer to wear off than the others.

[mommyoffive]

2 minutes ago, Miss Tick said:

All 3 of my dc had teeth removed a year ago. The dentist referred them to oral surgeons and sent the surgeon X-rays. We showed up day of procedure and I waited in the lobby. We picked up the scrip on the way home, but none of them needed it. The only follow up was a phone call from the office the next morning.

Do actually weigh your child. I guessed on the first and that may be why her anaesthesia seemed to take longer to wear off than the others.

Thank you so much for that.  Wow to having all 3 of your kids do it at or around the same time.  Probably easier.  

How it went with your oral surgeon sounds logistically way easier.  

[teachermom2834]

All of mine had two visits to the oral surgeon- an initial consult where they either used x-rays sent over or took their own and surgeon did a quick exam and told us about the surgery/costs/scheduled the surgery. Then the visit for the surgery. None of mine had an office visit for a follow up. 
 

 

[KrissiK]

7 hours ago, mommyoffive said:

Is there less of a process at an oral surgeon?  Dentist told me it would be one week come for an appointment one week before the surgery.  Then the next week have the teeth taken out.  Then a week later come back for a follow up.  

Our oral surgeon gave us the option of a consult. We didn't do it. And no follow-up unless there were problems.

[teachermom2834]

I think a consult is pretty standard but I see some people skipped that and I can see how if it is uncomplicated on x-rays that it is unnecessary. It’s a simple procedure. I know someone who was told at the dentist that they needed it done and there was an oral surgeon who came into the office once a week or something to do them so the patient was just scheduled in the dentist office for the next time the surgeon was in and that was that. 
 

As far as skipping the consult- I will mention having just done this two weeks ago with my 15 yo that the consult made her feel much more comfortable with the whole thing. She was very apprehensive and everyone was so nice at the consult and she had so many questions that they answered and it was so reassuring that it saved her a lot of anxiety leading up to the appointment. 

[KrissiK]

2 hours ago, teachermom2834 said:

As far as skipping the consult- I will mention having just done this two weeks ago with my 15 yo that the consult made her feel much more comfortable with the whole thing. She was very apprehensive and everyone was so nice at the consult and she had so many questions that they answered and it was so reassuring that it saved her a lot of anxiety leading up to the appointment. 

That’s why we skipped it. 🤣 I knew my son was already nervous, and he hates hospitals and doctors offices and needles and everything else. I figured if I brought him in there he would get even more nervous and if they explained it to him he’d refuse to come. He was ok, and they did knock him out pretty good, so it all went fine.

[J-rap]

Here, the standard rule of thumb is that if teeth are impacted, it's done by an oral surgeon.  If none are impacted, the dentist can do it.  If an oral surgeon does it, you can usually choose between general anesthesia or local (they might give their recommendations).  Three of our are kids had impacted teeth so went with the oral surgeon and GA;  the fourth had no impacted teeth and had them removed right in our regular dentist's office with local.  

It went smoothly for all of them with the exception of one, who ended up getting dry socket which was very painful.  We had thought about planning a trip a couple days after her surgery but decided not to.  I'm glad we didn't!