Impacted Canines and Oral Surgery

Not everyone is born with a perfect smile. In fact, most of us need a little extra attention from a dentist or dental surgeon to achieve a healthy, beautiful smile for life. At Sedaros Oral Facial Surgery, we are happy to help you reach this goal. As you grow older, some of your teeth might shift, erupt, or need to be pulled. When this happens, you need an experienced oral surgeon to help remove any teeth that may have become impacted during the transition, especially a canine. Read on to find out why.

What is an Impacted Canine?

Your canine teeth, also called “eye teeth,” are the two teeth on either side of your front teeth on both the top and bottom arches. Adults have four canine teeth. These are the teeth that have a pointed tip and are used for biting. They have the longest roots of any of your teeth and therefore take the longest time to erupt through the gums. They typically appear around age 13-15. If one of these teeth does not erupt and instead stays inside the gum tissue, it is called an impacted canine. In order to fix it, you will have to see an oral surgeon to have it brought down to join the rest of your teeth.

Before Oral Surgery

Before your dental surgery, you will need to have general anesthesia. Because of this, you should not have anything to eat or drink for 8 hours before your appointment. You should also cease smoking as soon as possible, but no later than 12 hours before surgery. Make sure you have a responsible adult to drive you home after your appointment and keep an eye on you as you recover. On the day of your appointment, please wear loose-fitting clothing with sleeves that can be rolled up past the elbow, low-heeled shoes, and avoid makeup, jewelry, and nail polish as these will have to be removed.

During Oral Surgery

Your impacted canine surgery will begin with sedation. Once asleep, Dr. Sedaros will cut open the gum to expose the impacted canine. In some cases, this may be all that’s necessary to allow the tooth to erupt on its own. In most cases, however, an orthodontic bracket will be placed on the tooth to help guide it into the proper position. There are other options that involve replacing or repositioning the gum tissue around the affected tooth, but these will also require an orthodontic bracket. Once complete, he may apply stitches or a surgical dressing to help heal the area. Once awaken from the sedative, you’ll wait in the recovery room until you’re ready to go.

After Oral Surgery

After oral surgery, you’ll be very sleepy from the anesthesia. Go home and rest while someone else fills your pain medication prescription. Once hungry, it’s important to only eat soft foods like mashed potatoes, pudding, soup, and ice cream. Some bleeding is normal for the first 24 hours. If it continues after that period or can’t be stopped, please give us a call. Swelling is common and can be managed by placing an ice pack on your cheek for 20 minutes, then removing for 20 minutes, and repeating for the first 36 hours post-surgery. Continue your oral hygiene routine as normal, and add in a saltwater rinse 2-3 times per day until your wound is healed.

Impacted Canines at Dr. Sedaros

Dental help is on the way if you or a loved one is experiencing an impacted canine. The delay of these teeth erupting can make it hard to eat, speak, or chew food. So it’s important to see an oral surgeon sooner than later. Luckily, Dr. Sedaros in Melbourne, Fl specialized in oral surgery and can help you with your smile and overall oral health! Experience our kind and compassionate approach to dentistry, call us today to get started! 321-610-7868