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Tooth Extractions & Bone Grafting
When a tooth cannot be saved, removing it is the first step toward restoring your mouth. Dr. Warga performs extractions in our office, along with the procedures that often go with one: platelet-rich fibrin (PRF) and bone grafting.
When a Tooth Needs to Come Out
Most teeth that are removed are removed because they cannot be restored: decay or a fracture has left too little sound tooth for a filling or a crown, gum disease has taken the bone that holds the tooth, or an infection cannot be resolved another way. An examination and X-rays of the tooth, its roots and the bone around it show whether it can be restored.
Dr. Warga performs the extraction himself, in our office. In select cases we may refer you to a specialist we work in partnership with, and we coordinate your care with them.
A 3D Scan Where It Is Needed
Our office has its own 3D cone beam (CBCT) scanner. Where more detail is needed than an X-ray gives, for example where a root lies close to a nerve or a sinus, or where an implant is to follow, a scan shows the roots, the bone and the structures around them in three dimensions before anything is done.
Your Visit
The area is numbed with a local anesthetic, and Dr. Warga removes the tooth. Where it is part of your plan, PRF or bone graft material is placed in the socket at the same visit.
Our after care instructions for extractions are on this site, so you can read them again at home.
Platelet-Rich Fibrin (PRF)
PRF is made from your own blood. A small sample is taken at your appointment and spun in a centrifuge, and what comes out is a soft clot that holds your platelets and the proteins your body uses to heal. Dr. Warga places it in the socket to help the site heal, often followed by a bone graft where an implant is planned.
In clinical trials, extraction sites treated with PRF showed better healing of the gum and fewer cases of dry socket. Its effect on bone is still being studied.
Bone Grafting: Keeping the Bone for What Comes Next
After a tooth is removed, the bone that held it begins to shrink. Bone graft material placed in the socket at the time of the extraction can help the ridge keep its width and height. That matters for whatever will replace the tooth, and most of all for a dental implant, which needs enough bone around it. Where bone has already been lost, grafting can rebuild enough of it to hold an implant. Dr. Warga performs bone grafting in our office.
Grafting does take time. A larger graft may need several months to heal before it can support an implant; a small one can sometimes be placed at the same visit as the implant.
Replacing the Tooth
A missing tooth can be replaced with a dental implant, a bridge or a denture. Which is right depends on the tooth, the bone and your bite. Wherever possible, that is decided before the tooth is removed, so that the extraction, any graft and the replacement follow one plan.
If a Tooth Is Troubling You
If a tooth hurts, has broken or feels loose, we would like to see it. An exam shows whether it can be restored and, if it cannot, what the plan for replacing it would be.
To schedule an exam, call or text us at (847) 441-6510.
Questions About Extractions and Bone Grafting
Have a question that is not here? Call or text us at (847) 441-6510.
Who performs the extraction?
Dr. Warga does, in our office, along with bone grafting and platelet-rich fibrin (PRF). When a case calls for a specialist, we work in partnership with oral surgeons for extractions, and we coordinate your care with them.
Why would a tooth need to be removed?
Most teeth that are removed are removed because they cannot be restored: decay or a fracture has left too little sound tooth for a filling or a crown, gum disease has taken the bone that holds the tooth, or an infection cannot be resolved another way. An examination and X-rays show whether a tooth can be restored.
Why is a bone graft placed when a tooth is removed?
After a tooth is removed, the bone that held it begins to shrink. Bone graft material placed in the socket at the time of the extraction can help the ridge keep its width and height, which matters most where a dental implant is planned. Dr. Warga performs bone grafting in our office.
How soon can a removed tooth be replaced?
It varies from patient to patient. Where a bone graft is placed, a larger graft may need several months to heal before it can support an implant; a small one can sometimes be placed at the same visit as the implant. Wherever possible, how the tooth will be replaced is decided before it is removed.
What should I do after an extraction?
For the first 24 hours, do not rinse, spit, smoke or drink through a straw, so the blood clot stays in place. Rest for the remainder of the day, and choose soft, cool foods once the numbness wears off. Our extractions after care instructions have the rest.