Oral Surgery Treats Functional and Cosmetic Problems
Oral surgery is a specialty which deals with diagnosis and treatment of functional and cosmetic problems of the mouth, teeth, jaws, and face. Patients are referred to an oral surgeon by their dentist, orthodontist, or physician.
Dr. Kirk’s practice provides patients in the Charlotte area access to expert surgical care and consultation for:
- extraction of wisdom teeth
- dental implants
- orthognathic surgery
- TMJ disorder treatment
Removal of Wisdom Teeth
Wisdom teeth often don’t emerge properly resulting in partially emerged or impacted wisdom teeth. Impacted means the tooth is embedded in gum or bone tissue and is incapable of becoming a functional or useful tooth. Even fully emerged wisdom teeth can create problems as they are often sources of infection because appropriate hygiene is not possible.
Symptoms of diseased or impacted wisdom teeth include:
- pain
- swelling
- headaches
- gum infections
- sore throat
- difficulty opening the mouth
In almost every case, extraction of the wisdom teeth provides the solution. Wisdom tooth removal is usually accomplished under local anesthesia with sedation in an office procedure.
Dental Implants
Dental implants are artificial teeth anchored directly to the jawbone. For many patients, implants offer an alternative to dentures and bridges that is permanent and in most cases improves prosthetic tooth replacement. The use of dental implants increased because of improved technology and the use of materials such as titanium have increased success rates.
Many people can benefit from implants. Implants provide an alternative to dentures or bridges or individual teeth. However, evaluation by an oral surgeon is required to determine if you are a candidate for dental implants. The oral surgeon considers your specific oral anatomy and other health factors such as diabetes, smoking, and osteoporosis during the evaluation.
Corrective Jaw Surgery
Whether to correct a trauma to the face and jaw, for aesthetic reasons, or as part of bite correction, corrective jaw and maxillofacial surgery addresses a wide range of problems and conditions, including:
- difficulty chewing or biting food
- difficulty swallowing
- speech problems
- excessive wearing of teeth
- open bite (space between upper and lower front or back teeth when mouth is closed)
- facial injury or birth defects
- receding chin
- protruding jaw
- sleep apnea (breathing problems when sleeping such as snoring, difficulty breathing, etc.)
- certain types of TM Joint derangement
Orthognathic surgery is performed in concert with orthodontia. The orthodontist aligns the teeth so they will meet properly. The oral surgeon performs orthognathic surgery to align the jaw for a proper bite when the amount of dental movement exceeds what orthodontia can accomplish alone.
Maxillofacial surgery involves the bones of the upper jaw and face and may be involved in trauma injuries or orthognathic surgery.
To set up an appointment with Dr. Kirk regarding your oral surgery procedure, contact us.
Our practice is a participating provider with several major dental insurance companies/organizations including : Aetna PPO, Ameritas, Cigna DHMO and PPO, Delta Dental, Dentemax, Humana, and MetLife.
