FAQ
Think of the questions your customers ask most frequently and write them here along
with the answers.
A: If you have had an IV and been given medications
for sedation or general anesthesia, you must be taken home by someone
who can drive you. You may not go home on a bus or in a taxi. Following
anesthesia, it is important that someone who you know and trust is
available to assist you with whatever you may need. The effects of the
medications reduce your ability to make sound judgments long after you
are awake from anesthesia. If you have taken any oral sedatives whether
prescribed by our surgeons or another doctor, you also must arrive and
go home with a responsible adult. If you have had surgery with local
anesthesia (numbing medicine), then you may take any transportation
that you wish.
A: If you are scheduled for intravenous sedation or general anesthesia you
may not eat or drink anything, including water, after midnight prior to
the surgery. Please refer to the pre-operative instructions for more
complete instruction. Any food or beverage that you have after midnight
prior to the surgery can significantly increase your chances of serious
complications while you are asleep during surgery. If you have any
further questions on this matter, please bring them to the attention of
your surgeon.
A: If you are going to sleep for your procedure (intravenous sedation or
general anesthesia), you should be accompanied by a responsible adult
while recovering at home. Should the need arise, your ability to make
sound judgments is significantly compromised even well after you are
awake from your surgery.
A: In most cases where you have had teeth removed, the bleeding stops for
the most part within a few hours. At times, vigorous constant pressure
may be necessary for a few hours to help stop bleeding. Please refer to
your post-operative instructions for further details. Of course, if you
have any problems postoperatively, please feel free to contact Dr.
Windell or Dr. Lieblick at any time. Following dental implant
placement, there is typically very little postoperative bleeding. If
you believe that you are having more bleeding than you should or are
having rapid swelling, please contact your surgeon.
As every patient is different, swelling is always a difficult question to
answer. If you are going to sleep for the procedure, very often your
surgeon will give you a medication in your IV to help with swelling and
soreness. However, the amount of swelling that you have can vary
greatly due to the wide variation in individual response to surgery. If
you have further questions regarding this topic, feel free to bring
them to our attention.
A: Although the removal of wisdom teeth that are not bothersome is a
common procedure, it is always optional. It is recommended that anyone
under the age of 25 who has impacted (will not erupt) third molars
should have them removed. This is a preventative measure to decrease
chances of development of cysts, alleviate chances of periodontal
problems with adjacent teeth, and the need to remove the teeth at a
later date when the patient may have other medical issues. Of course,
if the wisdom teeth are bothersome, most often the only definitive
treatment is to remove them. When you visit Northwest Oral &
Maxillofacial Surgeons for your consult, all of the potential risks and
benefits of removal of third molars will be explained to you and you
may ask any questions that you may have. In that way, you can decide if
you wish to remove the teeth.
A: The short answer is that an implant is much healthier for you. A bridge requires shaving down the adjacent teeth which weakens them. Then the bridge is cemented over them. This forces two anchoring teeth to do the work of three or four teeth! Over a short period (the average is 6.8 years) the teeth will fracture or decay... turning a 1 or 2 tooth problem into a 3 or 4 tooth problem. This domino effect is halted by replacing the teeth with implants rather than substituting for them with a bridge.