fred@mot.UUCP (Fred Christiansen) (11/19/85)
[]
while i've never had trouble to date with them, my dentist has finally
convinced me that i should have my wisdom teeth removed: 3 of 'em are
suffering from progressive decay, the 4th (upper left) is mildly
impacted, and if i want adult orthodontics i need the space.
i don't need the horror stories. i get queasy just remembering the
bad times last summer with my wife's. i'd like to hear the good stories.
- what did you use to reduce swelling? pain?
- what sedation did you use? were you satisfied with it?
- any adult with recent orthodontic work think the extractions will help?
- how do you prepare mentally for this?
- what and how do you eat until things return to normal?
i'm trying to be hopeful, since 3 *are* erupted, and only one root has a
tad of a hook to it.
i trust net.med is right. there isn't a net.dental.
--
<< Generic disclaimer >>
Fred Christiansen ("Canajun, eh?") @ Motorola Microsystems, Tempe, AZ
UUCP: {seismo!terak, trwrb!flkvax, utzoo!mnetor, ihnp4, attunix}!mot!fred
ARPA: oakhill!mot!fred@ut-sally.ARPA "Families are Forever"suze@terak.UUCP (Suzanne Barnett) (11/19/85)
> [] It's been a fe years (13) since I had my wisdom teeth removed. They were all impacted, and therefore cut out, not pulled. My brother had his done at nearly the same time by the same oral surgeon. His story to the two of us on a presurgery exam was that I would be out of things for a week, but my brother would be up and at it the next day. As might be imagined, it happened exactly the opposite. > - what did you use to reduce swelling? pain? ice packs on the outside of the cheeks, cold tea bags, that had been used to brew tea, on the inside (this also helped stop any bleeding). Aspirin for pain, the surgeon gave me some sort of pain killer, but it made me woozy and I only took it twice before saying "No More." > - what sedation did you use? were you satisfied with it? I was given a shot of I don't remember what that put me to sleep. It was very effective. I know of others who have had local rather than general anesthesia. I suppose it depends on the degree of impaction, the patient's medical history and preferences and the doctor. ... > - what and how do you eat until things return to normal? Soup, ice cream, very soft or liquid diet. This will last 2 to 3 days, then you may want to start on more solid food. > i'm trying to be hopeful, since 3 *are* erupted, and only one root has a > tad of a hook to it. > Good Luck!! -- ************************************************************** Suzanne Barnett-Scott uucp: ...{decvax,ihnp4,noao,savax,seismo}!terak!suze phone: (602) 998-4800 us mail: CalComp/Sanders Display Products Division (Formerly Terak Corporation) 14151 N 76th street, Scottsdale, AZ 85260
giaccone@rochester.UUCP (Tony Giaccone) (11/22/85)
All this talk about wisdom teeth has made me remember my when I had mine
out. I've never that crazy about Dentists so I try to avoid them as much
as possible. ( I should mention that my teeth have been very helpful in
avoiding Dentists. I went through my entire youth with only 3 cavities.)
But at the end of August before my freshman year of college I had developed
a toothache, where I knew my wisdom teeth were, that was bothering me
I went to see an oral surgeon because I expected that I might have
a wisdom tooth out. I went in and told him that I had a toothache and
that I thought I would need to have my wisdom tooth removed. To which he
replied "What about the others." I told him they didn't hurt. He wasn't
impressed. After that he x-rayed all my wisdom teeth and informed me that I
should probably have them all removed. At the time he explained exactly the
reasons and they all made sense.
Then he asked me how I wanted to do the surgery. He again explained all
the reasons for having them out all at the same time. I do remember that
the most important two (to me) were 1.It's surgery and it's better to only
open up the body to possible infection once. 2.(this was mine) I knew if
I let him work on me and I didn't like what happened it would be very
unlikely I'd let him get a second chance.
The surgery went well and I was pleased with the results. Very little
pain during the surgery and I went to registration two days later. The
pain pills they gave me were great, and I slept probably 18 hours straight.
I can't recomend it as the greatest thing that's ever happeded to me but
it certainly wasn't as bad as I expected it to be. I think that this is in
part because I went to an Oral Surgeon. I think wisdom teeth extraction is
more than I'd be willing to let my dentist take care of.
--
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thoughts on programming:
Documentation is the castor oil of programming.... the
managers know it must be good because programmers hate it so
much.
Psychology of Computer Programming,
Gerald M. Weinberg
Internet: giaccone@rochester.arpa
UUCP: {decvax, allegra, seismo, cmcl2}!rochester!giacconepaveleck@ihlpl.UUCP (Bob Paveleck) (11/22/85)
> [] > while i've never had trouble to date with them, my dentist has finally > convinced me that i should have my wisdom teeth removed: 3 of 'em are > suffering from progressive decay, the 4th (upper left) is mildly > impacted, and if i want adult orthodontics i need the space. > > i don't need the horror stories. i get queasy just remembering the > bad times last summer with my wife's. i'd like to hear the good stories. > - what did you use to reduce swelling? pain? > - what sedation did you use? were you satisfied with it? > - any adult with recent orthodontic work think the extractions will help? > - how do you prepare mentally for this? > - what and how do you eat until things return to normal? > > i'm trying to be hopeful, since 3 *are* erupted, and only one root has a > tad of a hook to it. > > i trust net.med is right. there isn't a net.dental. > -- > << Generic disclaimer >> > Fred Christiansen ("Canajun, eh?") @ Motorola Microsystems, Tempe, AZ > UUCP: {seismo!terak, trwrb!flkvax, utzoo!mnetor, ihnp4, attunix}!mot!fred > ARPA: oakhill!mot!fred@ut-sally.ARPA "Families are Forever" I had all 4 of my wisdom teeth pulled at once a little over 5 years ago (just before I turned 21), so I guess I qualify as having had "recent" orthodontal work. In any event, I'll try to answer your questions in light of the experiences I had. (1) REDUCING SWELLING/PAIN: I was given Empirin/codeine tablets for this, as well as an antibiotic (I can't remember which one). I really didn't have very much pain (only occasional periods) and I only had measurable swelling with the bottom teeth (as they were mildly impacted). It only took 2 or 3 days for the swelling to subside; a couple more days for all traces of pain to disappear. (2) ANESTHETIC: My oral surgeon gave me sodium pentathol, since I really didn't want to hear the crunching and pulling he'd be doing in my mouth. I had no trouble at all with sodium pentathol, even though that was the first time I'd ever had it (nor did it bother me a couple of years later, when I was given that anesthetic for some minor surgery). (3) RESULTS OF ORAL SURGERY: I couldn't feel any differences (since I wasn't having any discomfort due to the wisdom teeth in the first place), but my dentist said that my other teeth shifted back a bit after the wisdom teeth were removed. Since my teeth were a little cramped before that, the dentist considered the surgery to have been quite beneficial. (4) HOW TO PREPARE FOR ORAL SURGERY: I was quite nervous about the surgery, since my younger brother had the same surgery not long before that and was very uncomfortable afterward. I had considered having only 2 of the wisdom teeth removed at a time (so that I'd have at least one side of my mouth to chew with), but I wanted to get the thing over with as soon as I could. I felt much better, though, when I got to the oral surgeon's office. (5) WHAT AND HOW TO EAT AFTERWARD: A few hours after the surgery, I was able to drink a milkshake (as I finally got the yucky taste of blood out of my mouth!). I was able to eat soft things (like sandwiches) the next day and by the 2nd day, I was eating pretty normally. All in all, it wasn't too bad an ordeal (certainly not as bad as I thought it would be). I'd especially recommend that you choose to have a general anesthetic administered to you instead of shots of novocaine (it probably makes the surgeon's work a bit easier with you not squirming and moaning in your seat!). Just taking it a little easy and following the surgeon's advice seems to be the best route to take. Bob Paveleck (ihuxf, ihlph)!paveleck