Wisdom Tooth

[ikarus-]

Hello All,

I have this irritating Wisdom tooth from past 12 years, which keeps knocking my jaw every 6 months or so, But this its too much :ugh: This time I have made up my mind and will get it removed. Some has gone through same experience please share your experience I am bit apprehensive because I will be joining an airline soon and don't want to complicate things.

[vikdream]

Hi Ikarus,

I am about to (actually in 2h time) remove my third one, having removed 2 last week. The process is not painful at all and the recovery takes about 1 week ish. That is the hard bit. During that time (or the first 3-4 days really) your cheeks will be twice their size, it will be hard for you to eat and it will be painful at times (very painful if you don't take your prescription drugs, so don't be a fool like me and buy them straight away or you will regret it, especially for the first day).

Apart from that, nothing major. One of my teeth was very very close to a nerve, so I was at a higher risk of suffering from paresthesia after the removal (which is a tingling sensation in your mouth which can actually be chronical). That is the only thing that can be a bit worrying, but not really. My doctors said that even if it happened to me nobody else would notice it and it would not affect my speech so my RT would be safe!

Before removing them I had no issues at all with them whatsoever, so I can't really tell how much you are going to improve with the operation. I just removed them because 3 of them were found to be in a dangerous position years ago for another X-ray checking my gums.

Finally, I have heard that you can't really fly in 2-3 weeks time (can't tell you because I have got some weeks off now and won't be nowhere near that), but that is something that you will have to work out once you have your appointment with the doctor. It took for me some time to get things done before the actual removal so if they are bothering you get your phone and call them asap :ok:

[pigs are us]

Better out than in. Whilst it remains "quiet" for long periods of time, the infection can flare up at very short notice which, in severe cases can lead to hospital admission for an intensive course of antibiotics.
Depending how difficult the removal of the tooth is, you may need a couple of days away from work. A lot depends whether it is an upper or lower tooth and how much bone removal is necessary to gain access to the tooth.
To quote the saying "once it's gone, it's gone".
Hope all goes well.

[ikarus-]

Hi Vik & P.A.U Thanks for replying, I'hv got an appointment on Tuesday for the Surgery ;). He said its complicated but can be done but if I will leave it then it will keep reminding me of its presence.

[greekboy]

Ikarus,

Assuming it's a lower tooth, just make sure you leave ample time off from flying duties, as you may experience numbness for some time in both your lip and tongue This may interfere with comms.

[MelbPilot85]

Rip it out if it's causing trouble. I had the bottom two out under local anaesthetic when they started causing me grief, and was back flying (Long Haul) 4 days later. The first one or two days weren't very pleasant, but after that it was more than manageable.

[RONTOM-EGPD]

Hi All,

I'm getting all four removed on the 13th April. :oh: I phoned my Dr at the CAA and she said I'll need a 7 day unfit letter from my AME up here in Aberdeen. She said it was purely for the RT side of things, which makes sense. I've never been under general anaesthetic before, so this is all going to be an experience! :ok:

[Justine Emanuel]

My dentist said wisdom tooth are not that important. We can eat and live without them. I had 2 of mine removed a couple of years ago. I'm ok! ;)

[ikarus-]

Hi All,
I got it removed take a week rest as it causes pain intermittently in my case I have got stitches as well.

IK

[fa2fi]

Has anyone had this done with intravenous sedatives? How is the recovery and unfit times compared to a general anaesthetic. I hold a class one. I want to get mine out but I cannot do it without either being unconscious or sedated.

Mine keep giving me trouble and one adjacent tooth has been destroyed by wisdom tooth on left and the actual wisdom tooth it causing me sharp intermittent pain.

I'm considering getting this and the other lower wisdom tooth out. They have been causing me issues all of my life but I'm terrified of the dentist. Getting that tooth and a filling last year was extremely traumatic for me!

[ikarus-]

Hello Fa2fi,
I can understand wisdom tooth really kills you, in my case they numbed my jaw by Injection(twice) its not comfortable.
I will suggest you to sit with your dentist (a good one) and discuss and it takes around a week or two to recover so plan accordingly.
PS : be ready for liquid diet for few days ;)

Cheers
Ikarus

[Radgirl]

Fa2fi

Sedation and general anaesthesia are both possible. The time for the drugs to get out of your body are if anything longer with sedation but the CAA will impose the same grounding time. In practice after sedation you will not get that groggy feeling and be able to go home after an hour or so

Sedation does not provide pain relief so the dentist will still need to use local anaesthetic injections. The sedation removes anxiety making the injections and the operation more bearable. The injections will provide pain relief for some hours afterwards

The choice is really yours. General means a hospital admission so there may be a wait.

One word of caution. Sedation needs the same skills, perhaps more skill, than a general anaesthetic. Insist it is given by an anaesthetist who is an NHS consultant. Some sedation in dental practices is given by people with less skill or experience - they may call themselves anaesthetists but I wouldn't let them sedate me!!!

With this proviso it is no big deal. You will be sore for a day or so but if you were not a pilot you would be back at work on the second day

[fa2fi]

Hi guys. Thanks a lot for your replies and apologies for the thread hijack. I think I'm going to have to have a chat with AME/dentist/work and see what's what. Not looking forward to it. It has settled down for now but I know it won't be long til it reoccurs! Thanks once again :-)

[RatherBeFlying]

Here in North America, the Oral Surgeons do the complicated wisdom tooth extractions. Anesthesia is often used and they have the training for it.

If bone is involved, you will be on painkillers, often the really strong stuff; so no flying and be careful about driving.

Two of my wisdom teeth came out for cavities, but they were simple extractions and had no impact on daily activities.

The dental implants involved bone and it was a couple weeks before I was back to normal.

[Pilot DAR]

I had my uppers, then lowers taken out in pairs a few years back. General anesthetic both times. My wife drove me home from one, by daughter from the other. I have only the most faint recollection of seeing the pharmacy sign when my wife stopped for medicine for me, otherwise I have no recollection of the procedure, 45 minute drive home, nor going to bed that night. Both times I woke up quite well the next morning, and 95% the following day. In both cases, I did not need pain killers after the second day.

I had waited years longer than I should have, due to being nervous about it. In hind sight, I wish I'd had all four out at once. If you need it, get it done...

[Private jet]

Had a lower right one removed about 3 years ago under local anaesthetic. Took the surgeon half an hour to get it out after breaking it into pieces. Gum stitched up and sent home. Surgeon assured me "You can fly in 48 hours no problem!" A Billy Bull****ter.... I looked like a puffer fish next morning, even my neck was bruised. Liquid diet (soup) for 2+ days, no way I could have flown safely after that. Plus I was prescribed inadequate pain relief (Sodium Diclofenac....oh come on....) Thankfully I had some spare Tramadol at home!
You'll need a week off.

[victorc10]

A very important consideration is that operating with an infected wisdom tooth is of course not allowed, your medical is not valid (In Europe at least).

I was of course astounded one day when the FO mentioned that two days earlier she had had two wisdom teeth removed!! I had one removed earlier that year and after two days was unable to eat or even speak with any clarity.

Tramadol was the only thing that stopped the pain!

[Radgirl]

I do hope this mass of postings doesn't put people off having teeth removed when necessary. Some decades ago dentists liked removing wisdom teeth 'in case' but nowadays IMHO they now only advise extraction when necessary

Some are easier to remove than others: a tooth that has partially erupted and which is impacted in the bone will be more difficult. A good dentist will take an X ray and only remove those within his or her capability. Pain is usually not too bad. The difficult ones are referred to max fax surgeons who may need to remove some bone. Historically this was ouch:sad::O:sad::sad: but nowadays most patients are back at non flying jobs within 2-3 days

[crossfiller]

Hi ikarus

When taking any tooth out there’s a hierarchy of difficulty:-
Simple forceps extraction - the dentist gets hold of the tooth with the forceps and removes it.
Sectioning and elevating – the roots (of a multi-rooted tooth) are separated from each other and each one extracted individually.
Soft tissue surgery – in order to get at the tooth a flap of soft tissue has to be raised.
Hard tissue surgery – in order to get at the tooth bone has to be removed.

Each tooth is individual and there may be additional factors (such as how broken down the tooth is, its position relative to surrounding teeth, and the shape/size of the roots), but as a ‘rule of thumb’ as you move through the hierarchy the greater the amount of post operative pain/swelling there will be, and the greater chance of other post operative complications.

Generally speaking 3rd molars (wisdom teeth) being right at the back of the mouth are a bit more difficult to get at, however upper wisdom teeth often aren’t that difficult to extract, it’s the lower ones that tend to cause the problems. This is because the jaw raises at the back which means the tooth is more likely to be covered by gum or bone, and the shape of the jaw where it rises can cause the tooth to erupt at an angle and become impacted against the tooth in front (also the lower jaw has a higher bone density than the upper) – all of which means that having to do soft or hard tissue surgery is more likely.

In any event your dentist should be able to access the situation and give you an idea of what’s involved. For a simple forceps extraction you may feel ok to fly the next day (but probably a good idea to take one day off post op just in case of complications) – if bone surgery’s involved you might need a up to a week.

[Radgirl]

As I said, I do hope people aren't put off:D

[ikarus-]

Hello CF ,
Sorry I could check your message earlier in my case it was wisdom tooth on lower side & it was quite complicated because of its angle,position etc
after removal I wasnt able to work properly for 2 weeks,usually I dont take painkillers but this time I was hogging them like candies.
Things improve after your stitches are removed (in my case it was after a week ) thankfully I m not flying at the moment. If someone is in active flying duty I would tell them to be mentally ready for a 2 week deal with lot of painkillers.

Regards,
Ikarus