Wisdom tooth - ouch
Thread Starter
Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 438
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From: UK
Well, I had my wisdom teeth removed – here's what happened for the benefit of those who are planning to get this done. This was a surgical extraction of an impacted and infected tooth though – if it is just a normal one then your dentist can just haul it out in his office.
I rolled up at the hospital (BUPA) and got taken to my (ensuite) room by the nurse who met me. Everybody was really friendly and she gave me a few minutes to settle in and get out of my clothes into the rather stylish gown they had provided for me. I then spent the next couple of hours relaxing, reading the paper and watching tv while a variety of people came by – the nurse came back to get some more medical history, check that I wasn't on any other meds etc. the anesthetist came to say hello and go through what I could expect in theatre and the catering chap popped in to ask me what I would like to eat for dinner when I was finished! There was alcohol on the menu but my request for a glass of Pinot Grigio was refused for some odd reason...
Anyway, then the surgeon turned up to go through what he was going to do (I had already had this conversation with him when I first met him) but he wanted to make sure I had no last minute questions. There was a delay in theatre but eventually a couple of guys came and wheeled me in my bed up to the operating theatre (looked a little more like a storage cupboard if you ask me) and they hooked me up to a variety of machines to monitor my heart rate and blood pressure. The anesthetist then shoved a needle into the back on my hand and injected me with some liquid antibiotics then a large amount of white liquid which made my forearm go cold.
Next thing I was a wake in recovery, feeling a little groggy with my mouth full of gauze. After I was fully awake, they took me back to my room where I spent the next couple of hours dribbling large amounts of blood and saliva, but after about two hours, I stopped replacing the gauze and and the dribbling had largely dried up. I felt pretty lucid although I was starting to look a bit like a hamster and the site of the surgery was pretty sore. He had removed one surgically but I had asked him to take the other two out (I only had three for some reason) as they were pressing on the teeth adjacent to them and giving me some grief too.
About three hours after the operation they brought me my dinner but I couldn't really get my mouth open far enough to make the best of it and it was pretty sore to chew. They gave me a load of pain killers, ibuprofen and a short course of antibiotics and I was heading home in a taxi about 5 hours after I came out of theatre. I felt fine but they insisted I didn't drive home due to the drugs that would still be in my system.
Fours days on, it is still a little swollen and it is still a bit sore to eat, although I am told it will take a couple of weeks to regain full jaw movement and to be able to eat without discomfort. I have pain in my ear too at the moment but that is just referred pain from the jaw so I'm told.
I am due to return to work next week and am looking forward to it. I have been off for a while as the company doctor advised me not to fly prior to my surgery as he reckoned that the infected tooth can create bubbles of gas and cause barotrauma. It was also affecting my ear believe it or not – I guess that the infected tooth was swelling up and causing the tissue around the ear to swell and block the eustachian tube.
Anyway, it was a breeze although I am glad it is over and I actually feel a lot better even though it is still sore.....maybe the fact that the infection is now gone is just making me feel generally better?
If anybody is getting this done and has any questions feel free to PM me.
I rolled up at the hospital (BUPA) and got taken to my (ensuite) room by the nurse who met me. Everybody was really friendly and she gave me a few minutes to settle in and get out of my clothes into the rather stylish gown they had provided for me. I then spent the next couple of hours relaxing, reading the paper and watching tv while a variety of people came by – the nurse came back to get some more medical history, check that I wasn't on any other meds etc. the anesthetist came to say hello and go through what I could expect in theatre and the catering chap popped in to ask me what I would like to eat for dinner when I was finished! There was alcohol on the menu but my request for a glass of Pinot Grigio was refused for some odd reason...
Anyway, then the surgeon turned up to go through what he was going to do (I had already had this conversation with him when I first met him) but he wanted to make sure I had no last minute questions. There was a delay in theatre but eventually a couple of guys came and wheeled me in my bed up to the operating theatre (looked a little more like a storage cupboard if you ask me) and they hooked me up to a variety of machines to monitor my heart rate and blood pressure. The anesthetist then shoved a needle into the back on my hand and injected me with some liquid antibiotics then a large amount of white liquid which made my forearm go cold.
Next thing I was a wake in recovery, feeling a little groggy with my mouth full of gauze. After I was fully awake, they took me back to my room where I spent the next couple of hours dribbling large amounts of blood and saliva, but after about two hours, I stopped replacing the gauze and and the dribbling had largely dried up. I felt pretty lucid although I was starting to look a bit like a hamster and the site of the surgery was pretty sore. He had removed one surgically but I had asked him to take the other two out (I only had three for some reason) as they were pressing on the teeth adjacent to them and giving me some grief too.
About three hours after the operation they brought me my dinner but I couldn't really get my mouth open far enough to make the best of it and it was pretty sore to chew. They gave me a load of pain killers, ibuprofen and a short course of antibiotics and I was heading home in a taxi about 5 hours after I came out of theatre. I felt fine but they insisted I didn't drive home due to the drugs that would still be in my system.
Fours days on, it is still a little swollen and it is still a bit sore to eat, although I am told it will take a couple of weeks to regain full jaw movement and to be able to eat without discomfort. I have pain in my ear too at the moment but that is just referred pain from the jaw so I'm told.
I am due to return to work next week and am looking forward to it. I have been off for a while as the company doctor advised me not to fly prior to my surgery as he reckoned that the infected tooth can create bubbles of gas and cause barotrauma. It was also affecting my ear believe it or not – I guess that the infected tooth was swelling up and causing the tissue around the ear to swell and block the eustachian tube.
Anyway, it was a breeze although I am glad it is over and I actually feel a lot better even though it is still sore.....maybe the fact that the infection is now gone is just making me feel generally better?
If anybody is getting this done and has any questions feel free to PM me.
