Still numb 60 hrs after lower wisdom teeth extractions

[Trixiec]

OMG, still frozen, how could this be???? 60 hrs, it feels like forever! I phoned the oral surgeons office, it was closed, the answering lady put me thru to the dental surgeon at home, he said" I warned you that there could be nerve damage", well I presumed this would be remote and almost never happens, well as I'm finding out, it happens all the time, and to know this could be weeks, months or even permanent! OMG this is crazy! My lower lip and whole chin, lots of lower teeth are as frozen as having just got the freezing needles 2 minutes ago. The stupid things weren't even cauzing me any grief. I'm so mad at my regular dentist for referring me, he probably gets a big bonus for this! If only I could turn back time! Now what, is this completely out of my control? Wow, how many of us are there? Pls let me know, any help would be greatly appreciated, Trixie

 

[brit]

Hi Trixiec
Sorry this has happened to you. Based on people who post on here it is not all that common but common enough for them to specifically mention it, particularly if they know the nerve is vulnerable.
I had 3 of my wisdom teeth out in a UK hospital in the 1980s and had a GA, I remember being warned about this and afterwards although I never think to mention it to people nowadays, I did have one area on one side of my mouth where the teeth felt numb.....I soon got used to it and eventually it went away without my really noticing. I guess it was months rather than years but I don't remember the exact details.
Hope you have a similar experience and that you don't have to wait too long.

The UK NHS has now moved to a policy of only extracting wisdom teeth if they are causing problems, not just doing it for the sake of it just in case. This saves the taxpayer-funded system money but also avoids things like this happening I suppose.
Your surgeon should really be monitoring your recovery and not just hiding behind the standard warning given as part of consent.
Good luck.

 

[comfortdentist]

Hi Trixiec
Sorry this has happened to you. Based on people who post on here it is not all that common but common enough for them to specifically mention it, particularly if they know the nerve is vulnerable.
I had 3 of my wisdom teeth out in a UK hospital in the 1980s and had a GA, I remember being warned about this and afterwards although I never think to mention it to people nowadays, I did have one area on one side of my mouth where the teeth felt numb.....I soon got used to it and eventually it went away without my really noticing. I guess it was months rather than years but I don't remember the exact details.
Hope you have a similar experience and that you don't have to wait too long.

The UK NHS has now moved to a policy of only extracting wisdom teeth if they are causing problems, not just doing it for the sake of it just in case. This saves the taxpayer-funded system money but also avoids things like this happening I suppose.
Your surgeon should really be monitoring your recovery and not just hiding behind the standard warning given as part of consent.
Good luck.

In the USA, it is generally considered appropiate to remove any impacted teeth. In regards to wisdom teeth it is considered appropiate in the USA to remove asymptamatic ones if the patient is young as there is a risk of tumors, cysts, various pathologies and increased bone loss on the back of the second molar when retained. When the roots are close to the nerve that is a significant risk increase in parathesias. More and more dentists in the USA now take cone beam CT scans when they suspect that the root is very close to the nerve. This greatly reduces risk of permenant damage. In most states it is illegal for the OMS to give any sort of monetary benefit to the referral source. I have never been offered any money or anyother benefit as an incentive for a referral.