Tooth extraction Health Dictionary

See TEETH.... tooth

A popular name for the last molar tooth on either side of each jaw (see TEETH). These teeth are the last to appear and should develop in early adult life, but often they do not cut the gum till the age of 20 or 25; indeed, they may sometimes remain permanently impacted in the jaw-bone. This occurs in up to 25 per cent of individuals. The lower third molar is often impacted against the second because of the direction in which it erupts.... wisdom tooth

Malformed extra TEETH are frequently found, particularly in the upper incisor region. They often do not erupt, but prevent the eruption of the permanent teeth.... tooth, supernumerary

A tooth that has become completely dislodged from its socket following an injury. If the tooth is kept moist, and treatment is sought immediately, reimplantation may be possible (see reimplantation, dental).... avulsed tooth

See fracture, dental.... broken tooth

See teeth.... canine tooth

An inherited muscle-wasting disease of the legs (see peroneal muscular atrophy).... charcot–marie–tooth disease

Crown badly decayed or weakened, it may be necessary to remove the entire natural crown of the tooth and then fit the artificial crown onto a post cemented in the root canal.... natural tooth

Removal of teeth by a dentist. Extraction may be performed when a tooth is severely decayed or too badly broken to be repaired, or when an abscess (see abscess, dental) has formed. Teeth may also be removed if there is crowding or malocclusion, if the teeth are loose due to gum disease, or if they are preventing another tooth from erupting (see eruption of teeth).

For most extractions, local anaesthesia is used (see anaesthesia, dental). Teeth are usually extracted with dental forceps, which grasp the root of the tooth. In difficult extractions, some gum and bone may also need to be removed from around the tooth.... extraction, dental

A tooth displaced in its socket as the result of an accident. The upper front teeth are the most vulnerable. A subluxated tooth can usually be manipulated back into position, and is then immobilized (see splinting, dental).

If the tooth’s blood vessels are torn, root-canal treatment is required.... subluxated tooth

See abscess, dental.... tooth abscess

An obstetric procedure to facilitate the delivery of a baby. It may be used if the second stage of labour (see childbirth) is prolonged, if the mother becomes exhausted, or if the baby shows signs of fetal distress. Vacuum suction techniques are also used to perform early abortions.

The vacuum extraction instrument consists of a suction cup connected to a vacuum bottle. The suction cup is placed on the baby’s head in the birth canal, and the vacuum machine sucks the baby’s scalp into the cup. The obstetrician draws the baby out of the mother’s vagina by gently pulling on the cup with each uterine contraction.

The baby is born with a swelling on the scalp, but this disappears after a few days, usually without treatment.... vacuum extraction

surgical removal of a cataract from the eye. In extracapsular cataract extraction the cataract alone is removed, leaving the lens capsule behind. Intracapsular cataract extraction is the removal of the whole lens, including the capsule that surrounds it.... cataract extraction

(peroneal muscular atrophy) a group of inherited diseases of the peripheral nerves, also known as hereditary sensorimotor neuropathy, causing a gradually progressive weakness and wasting of the muscles of the legs and the lower part of the thighs. The hands and arms are eventually affected. The genetic defect responsible for the most common form, type Ia, is a duplication on chromosome 17. The diagnosis is made by nerve conduction tests followed by genetic blood tests. [J. M. Charcot; P. Marie (1853–1940), French physician; H. H. Tooth (1856–1925), British physician]... charcot–marie–tooth disease

n. 1. the surgical removal of a part of the body. Extraction of teeth is usually achieved by applying *elevators and extraction *forceps to the crown or root of the tooth to dislocate it from its socket. When this is not possible, for example because the tooth or root is deeply buried within the bone, extraction is performed surgically by removing bone and, where necessary, dividing the tooth. 2. the act of pulling out a baby from the body of its mother during childbirth.... extraction

(tooth surface loss) a condition in which loss of tooth substance is excessive for the patient’s age. It includes *attrition, *erosion, and *abrasion, but the cause is not always obvious. A combination of intrinsic and extrinsic factors may be responsible.... tooth wear

see bleaching.... tooth whitening