Below are some of the most frequently asked questions patients have about dentistry and oral health issues. If you have any other questions, or would like to schedule an appointment, we would love to hear from you.
Click on a question below to see the answer.

Remember, that each person is different! So if you feel pain in the corners of your mouth and think you might be getting your wisdom teeth, request an appointment with your dentist and get a referral. We’re happy to help you out with your smile!
This is because if your stomach is full, there is a small chance that you could vomit the contents up and then suck the contents into your lungs. This proves to be a very dangerous situation, that can be easily avoided by fasting. If you have not adequately fasted, we may need to cancel or reschedule your appointment, in the interest of your personal safety.
Please remember, however, that small amounts of water may be had in order to take any medications such as cardiac medications, steroids, anti-seizure medications, etc.
Extractions completed under IV sedation, however, are a completely different story. After a procedure completed under IV sedation, you will be under the influence of the drugs for most of the day. Afterwards, you may experience soreness, but pain should not be felt as long as you follow our pain management instructions and prescriptions. After the procedure, we strongly recommend no work or school for two days, followed by another 5 days of no strenuous physical activity.
However, for more serious or complex procedures completed under IV anesthesia, a combination of antibiotics, steroids, painkillers and narcotics are usually prescribed, provided there are no health problems.

You can think of blood clots like scabs on your body when you get hurt or cut. If the scab comes off too early, it hurts a lot and there is bleeding from the underlying injury. A dry socket is the same way: if the blood clot comes out too soon, the underlying socket will hurt and potentially bleed more.
Dry sockets cause a radiating pain up and down the side of your face and will hurt more when drinking cold water or breathing in cold air. This is due to the exposure of the bone of the socket.
To avoid a dry socket, it is important that you avoid the following for at least 3 days following your extractions:
- -Drinking from a straw, smoking or any other sucking action
- -Spitting, rinsing or swishing actions
- -strenuous physical activity
- -carbonated beverages may also cause dry socket, which is why water is always recommended

Implants and bridges are recommended when a tooth extraction has resulted in a missing space in your smile. The alternative to implants and bridges is to leave the space as it is, resulting in a gap in your smile. Bridges are two or more crowns for the teeth on either side of the gap and a false tooth/teeth in between, filling in the gap and making your smile full again. The downside of bridges, however, is that the two adjacent teeth will have to be shaved down in order for the crowns to rest on top.
Implants, on the other hand, are false teeth that are placed directly into the jawbone, without causing any damage or shaving down any other teeth. For this reason, implants are the preferred method of replacing teeth, for either cosmetic or functional uses. Dental implants have a success rate of about 98%.
As we work on a case-by-case basis, please contact us and let us know about your situation and how we can help.