<p>So, I'm getting them out.</p>
<p>First, I went to a consultation with someone who was a complete ******-berry, but regardless, he only had a D.D.S (I believe that was it)</p>
<p>He does the surgery and anesthesia by himself, and I'm just confused how you can do anesthesia without an M.D.?</p>
<p>Turns out I went to a second different guy who has a D.D.S and an M.D.</p>
<p>“Anesthesia” can range from the local anesthesia that is injected to perform nerve blocks to intravenous and inhaled medications that render the patient unconcious. Any time your dentist does a nerve block to fill a cavity, he/she is providing anesthesia. When a dentists administers a nitrous oxide/oxygen mix, he/she isproviding anesthesia. So a little more description of the plan is in order.</p>
<p>An oral surgeon is a dentist who had done a resdency in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. The OMFS residency requires a minimum of four months training in anesthesia. During this time, the OMFS resident is expected to have a workload that is comparable to any anesthesia resident. An oral surgeon has priviledges to administer a wider range of injected and inhaled medications.</p>
<p>You don’t have to have an MD/DO to provide dental anesthesia. You must have an MD/DO to do a residency in anesthesiology. </p>
<p>Simply having an MD/DO doesn’t give you the background and training to provide anesthesia. No better recent example than Michael Jackson’s “personal physician”, a cardiologist with no business administering anesthetic medications.</p>
<p>lol, OP you sound like a complete snob. He “only” had a DDS. It’s such a stereotypical annoying premed attitude to think the MD is the end-all and to have a deflated view of the importance of other clinical degrees than the MD.</p>
<p>Riley:</p>
<p>I learned long ago that MY surgeons don’t need a good beside manner, heck, they don’t need no manners at all – just great hands and expertise!</p>
<p>For wisdom teeth, winners are fast recovery and few infected, dry pockets. Since you will see an oral surgeon few times in life, I’ll put up with a “complete ******-berry” anytime for a fast recovery and no infection.</p>
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<p>:rolleyes: The “S” in DDS does stand for “Surgery”. A dentist is certainly qualified and trained to extract wisdom teeth, but the prevailing wisdom (;)) is that an oral surgeon (who, as a slight correction to LWMD’s post, can be either a DDS or MD) who will have much more experience doing this procdure might be the better choice, especially for more severe impaction.</p>
<p>Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery is way too much school for me, but I’m sure those guys make a killing. Wisdom teeth removal isn’t cheap, and it’s not like the malpractice for that is that high. lol.</p>
<p>My understanding is that one must have a DDS to be an Oral Surgeon, but that it is becoming more and more common to see MD/DDS degrees. Is that not right? Can one do it MD-only? Is this out of… plastics, or something?</p>
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True, but an anesthesia residency is three years long (four, counting the PGY-1 year).</p>
<p>See [In</a> Pursuit of Safer Dental Anesthesia - The New York Times](<a href=“http://www.nytimes.com/1993/06/16/news/in-pursuit-of-safer-dental-anesthesia.html]In”>http://www.nytimes.com/1993/06/16/news/in-pursuit-of-safer-dental-anesthesia.html)</p>
<p>OP, it’s probably best to consider dentists to be doctors that already chose their specialty. </p>
<p>There is always an option not to have anesthesia. I have done many implants (harsher procedure that involved pulling teeth and crinding bones) just with local shots, althoug my oral surgeon made a lot of efforts trying convince me (I have 5 implants by the same surgeon in 3 different ocasions). I am afraid of anesthesia much more than actual procedure, I want to know what is going on. You do not feel any pain, if you ever do, you let them know and they give you additional shots. I am not sure about reason for anesthesia. Such an inconvinience, you need somebody to drive you. After all my oral surgeries I was able to drive to work by myself, it is much less ordeal without anesthesia.</p>
<p>I will not even do a cavity without the shots and laughing gas. I absolutely cannot stand the feeling of dremel on tooth or it being yanked out.</p>
<p>When I had my wisdom teeth pulled I was sedated. I was still conscious, but I was so out of it I couldn’t feel a thing. Best dental experience of my life.</p>
<p>^ Don’t you need somebody driving you then? Can you go to work after laughing gas. Honestly, you do not feel anything after shots, and if you do, they give you more shots (my teeth are much more sensitive than average, my dentist is aware of it). I have never had laughing gas, I have one of the worst set of teeths, tons of cavities, surgeries, root canals, crowns and 5 implants with some of the teeth needed to be yanked out using small hammer to literally dig it out since nothing was left there but root. But whatever is your preference, good luck! I am just scared of general anesthesia.</p>
<p>The whole wisdom teeth removal process was HORRIBLE. I wouldnt wish it upon my worst enemy,lol.</p>