Extractions can be required for a few reasons.

• The structure of the tooth is too weak or broken to restore. If the size of the decay on a tooth is too large then it becomes non-repairable.

• A cracked tooth can lead to a fracture. Once a crack gets large enough and travels far enough  tooth will allow bacteria to enter where it should not be and need to be extracted

• An infected tooth either needs to be root canal treated or extracted.

• Severe crowding may require some teeth to be extracted to allow for orthodontic treatment.

• 3rd molars or wisdom teeth may need to be extracted. the majority of people do not have enough space these teeth and as a result become impacted and difficult to maintain clean and healthy.

The main objective of an extraction is to remove the tooth with the least amount of damage possible and to leave the bone surrounding the tooth. Many times it is necessary to remove some surrounding bone that is fused to the roots, or roots that have a hook shape, or impacted teeth that have bone surrounding the top of the tooth.

Healing after an extraction is usually relatively quick and can be managed with minimal pain.