Tag: incision

Dental Extractions

Dental extractions are among the easiest and best ways to get relief from a toothache. As the name implies, an extraction involves removing the tooth. If your pulp has died or the tooth has become severely infected, extraction may be your only route. Depending on the tooth, the dentist can do either a simple extraction or a more complicated extraction.

Simple extractions
These types of extractions, the simple extractions, are the most common in the world of dentistry. During a simple extraction, the dentist will remove the tooth by loosening the gums around the socket. He will grasp the tooth with forceps and move it from side to side until he can get it to break free from the socket and remove it.

The teeth are held to the bone by a thin piece of soft tissue. This soft tissue is known as the periodontal ligament. The dentist uses this tissue to remove the tooth. As you may know, the key to removing a tooth by pulling is to rock the tooth from side to side, which enlarges the socket in the bone and breaks the ligament that helps to hold the tooth in place.

Simple extractions, also known as pulling, dont take long to complete. The dentist will numb you before he starts, so you wont feel anything. Depending on the tooth, pulling it will normally take just a few minutes after you have been numbed with local anesthesia. Once completed, the dentist will place gauze in your mouth to bite on and you will be free to go.

Complex extractions
As we all know, not all teeth can be pulled. Sometimes, the tooth will be so decayed or broken off that the dentist will have nothing to grasp above the gum line. In cases such as this, the dentist will need to perform a more complicated extraction, which involves getting the tooth out below the gum line, as he wont be able to use the standard method of pulling and rocking.

These types of extractions involve the dentist making an incision in the gums around the tooth, and raising the flap he cut to expose the bone. Once he has exposed the bone, there may be enough of the tooth exposed for the dentist to grab and remove it using the pulling method. In most cases however, the tooth will be embedded in the bone, meaning that the dentist will be unable to pull the tooth out.

With teeth that are imbedded in the bone, the dentist will need to use a drill and chip away at the bone to get to the tooth. This is known as cutting the tooth out, and happens to be very common with impacted teeth or teeth that are severely decayed. Once the dentist has cut his way to the tooth and removed it, he will sew back the flap of skin that he cut to get to the tooth. The flap of skin and the socket will heal over time – providing you take care of it.

Dental extractions are very common, and happen on a daily basis for dentists. Oral surgeons are the best for extractions, as extractions are all they do. All types of extractions, even the most complex, will take time to heal. As long as you take care of your extraction site, youll avoid common pitfalls such as dry sockets and other mishaps. Although they can be painful once the procedure is over – youll eventually start to feel a lot better once you have had the tooth or teeth removed.

Are Women Good Candidates for Hair Transplant Surgery?

Balding is not just a men’s problem; women often lose hair as they get older as well. You might wonder, if that is the case, why more women do not have hair transplant surgery. You may be surprised to know that many women are not good candidates.

Women usually have a different type of hair loss than men. Male pattern baldness uncovers parts of the top of the head. However, the sides and back of the head are usually covered with healthy balding-resistant hair follicles.

Men with this pattern of balding will have donor hair that survives the hair transplant process and flourishes long afterward. That is because a naturally-occurring enzyme in the body combines with testosterone to create a chemical called DHT. This chemical is responsible for the hair loss on the tops of men’s heads when they have male pattern baldness.

However, it does not affect the back and sides of their hair in most cases. These areas have healthy hair follicles and make excellent donor sites for hair transplant surgery. These are called stable sites because they remain unchanged over time rather than shrinking like the hair follicles affected by DHT do.

Female pattern baldness is different. In most cases, they do not have large areas of stable balding-resistant hair follicles. The sides and back of their hair tends to thin just as the front and top of the head do. The DHT affects all the areas of their hair.

Any hair follicles that are affected by DHT will simply fall out if they are moved by hair transplant procedures. Moving them from one place to another does not affect the basic nature of the hair follicle.

Also, women do not have the problem of receding hairlines in most cases. Their hair is lost in a more diffuse manner, thinning uniformly all over the head. It is not so much where their hair is that is the problem, but how much they have. Hair transplant surgery will not correct this problem. It is best used to move hair from one place to another.

There is a very small percentage – about 5% of all women with baldness problems – who are good candidates for hair transplant surgery. The thing that all these women have in common is that they all have healthy areas of hair follicles that can be used as donor sites.

For example, women with mechanical or traction Alopecia have lost their hair because they have scratched their head for a long period of time, they have used tight rollers or their hair has been pulled or stretched in any manner. These women almost always have an area of their hair that is unaffected. If they do, they can have hair transplant procedures.

Some women have cosmetic surgery and suffer hair loss around the incision sites. In these cases, hair transplant surgery can help. Other women actually have a pattern of hair loss that is similar to male pattern baldness. These women are able to have the surgery, too.

Finally, women who have suffered trauma from accidents or burns are good candidates for hair transplant procedures. If you are a woman with balding problems, is worth the time to consult with a doctor to find out if you are one of the women who can benefit from hair transplant surgery.

Tennis Elbow in Adolescents

Tennis elbow is a condition in which tendon fibers that attach on epicondyle on the elbows exterior degenerates. The tendons talked about here anchor the muscles that help wrist and hand to lift. Although tennis elbow occurs mostly in patients of thirty to fifty years of age but it can happen to people of any age. Also tennis elbow affects almost fifty percent of teenagers who are in racquet sports thus the name tennis elbow. But still most of the patients who suffer with tennis elbow are people who dont play racquet sports. Majority if the times there isnt any specific injury before the symptoms start showing up. Tennis elbow can also happen to people who use their forearm muscles frequently and vigorously for day to day work and recreational activities. Ironically some patients develop the condition without any of the activity related reasons that leads to the symptoms.

The symptoms of tennis elbow include severe burning pain on the elbows exterior region. In majority of the cases this starts as a slow and mild pain gradually worsening with the passage of few weeks or sometimes months. The pain worsens when one tries to lift objects. In some cases it may pain even while lifting light objects like a book or full coffee cup. In the severest cases it can pain even at the movement of the elbow.

The diagnosis of the tennis elbow involves physician enquiring about the medical history of the teenager and a physical examination of the elbow by pressing directly on the part where bone is prominent on the elbows exterior to check if it causes any pain. The physician may also ask the teenager to lift the fingers or wrist and apply pressure to check if it causes any pain again. X-rays are never opted for diagnosis. However a MRI scan may be done to see changes in tendons at the attachment to the bone.

There are many treatment options available and in majority of the cases non-surgical treatment is given a try. The ultimate goal of the 1st phase of the treatment is pain relief. Be ready to hear from the physician to stop any activity leading to the symptoms. The doctor may also tell the teenager to apply ice to elbows exterior and he/she may also tell the teenager to take anti-inflammatory medicines for relief from pain.

The symptoms also diminished with the help of orthotics. The physician may also want to go for counterforce braces and also wrist splints which can greatly cut down symptoms by providing rest to tendons and muscles. The symptoms should show signs of recovery within 4 to 6 weeks otherwise next option would be to go for a injection called corticosteroid in the vicinity of the elbow. This greatly reduces pain and is also very safe to use. There are many side affects involved if it is overused.
Once there is a relief from pain the treatments next phase starts which involve modification of activities in order to prevent the symptoms from returning. The doctor may also prescribe the teenager to go for physical therapy which may include stretching exercises to gradually increase the strength of the affected tendons and muscles. Physical therapies have high success rates and return your elbow back to normal working again. Again non-surgical procedures are highly successful in eighty five to ninety percent patients.

Surgical procedure is considered only when patients undergo relentless pain that doesnt improve even after 6 months of non-surgical treatment. The procedure involves removal of affected tendon tissue and attaching it back to bone. The surgery is done on outpatient basis and does not need stay at the hospital. The surgery is done by making a small incision on elbows exteriors bony prominence. In recent years a surgery known as arthroscopic surgery has also been developed but no major benefits have been seen using it over the traditional method of open incision.

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Facelifts Can Rejuvenate Your Look

When you get older, age and gravity do things to your face that change your appearance drastically. Gravity pulls the skin down causing the sagging many people experience. The sagging makes you look tired and even much older than you really are. A facelift can correct the actions of gravity and nature.

A facelift removes the lower loose skin on your face. An incision is made along your hairline and around your ears. The skin is then removed from the face with the excess skin being trimmed off. The skin is then reattached to the face and ears. The incision is in locations of the face where they are easily hidden and so will be the scars. The recovery time for the procedure is about four months.

The facelift will help to eliminate the wrinkles and other signs of aging from sagging skin and even crows feet around the eyes. Other surgeries to enhance the aging are eyebrow lifts and elevators during the facelift. When you have your consultation with your doctor, they will advise you of the additional procedures available that can be performed during the operation.

Realize that even a facelift will not stop the aging process as it is only natural for everyone. There are things you can do to prolong the affects of the facelift. Healthy living with diet and exercise are factors that help to keep your face and body young and firm. Drink eight 8-ounce glasses of water to keep your body hydrated including the needs of your face and skin. Protect your skin, especially your face from exposure from the sun. Add sunscreen on all exposed skin to reduce the harmful UV rays.

Do not smoke. This speeds the aging of skin and causes the skin to lose its elasticity making it appear older than your real age. There are options for facial maintenance including dermabrasion, collagen injections, laser treatments, and peels to help you maintain healthy and firm skin.

When you have tried everything else, you will be satisfied with the results of the facelift. It will have a positive impact on your life and your appearance. You will remove years from your appearance making you have a higher self-confidence and self-esteem. Many people feel younger when they have the surgery.

If you are considering having the surgery, ask your surgeon during the consultation about any concerns you may have regarding the surgery and the recovery time. Inquire about the surgeons past and credentials. Discuss everything regarding the surgery so you fully understand the procedures. Remember, the facelift is a surgical procedure so you will be needing follow up treatment and possibly medication for inflammation. Be completely sure you are mentally, emotionally, and physically ready for the surgery.