Oral Surgical Conditions - Temecula, CA
Our Oral Surgeon Changes Lives by Restoring Smiles
We Blend Surgical Expertise With Compassion
At Innovative Implant & Oral Surgery Center, we treat a wide variety of common and complex oral health issues, from periodontal disease and oral pathologies to replacing missing teeth in Temecula, CA. Our oral and maxillofacial surgeon Dr. Kenneth B. Whitworth has advanced training and decades of experience restoring and enhancing the natural beauty and function of patients’ smiles using the latest technologies. Whether you have an impacted tooth, missing teeth, failing dental implants or gum disease, we’re committed to delivering the highest standards of care with a compassionate touch—to ensure you feel comfortable, safe and valued.
Oral Pathologies
Potential signs of an oral pathology include reddish or whitish patches in your mouth, oral sores that bleed easily, a lump or thickening on the skin lining the inside of your mouth or a chronic sore throat or hoarseness and/or difficulty chewing or swallowing. We recommend performing an oral cancer self-examination monthly and calling us as soon as possible if you detect changes. During every standard exam, Dr. Whitworth performs an oral cancer screening and if any lesion or area looks abnormal, he’ll do a biopsy.
Impacted Canines
Maxillary canine teeth (also called eyeteeth or cuspid teeth) are the second most frequent teeth to become impacted after wisdom teeth. As the last of the front teeth to erupt, canines close any gaps between other upper teeth and are essential to a normal bite because they’re the first teeth to touch when your jaw closes. If the impacted canine has no room to erupt, early treatment between the ages of 10 and 13 involves extracting the baby tooth to encourage spontaneous eruption. Surgical exposure is a common method to assist natural eruption. Dr. Whitworth lifts the gum tissue on top of the impacted tooth to expose it, extracts the baby tooth if present, and then sutures back the gums. Sometimes, treatment involves surgically exposing the tooth and bonding an attachment and little chain that apply orthodontic forces to move the tooth.
Problematic Wisdom Teeth
Because wisdom teeth (third molars) are located in the back of your mouth, they’re difficult to clean and prone to decay, infection, gum disease, pain and even the development of cysts in the surrounding soft tissue. In most cases, inadequate space in the mouth prohibits
wisdom teeth from erupting properly and becoming fully functional. Moreover, wisdom teeth are often located in close proximity to nerves, sinus cavities and other teeth, therefore oral surgeons are the most qualified clinicians to extract them. Dr. Whitworth performs wisdom teeth extraction routinely, safely and comfortably, including complex cases.
Failing or Missing Teeth
If you have failing or missing teeth, you may be experiencing serious self-esteem issues because you feel too embarrassed to smile or interact with others. Tooth loss can also lead to declining oral health and function, including the ability to enjoy food, loss of bone and shifting of surrounding teeth. Dr. Whitworth has placed more than 5,000 dental implants, helping patients with missing teeth in Temecula, CA regain their smile and oral health.
Periodontal Disease
As an oral surgeon, Dr. Whitworth has expertise providing a wide range of procedures for gum disease in Temecula, CA, including crown lengthening, gingival grafting and osseous surgery. Crown lengthening is done to expose more of a tooth to allow placement of a restoration or remove excessive gum tissue in the smile zone (gummy smile). Gingival grafting is a procedure used to cover exposed tooth roots and add volume to your gum line, effectively eliminating or reducing sensitivity and improving aesthetics. During osseous surgery, Dr. Whitworth makes small incisions in your gum line, then fold back your gums to remove bacteria that has formed underneath. After removing the bacteria, the areas where bone damage has occurred is smoothed. If more severe bone damage has occurred, a bone graft may be required.
Tongue Tie and Upper Arch Issues
A simple surgical procedure typically done in infants and children, frenectomy involves removal of one or both frenums. The lingual frenum connects the tongue to the floor of the mouth. A lingual frenectomy is often referred to as tongue-tie surgery because a restrictive frenum can cause speech issues in young children. The labial frenum is a small piece of soft tissue that connects gum tissue to the upper lip above the two upper front teeth. A labial frenectomy is done to prevent or close a gap between the two front teeth, treat gum recession and open-mouth breathing and avoid future orthodontic issues.
Moderate to Severe Bone Loss
Gum disease, tooth extraction, trauma and infections can permanently damage the underlying bone that supports your teeth. Bone grafting can prevent bone recession as well as restore bone that is already lost. Bone grafting may be needed to stabilize and help restore the jaw foundation in preparation for implants and to correct deformities. The upper back jaw is a difficult area to successfully place dental implants due to insufficient bone quantity and quality and its close proximity to the sinuses. Sinus lifts or augmentation are done to raise the sinus floor and enable implant placement. Beyond these techniques and single and full mouth dental implants, Dr. Whitworth also offers zygomatic dental implants to patients with significant bone loss.
Failing Dental Implants
Although rare, dental implants can fail due to a condition called peri-implantitis. This infection is similar to gum disease although more aggressive. The infection causes pockets to form around a dental implant and when left untreated, can result in bone loss around the implant and failure. Early intervention is important to prevent implant failure and more serious health repercussions.
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