Wisdom Tooth Trouble: It's Gonna Be Very Bloody

About 10 days ago, I started feeling that the inside of my
left cheek was a little swollen. Though it was not very painful but certainly
uncomfortable, I decided to try Panadol Extra. A week went by with no sign of
improvement. Then last Monday, finding a small amount of pus and blood coming
out, I checked the Internet to locate dental clinics in the neighborhood.

In the evening, I went out only to find the nearest one
closed. The online information didn’t list consultation hours. Unwilling to
give up, I walked down Upper Thomson to Thomson Plaza, where I knew there were
two more dental clinics. After walking around for some time, I found one, which
was also closed. It took me some more time to find the third one. And it was
still open. I went in and explained my condition to the youngish woman at the
reception counter. She then opened the sliding door of one of the two treatment
rooms, right behind the counter, apparently to ask the dentist inside if he was
happy to take another patient for the night. He wasn’t. I made a 6:45 pm
appointment for Tuesday night.

Tuesday night, I arrived on time. After filling out the
registration form, I met a young dentist.
Looking at the swollen part, he said, “Big gingivitis (or something like
that).” And he started talking about my bottom-left wisdom teeth, which he
suspected was causing this trouble. I was asked to go out of the room for an
X-ray. The image seems to have sent to the screen immediately in the treatment
room. The wisdom tooth was coming up though it was still buried. The friction
between it and the next one is the cause and it needs to be extracted, he said.

“But we can’t do the surgery tonight. I’ll give you
antibiotics and pain killers for the condition. And the tooth can’t be simply
pulled out. We need to open up the gum and cut the bone several times. See the
dark line here? This is the nerve. I think you should make an appointment with a
specialist for the surgery.”

“What’s the reason for that?”

“That’s because your wisdom tooth is close to the nerve. And
we may need to put you to sleep.”

“So the surgery will take place at his place not here.”

“It will take place here.”

“How long do you think it takes to heal after the surgery?”

“Two to three days for a healthy adult.”

“What is the cost like?”

“For a specialist, 900 to 1,000.”

For me, the clinic made a tentative appointment with a
specialist at 6:30 pm, November 7.

Open up the gum and cut the bone? Sounds very bloody… No
alcohol since Tuesday because of the medication (a great feat!). Already
feeling a bit nervous.