Many of the procedures performed by an oral surgeon are also offered at a local general dentist’s office.
This leaves many patients wondering which type of provider they should choose for their oral health
treatment needs. It is important to recognize, however, that while both providers may be “qualified” to
treat a problem, oral surgeons have far more expertise and training in complex treatment protocols
than dentists do.

Both oral surgeons and dentists attend the same four years of dental school, achieving either a Doctor of
Dental Surgery or Doctor of Medicine in Dentistry. However, oral and maxillofacial surgeons go through
specialty training in an additional four-year surgical hospital residency program alongside medical
professionals. They learn to diagnose, treat, and manage dental and health issues pertaining to the
mouth, face, jaws, and surrounding soft tissues.

While dentists can remove wisdom teeth, most of these procedures are not simple extractions. In fact,
most patients have impacted wisdom teeth or other issues that make the procedure far more complex.
Oral surgeons are trained specifically in the treatment of complicated extractions and remove thousands
of wisdom teeth during their residencies and every year thereafter.

Oral surgeons are thoroughly trained in both IV sedation and general anesthesia. It is a primary
component of their surgical training and allows greater pain management options for complex
procedures in their practice. Most general dentists, on the other hand, use only local anesthesia to perform extractions and do not provide IV sedation. Of the few who do offer IV sedation, most have
only completed a brief weekend course to learn how to do so.