extraction

Extraction
Caution- this was a dental trip and the following is not for the feint of heart.

On my first day in Jamaica I assisted with a patient. The patient was 35 years old, but looked 18. The person I was assisting explained the patients situation. We would be working on the bottom only. On the bottom row of teeth, we had 1 completely rotten tooth- it will be difficult to get a grip on to pull it out. Two next to it are almost as bad with decay down to the gum line. On the other side there are two more with visible cavities. Up front the two small teeth up front have tartar that has calcified between them and pushed the teeth apart. The calcification has grown so much that it looks like a bridge between the teeth. When this is removed, the teeth will be so weak that they will have to come out.

I witness the removal of the first tooth. I spray on the water and use the little hose to draw out the water. The two up front come out next and it is pretty gruesome. There are several pieces of the calcified tartar that have to be picked out of the surrounding tissue. After that, some of the surrounding tissue is so infected that it has to come out. So we scrape and remove. Finally when the wounds- the holes where the teeth were look clean, they each get a stitch.

I was very proud of this young woman who endured all of this. The clinic is only supposed to pull one tooth per person so that more patients can be seen, but our team is not comfortable leaving these really bad teeth in.

I am sorry if this left you squeamish. That would make two of us. There are a couple of morals to this story. First, the mission here is very important, providing very needed care to some of God’s people. Second, we should be thankful that we live in a part of the country that for the most part does not see such rampant dental issues. Thirdly, if you haven’t been for a while, go see the dentist. I now know what happens when you don’t. it isn’t pretty.

It’s a beautiful day in God’s world, be sure to see the good.