A painful socket where the blood clot has been lost before the gum has healed, leaving bone exposed, usually three to five days after an extraction. The pain gets worse rather than better, often with a bad taste. Smoking, rinsing hard and sucking on straws are the usual causes. It isn't dangerous but it hurts, so call us: we dress the socket and it settles within days.

Tooth Extractions in Glasgow: Extractions and Wisdom Teeth, Done Gently

Q: Do wisdom teeth always need removing?

No. A wisdom tooth that has come through straight and can be cleaned can stay. Removal is advised when it's impacted, partly through and repeatedly infected, decayed because it can't be reached, or damaging the tooth in front. An X-ray, and sometimes a CT scan, shows which.

Q: Does having a tooth out hurt?

The tooth and gum are fully numbed first, so you feel pressure and movement but not pain. Afterwards, expect soreness for a few days, managed with ordinary painkillers; surgical extractions and wisdom teeth are sorer for longer, with swelling and a stiff jaw that peak around day two or three. Pain that gets worse rather than better after that should be checked.

Q: Can I be sedated for an extraction?

Yes. IV sedation (£500 per session) is given by Dr Kalsi alongside local anaesthetic, for surgical and wisdom tooth extractions, several teeth at once, or simply because you're anxious. You're awake but deeply relaxed, remember little, and need someone to take you home, with no driving for 24 hours.

Q: How long does it take to heal after an extraction?

The gum closes over in one to two weeks and soreness is usually gone within a few days, longer after a surgical extraction. The bone underneath takes a few months to fill in, which is why an implant into a healed socket is usually planned for about three months later.

Q: Can I have an emergency extraction today?

Often, yes. We keep same-day slots for people in pain, registered with us or not, and an emergency appointment is £70. Call 0141 248 1183 first thing; if the tooth can be saved instead, we'll tell you.

Routine and surgical extractions, including wisdom teeth, under local anaesthetic or IV sedation. We always try to save a tooth first, and when one does have to go, we plan what replaces it.

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Routine extraction £125, surgical or wisdom tooth extraction £450, IV sedation £500 per session. Same-day appointments for pain.²

Your oral surgery dentistDr Davinder Kalsi BDS (Aberdeen), BEng, MSc (Dental Implants)Special interest in dental implants, oral surgery, Invisalign, porcelain veneers, smile makeovers and digital smile design. GDC 264493.Meet Dr Kalsi ›

When a Tooth Has to Come Out

Most teeth can be saved with a filling, root canal treatment or a crown. These are the exceptions.

Too Broken to Restore

A tooth cracked below the gum, or with too little left to hold a crown.

Infection That Won't Clear

An abscess that root canal treatment can't resolve, or a tooth that has already been root treated and failed.

Advanced Gum Disease

A tooth that has lost so much bone it's loose and can't be saved.

Wisdom Teeth

Impacted, partly through, repeatedly infected or decayed because they can't be cleaned.

Making Room

Occasionally, to create space for orthodontic treatment.

Baby Teeth

A baby tooth that won't come out and is blocking the adult tooth behind it.

Routine or Surgical?

Most extractions are routine. Some need a little more.

Routine: the tooth is loosened and lifted out in one piece under local anaesthetic, usually in minutes

Surgical: a small cut in the gum, sometimes a little bone removed or the tooth divided, then stitches. Wisdom teeth are often surgical

Stitches and a collagen plug in the socket help it heal and keep bone for a future implant (£220)

IV sedation is available for surgical extractions, several teeth at once or if you're anxious

Read the guide: wisdom teeth removal

How It Works

Assessment and X-Ray

An X-ray shows the roots and what's around them. Where a wisdom tooth sits close to the nerve, a CT scan on our own scanner shows exactly where.

Numbing

Local anaesthetic, so you feel pressure but not pain. If you've chosen sedation, that's given first and you'll remember little of the visit.

The Extraction

Routine extractions take minutes. Surgical ones take longer and end with dissolving stitches.

Afterwards

You bite on gauze for a few minutes, go home with written aftercare and painkiller advice, and we check how the socket is healing if anything needs reviewing.

Replacing the Tooth

Losing a back tooth isn't always a problem, but a gap lets the teeth beside it drift and the tooth above or below over-erupt, and the bone in the socket shrinks over the first year. If the tooth will be replaced, it's worth planning that before it comes out.

For a visible tooth, an immediate denture (£495) or an immediate resin-retained bridge (£675 per unit) means you leave with a tooth in place. A dental implant can often be placed in the healed socket a few months later, or at the time of extraction where the bone allows.

Dr Davinder Kalsi has a special interest in oral surgery and dental implants, so extraction and replacement are planned together.

After an Extraction

Rest for the day, and keep your head raised; no sport or heavy lifting

Don't rinse, spit or suck on a straw for 24 hours; the clot in the socket is what heals it

From the next day, rinse gently with warm salt water after meals

No smoking for at least 48 hours, longer if you can; it's the commonest cause of a painful dry socket

Soft food, chewed on the other side, and nothing very hot for the first day

Take the painkillers we suggest before the numbness wears off; swelling and stiffness peak at two to three days after a surgical extraction

Pain that gets worse after two or three days, a bad taste, or bleeding that won't stop: call us

Fees

Confirmed in your written plan before treatment starts. Dental plan members save 10%. Prices checked October 2026.²

Routine extraction	£125
Extraction with stitches and collagen	£220
Surgical or wisdom tooth extraction	£450
IV sedation, per session	£500
CT scan	£160
Emergency appointment, registered or not	£70
Immediate acrylic denture	£495

See every fee

Questions

Cost, pain, sedation and healing.

How much does a tooth extraction cost in Glasgow?–

At St Vincent Smile a routine extraction is £125, an extraction with stitches and a collagen plug £220, and a surgical or wisdom tooth extraction £450.² IV sedation is £500 per session if you'd like it. The fee is confirmed before anything starts.

Do wisdom teeth always need removing?+

Does having a tooth out hurt?+

Can I be sedated for an extraction?+

What is dry socket?+

How long does it take to heal after an extraction?+

Can I have an emergency extraction today?+

Guides

Extraction Guides

All general dentistry guides

General dentistry · 6 minute read

Replacing One Tooth

In Pain, or Been Told a Tooth Needs to Come Out?

Same-day appointments for pain, a second opinion on whether the tooth can be saved, and sedation if you'd like it.

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