The Destination May Be The Same. But Journeys Matter Too

In October 2023, I had my lower right wisdom tooth surgically removed.

Unfortunately, I developed what dentists call a dry socket, or acute alveolar osteitis.

The blood clot was lost too early.

Bone became exposed.

Food debris could enter the socket.

It hurt.

It hurt a lot.

The mouth is a remarkably forgiving place. I should know. I’ve spent twenty years working as a dental surgeon.

I knew the socket would eventually heal.

The question was not whether I would heal.

The question was how much suffering I would endure along the way.

At the time, I was desperate for some PRF.

None of my colleagues were familiar with it. I even attempted to make some myself, which is surprisingly difficult when you are both the patient and the clinician.

In the end, I healed without it.

Slowly.

After about twelve months it no longer felt like a hole I could explore with my tongue.

Today, a few years later, it is as though the troublesome wisdom tooth was never there.

There is bone.

There is connective tissue.

There is mucosa.

The tissues are indistinguishable from the surrounding area.

There is no scar.

In many respects, that is regeneration.

And that is what makes me question some of the language surrounding regenerative medicine.

Would PRF have improved the final outcome?

I doubt it.

How do you improve upon a result that is already essentially perfect?

But perhaps that is the wrong question.

Perhaps the more important question is this:

Could it have reduced my pain?

Could it have accelerated healing?

Could it have reduced the number of days I spent suffering?

Could it have reduced the need for dressings, analgesics or antibiotics?

Because that matters.

A great deal.

Dry socket is extremely painful.

If we possess a tool that can reduce suffering, even modestly, should we be interested?

The destination may have been the same.

But journeys matter too.