Jaw Cavitation After Wisdom Teeth: What Gets Left Behind | Dr. Christine Schaffner

Dr. Christine Schaffner is a naturopathic physician trained in bioregulatory medicine, and she's the person who first taught me that scars can be one of the biggest barriers to healing.

What is a jaw cavitation?

It's not a cavity. Nobody got this from eating candy as a kid. A cavitation can form where a tooth was extracted, whether that was a wisdom tooth or a tooth that died and had to come out.

Here's how Dr. Schaffner explains it. If the periodontal ligament isn't taken out of the bone, or an infection around an impacted tooth isn't cleared properly, the bone may not fill back in with healthy bone. Over time the site can become a pocket or reservoir of necrotic, dead bone. And that pocket can be a place for what she calls stealth pathogens to hang out.

Why wisdom tooth sites deserve a second look

So many of us had our wisdom teeth out back in the day. I did.

In bioregulatory medicine, every tooth sits on an acupuncture meridian. Dr. Schaffner links the wisdom tooth area to the small intestine, the endocrine system and circulation, and she describes it as a very common place for people to get blocked. That's her framework, not a test result, but it's a reason to ask the question.

How a cavitation may affect the rest of your body

The mouth is so important for the rest of our health. According to Dr. Schaffner, a cavitation can affect the lymph, the vagus nerve and the circulatory system. She calls it a possible chronic poisoning of the system that can reach up to the sinuses and the brain and down to the gut.

When the tissue is biopsied and sent for PCR, she says the results often show viruses, co-infections, amoebas and candida. The pocket is surrounded and kind of isolated, so your immune system may struggle to get to it. But it can leak.

How cavitations are found

A regular X-ray isn't the tool here. A 3D cone beam scan lets a dentist see the jaw in detail, and often the sinuses at the same time.

Not every dentist will acknowledge cavitations or be able to read for them on that scan. Dr. Schaffner's advice is to find a trusted biological dentist and to work with a doctor alongside them. The dentist holds the surgical piece. The doctor can help support drainage, detoxification and your immune system.

What happens during cavitation surgery

The dentist opens a small window in the jaw and uses tools and vibration to clear out the dead tissue. Dentists often describe it as mushy or oily, where it should be solid bone. The area may be rinsed with ozone, a strong antimicrobial.

Before surgery, some practitioners draw your blood and spin it down into a platelet rich fibrin clot, which is sewn into the site to help support new bone. Minerals, vitamins and blood flow to the area can support healing afterwards. A follow-up cone beam scan helps check the site has cleared.

For comfort during recovery, a compounded magic mouthwash may include an anesthetic, an anti-inflammatory and an antifungal. It has a short shelf life, so ask your compounding pharmacy about that.

Why scars can be barriers to healing too

Your belly button is your first scar, so everybody has one. Dr. Schaffner explains that any scar can interrupt the fascia, making it more dense and restrictive. That can block lymphatic drainage, and toxins or pathogens may settle there.

There's an emotional layer too. A scar rarely comes from a good day, and she believes that emotional memory can create stagnation as much as environmental stressors. She uses neural therapy with a local anesthetic called procaine, which may help soften scar tissue. Some people move better afterwards.

What this means for you

Dr. Schaffner starts from the idea that the body is wise, intelligent and divine, and it knows how to heal us. In her words, it doesn't need to just be fixed like a car. The work is finding what's in the way.

If you've had extractions and you're still stuck, it may be worth asking a biological dentist about a cone beam scan, and looking at your scars too. Be your own detective. You're not alone in this. To have a mindset of healing is never too late.