The short version
Oral surgery covers the procedures that go beyond a standard dental visit — tooth extractions, bone grafting, sinus lifts, and the surgical placement of dental implants. At Markiewicz Dental in Mundelein, IL, these procedures are planned with 3D imaging and performed in the same office where you get your cleanings, by a team that includes Dr. Ryan Bogard, our board-certified periodontist with advanced surgical training.
We know “surgery” is a word that raises the heart rate. So here’s our approach in one sentence: we recommend surgery only when it genuinely protects your long-term oral health, we explain exactly why before anything is scheduled, and we plan every procedure in detail before we ever begin — because the best surgical visits are the uneventful ones.
Medically reviewed by the doctors of Markiewicz Dental
When Is Oral Surgery Needed?
Surgery enters the picture when restorative options can no longer save a tooth or protect the structures around it — a tooth too damaged to repair, a wisdom tooth without room to erupt, bone that has shrunk after tooth loss, or a jaw being prepared for an implant. Left unaddressed, these problems don’t hold still: infections spread, bone loss continues, and neighboring teeth shift. The goal of every procedure we perform is the same — stop the problem, preserve what’s healthy, and set up a stable foundation for whatever comes next.
Surgical Procedures We Provide
Tooth Extractions
When a tooth can’t be saved — severe decay, a deep fracture, advanced gum disease, or wisdom teeth causing crowding or pain — removing it protects everything around it. Extractions are done with thorough numbing (and sedation options if anxiety is a factor), and we’ll talk through replacement options before the extraction, because the best time to plan for the gap is before it exists.
Bone Grafting
Jawbone shrinks where teeth are missing, and sometimes there isn’t enough left to support an implant or maintain facial structure. Bone grafting rebuilds it — placing grafting material that your body integrates and replaces with its own new bone over several months. It’s the groundwork procedure that makes many implant cases possible.
Sinus Lifts
The upper back jaw sits just below your sinuses, and after tooth loss there’s often not enough bone height there for an implant. A sinus lift — performed using a gentle hydraulic technique — carefully raises the sinus membrane and adds bone grafting material beneath it, creating the depth an implant needs for long-term stability.
Surgical Implant Placement
Placing a dental implant is itself a surgical procedure: positioning a titanium post in the jaw at a precise depth and angle so bone can bond to it — the foundation everything else is built on. Because we plan placement from your 3D scan, the surgery itself is typically shorter and gentler than patients expect.
How 3D Imaging Makes Surgery Safer
The difference between traditional X-rays and cone beam CT is the difference between a photograph and a map. A 2D image can’t show bone depth, bone density, or the exact path of the nerves running through your jaw — a 3D scan shows all of it, from every angle. That’s what lets us plan the precise position of every incision and implant before your appointment, avoid the structures that must be avoided, and keep procedures as small as the anatomy allows. We also capture digital impressions with our iTero scanner — no putty molds — which gives the lab an exact foundation for surgical guides and restorations. Less guesswork in planning means less trauma in surgery, and less trauma means faster healing.
What Recovery Looks Like
Most oral surgery recovery is measured in days, not weeks. Expect to take it easy the day of your procedure, eat soft foods for the first few days, and skip straws, very hot liquids, and strenuous exercise briefly while the site stabilizes. You’ll leave with specific written instructions for keeping the area clean without disturbing healing — and a team you can actually reach if a question comes up at 8 p.m. Follow the instructions and most patients are back to normal routines quickly, with the surgical site quietly finishing its work underneath.
Surgical Care in Mundelein Since 1988
Markiewicz Dental has served Mundelein, Libertyville, Vernon Hills, Long Grove, and Lake County families since 1988 — and having surgical care in the same practice as your general dentistry means one team, one set of records, and familiar faces on the day you’d most want them. Your surgery is planned, performed, and followed up by people who will still be checking on that site at your cleaning next year.
Questions
Frequently Asked Questions About Oral Surgery
How should I prepare for oral surgery?
Will oral surgery hurt?
What can I eat after oral surgery?
How long does recovery take?
Why is 3D imaging better than regular X-rays for surgery?
Do I need a referral for oral surgery?
Patient reviews
From people who had this done here.
I have been a patient here for over twenty years and I would not go anywhere else. Everyone knows my name the moment I walk in, and the care has always been thorough and completely honest.
Dr. Markiewicz walked me through my implant plan on a 3D scan so I understood exactly what would happen. The surgery was far easier than I expected and the tooth looks completely natural.
I used to dread the dentist. This office changed that. They explained every step, checked in constantly, and never once made me feel rushed or judged about the work I had put off.
Have a tooth that’s beyond saving, or been told you need grafting or an extraction? Let’s talk it through — clearly, and without pressure. Call Markiewicz Dental at (847) 566-2811 or request an appointment online. Surgical care with a family practice’s accountability, in Mundelein since 1988.