What Are Cavitations — And Why Most Dentists Won't Even Look For Them
Nobody told me this was a thing.

And honestly? Most dentists won't even look for it. Not because they're hiding something — but because they were never trained to. Conventional dentistry doesn't have a great track record of connecting what's happening in your jaw to what's happening in the rest of your body.

But after my cavitation surgery, I can't un-know what I know now.

What Is a Cavitation?

When wisdom teeth (or any tooth) are extracted, the bone is supposed to fully heal and fill back in. But sometimes it doesn't. Instead, the bone dies off in that spot and gets walled off by the body — leaving a pocket of necrotic, infected bone sitting silently in your jaw.

That pocket is called a cavitation.

Your immune system is constantly fighting it in the background. Low-grade, chronic, invisible. You never fully recover. You just slowly drain — like a phone that's always running something in the background that you can't see.

The worst part? Cavitations don't show up on regular X-rays.

Most conventional dentists use standard 2D X-rays that simply aren't capable of detecting this kind of bone pathology. If they don't use cone beam CT (CBCT) imaging or specific diagnostic tools, they're not going to find it — and they won't tell you to look because they don't know it's there.

What Mine Felt Like

I had no idea I had cavitations. But I knew something was off.

For years I felt slow. Exhausted no matter how much I slept. Foggy. Like I was always operating at 70% no matter what I did. I had chalked it up to life — to being busy, to burnout, to just being a tired person.

I wasn't a tired person.

I had infections sitting in my jaw that nobody had ever looked for.

How I Found Out

I had my cavitations identified by Dr. Sam Petersen at BioSmiles in Eagle, Idaho — a biological dental practice that actually looks at the whole picture.

Dr. Petersen uses imaging and diagnostic tools that most conventional practices don't even have. He's specifically trained in biological dentistry, which means he's looking at your mouth as part of your entire body — not just a collection of teeth to fill and pull.

When he found mine, it wasn't a surprise that I'd been feeling the way I had. It made complete sense.

The Surgery

Cavitation surgery involves going back into the extraction site, removing the dead and infected bone, and properly debriding and cleaning the area so the body can finally heal it the way it was supposed to the first time.

At BioSmiles, Dr. Petersen uses a biological approach to the procedure itself:

• Ozone therapy to disinfect and support healing

• Platelet-rich fibrin (PRF) — made from your own blood — to accelerate bone regeneration naturally

• Minimally invasive techniques to reduce trauma and support a faster recovery

No harsh chemicals. No unnecessary damage. Just helping your body finally finish what it started.

What Changed After Surgery

The fog cleared.

The bone-deep exhaustion I had carried for years started to lift. I felt like my brain was actually online. Like the low hum of something wrong in the background had finally gone quiet.

I hadn't realized how much that hidden infection was costing me until it was gone.

Who Should Look Into This

If you've had wisdom teeth removed — especially years ago — and you've never felt quite right since, this is worth looking into. Especially if you deal with:

• Chronic fatigue that doesn't respond to sleep

• Brain fog or difficulty concentrating

• Immune issues or frequent illness

• Mystery symptoms that nobody can explain

The connection between oral health and systemic health is real, well-documented, and wildly underacknowledged in conventional medicine.

Your mouth is not separate from your body.

Find a Biological Dentist

If you're in the Treasure Valley, book a consult with Dr. Sam Petersen at BioSmiles. If you're not local, search for a biological or holistic dentist in your area who uses CBCT imaging and is trained in cavitation detection and treatment.

📍 BioSmiles — Eagle, Idaho | @theboisenaturaldentist

This is part 2 of my dental health series. Read Part 1 on amalgam mercury filling removal here. Up next: exactly what I did after surgery to support my body through healing — including IV drips, peptides, red light therapy, and more.

Disclaimer: I'm not a doctor and this is not medical advice. This is my personal experience. Always do your own research and consult a qualified healthcare provider.