All About Your Wisdom Teeth
During prehistoric times, humans needed their wisdom teeth to chew the seeds, foliage, and other staples in their diet. Today, food is much softer, and wisdom teeth are no longer a necessity for survival. Often, wisdom teeth pose more of a problem than anything. Fortunately, though, an oral surgeon in Melbourne, FL, can help before they cause an issue.
General Information
Your wisdom teeth are your third molars that appear in the far back portion of your mouth. Generally, people have four wisdom teeth that erupt when they’re between 17 and 25 years old. However, not every person gets all four. Some people don’t get wisdom teeth at all. Typically, this occurs when a person has a parent without wisdom teeth. Since these teeth aren’t useful and are often a problem, an oral surgeon will likely tell you that it’s fine to not have these teeth and to have them removed.
Interesting fact: most linguists believe that the term “wisdom tooth” came to be because people’s wisdom teeth tend to erupt when they’re adults and are wiser.
Problems With Wisdom Teeth
Although it’s possible to have all four wisdom teeth emerge normally, wisdom teeth can cause certain issues. Often, this leads a dentist or dental surgeon in Melbourne to advise you to have them removed.
You could have one or more impacted wisdom teeth. This occurs when the tooth is unable to emerge due to a lack of space. When the tooth is fully impacted, it remains underneath the gums. If this happens, you could develop a cyst that can damage your other teeth or your jaw bone. On the other hand, an impacted wisdom tooth could become infected.
Sometimes, a wisdom tooth will only erupt partially because it doesn’t have room to fully emerge. With this problem, the tooth may be harder to clean, and it could easily become infected. Additionally, poor care of your back teeth can lead to gum disease.
For some people, all their wisdom teeth pop through the gums, but the lack of space could cause tooth crowding. In some cases, it may even damage the neighboring teeth.
To Remove or Not to Remove
During your teenage years or when you’re in your early 20s, your dentist will often refer you to a dental surgeon in Melbourne to determine if you should have your wisdom teeth removed or not.
After dental X-rays, you can see whether these teeth will pose a problem or not. You’ll need to have a surgical removal if the teeth are impacted. If the teeth can emerge fully, though, you may need to have them pulled to protect your other teeth.
A dentist or oral surgeon may recommend wisdom tooth removal if any of the following is occurring:
- Have pain
- Tumors form
- Are damaging other teeth
- Extensive decay is forming
- Developed repeated infections
- Causing gum disease
- Are coming in at an odd angle
Since no two instances are alike, you’ll need to discuss the best option for your case.
Pulling Vs. Surgical Removal
If you have surgical removal, you’ll receive a local anesthetic along with either IV or general sedation. This generally happens when three or four of the teeth are removed. On the other hand, the surgeon may only give you a local anesthetic if you’re having one or two teeth extracted. However, the decision is based on your situation.
When the teeth start to erupt or erupt fully, you’ll have the teeth pulled. During this procedure, your dental practitioner will usually give you a local or possibly a sedative. The dental care provider will then use a special tool to grasp onto the tooth. Next, the practitioner will begin to rock it back and forth to loosen the tooth and widen the space. The dental professional may use an elevator to lift the tooth. Sometimes, it’s easier to cut the tooth into sections.
Contact Sedaros Oral Facial Surgery and Dental Implants
Wisdom teeth once served a purpose, but modern life doesn’t require them to survive. Often, your oral surgeon at Sedaros Oral Facial Surgery and Dental Implants will advise you to have them removed to prevent problems from arising. Contact our experts today and we can help you address your concerns.