Wisdom tooth extraction is one of the most common types of dental surgery. But many patients don’t know why it’s needed and are worried that it will be painful. With advances in anesthetics, most patients feel very little discomfort and recovery can be very quick with proper after-surgery care.

Let’s look at wisdom teeth and why they can cause so much trouble.

Wisdom teeth are third molars located in the very back of the mouth. The usually emerge later in life and a couple of problems can happen if they come in the wrong way that can affect the health of your teeth and gum tissue.

Sometimes a wisdom tooth is only able to partially emerge, resulting in an impacted wisdom tooth. When a wisdom tooth only partially emerges it creates an opening in the gums. Bacteria can then enter the gums causing an infection. This infection can be very painful. Tooth decay can happen too – both in the impacted wisdom tooth and in the tooth in front of it, which could lead to additional costly dentistry.

Another reason wisdom teeth are removed is that the wisdom teeth can actually develop into cysts. Cysts can cause damage to the jaw bone and if your dentist suspects this has occurred then a referral to an oral surgeon would likely be given to the patient.

Contrary to popular belief, lower wisdom teeth do not cause lower teeth crowding….you do not get your lower wisdom teeth extracted with the expectation of eliminating or halting lower teeth crowding!
Crowding of lower teeth is caused by other factors.

Wisdom teeth removal is a very common procedure and it is usually covered by dental insurance. The procedure itself often goes very quickly. Once the area is numbed, it can be over before you know it and most patients feel very little pain. Using topical anesthetic and nitrous oxide gas along with local anesthetic will likely provide for an easy wisdom tooth removal experience.

Keeping the area clean after the teeth removal is important, so be sure to follow all of your post operation instructions. Once the area heals patients won’t have any other wisdom tooth related problems. It should be noted that it can take months to totally heal from a wisdom tooth extraction. The extraction site may close in with gum tissue after 3 weeks but total healing could take many more months.

Many people are afraid of wisdom teeth removal, but in the hands of a skilled dentist or oral surgeon, the procedure is easy to tolerate and your mouth will feel better in no time.

If you are experiencing pain and discomfort from your wisdom teeth, call Dr. Hadeed today to schedule a consultation.