What are wisdom teeth?
Wisdom teeth, or your third molars, are the last teeth that come in during your lifetime. They usually make an appearance between the ages of 17 to 25. For some people, their teeth are naturally aligned properly, and the surrounding gum tissue is healthy. In these cases, the teeth do not have to be removed. For the rest of us, a wisdom tooth extraction is probably in our near future!
Reasons to get your wisdom teeth removed
Wisdom teeth pain can trigger various problems in your mouth. This can occur if your wisdom teeth partially erupt through the gums. Once this transpires, it creates flaps of skin around the tooth which can get red, swollen, and possibly infected.
Because wisdom teeth can be difficult to clean around, gum disease and tooth decay are common issues. This difficulty in cleaning can also put the adjacent teeth at risk for cavities, leading to additional tooth loss.
Sometimes wisdom teeth cannot break through the gums at all due to insufficient room in your jaw. Teeth can be trapped in your jawbone or grow in crooked and crowd the other teeth in your mouth. We generally recommend that you have impacted or obstructed wisdom teeth extracted shortly after they come in. Or, if they’ve started harming other teeth as they erupt in your mouth. If you have any oral infections, your dentist will wait until it clears up to proceed with any procedures.
In the case of a more difficult or complicated situation, we may refer you to an Oral Surgeon who will conduct the procedure under a general anesthetic. Either way, all of the options for a wisdom tooth extraction will be discussed with you in detail at your dental appointment.
If your wisdom teeth are bothering you and you think you may be a good candidate for a wisdom tooth extraction, contact us by dialling (403) 562-2236.