Wisdom Teeth There are a lot of misconceptions around wisdom teeth which is why many people are unnecessarily scared of them. They assume wisdom teeth need to be extracted as soon as possible, even though that is not always the case. Likewise, there are many more false assumptions about the molars. What are Wisdom Teeth?Wisdom teeth are the third set of molars that erupt from our gums, usually when we’re in our late teens or early in our twenties. If they come without any complications, wisdom teeth can be quite beneficial as they help in chewing food and, therefore, help with easier digestion as well. The wisdom teeth are a set of four molars, two on the top and two on the bottom, but not everyone gets all four in their lifetime. When you do get a wisdom tooth, it comes at the very back of your teeth. When Do You Need to Extract Wisdom Teeth?People think a wisdom tooth automatically means a tooth extraction, but this is not always the case. If the tooth comes out perfectly aligned and healthy, there’s no need to extract it. However, sometimes, the wisdom tooth can erupt horizontally or at some other wrong angle. This is not only painful but can cause other problems like crowding as well. In such cases, we perform a dental exam and x-ray of the teeth and decide to go ahead with extraction. If you see the crowns of your wisdom teeth appearing and you are experiencing a lot of pain or swelling, get in touch with Dr. Williams and Dr. Williams at HomeTown Dental at Irving right away for a consultation. Another reason behind extraction is the risk of periodontal (gum) disease. When the wisdom teeth are still in the process of coming out, they can be hard to clean or floss properly. As a result, they are prone to accumulating germs and bacteria. So, you will have to get a dental cleaning done. Otherwise, you can even develop tooth decay. Because of all this, we might have to perform an extraction. Sometimes we might have to extract the wisdom teeth before they even come out. For instance, if we perform an x-ray and we can tell that the tooth is in a bad position, we might extract it earlier to avoid worse problems later on. How Are Wisdom Teeth Removed?How we remove the wisdom teeth depends on various factors such as its position, angle, and how far along it has come out. If the wisdom tooth has completely come out, it can be extracted just like any other tooth. However, if the tooth has only partially erupted, it can be a little difficult to extract. We might have to make a small cut on the gums to access the part of the tooth which hasn’t come out. Sometimes, the tooth also has to be cut into small pieces and extracted in several stages. Nevertheless, how a wisdom tooth will be treated depends entirely on you. Therefore, before you start fearing an extraction, schedule an appointment with us at (469) 599-2020 and let our expert dentists have a look first. |
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