Your wisdom teeth are your third molars, which usually appear between the ages of 17 and 25. Most have four, one in each of the jaw quadrants but some patients will have fewer or more wisdom teeth. They are essentially just more teeth, but occasionally will become impacted, which means they come in sideways. This requires a wisdom teeth extraction procedure, in which an oral surgeon will remove one or all of the wisdom teeth. Impacted wisdom teeth can lead to additional dental problems and even periodontal disease. The wisdom teeth are regularly the most impacted teeth in the jaw. The direction, depth, amount of available space, and amount of soft tissue or bone will all contribute to the classification of impaction.
Getting your wisdom teeth taken out is an incredibly routine procedure, one that oral surgeons perform on a daily basis. Oral surgeons will usually recommend patients get their wisdom teeth taken out when they are younger because the tooth has grown fewer roots. Younger patients also heal quicker, which will reduce the chances of additional infections, which means less wisdom teeth problems down the line.
The procedure itself is relatively quick; patients should block out about 90 minutes and plan to have someone accompany them to and from the procedure. You shouldn’t eat anything prior to the procedure if you are getting anesthesia. As with any other dental surgery procedures, a wisdom teeth extraction does come with some risks. Some bleeding, inflammation, and bruising will occur, but it will go away as you heal. Patients will need to see their doctor regularly for a follow up to get stitches removed and make sure you are healing properly.
On the Upper East Side, dental surgery is done to preserve your dental health and tooth structure. While removing them is ideally a last resort, a wisdom teeth extraction will need to be done for a number of reasons. If your jaw is small, your teeth won’t have room to come in properly and can become impacted, for example. Your wisdom tooth impaction can then cause an infection or periodontitis. These additional wisdom teeth problems can become costly if they aren’t addressed soon, so getting your wisdom teeth taken out is often a way to stop these issues before they get a chance to start.