THROWING SOME LIGHT ON WISDOM TEETH

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THROWING SOME LIGHT ON WISDOM TEETH

Wisdom teeth are the last permanent teeth to erupt in the adult oral cavity, if and only if, they get adequate space for eruption. Their age of eruption is usually in the late teenage or early twenties, the reason why they are called wisdom teeth. The human oral cavity has 2 pairs of wisdom teeth, 1 pair in the upper jaw and another in the lower jaw. Our ancestors had bigger jaws and hence all teeth had space for eruption. However, due to evolution, the jaw size became smaller and not all wisdom teeth could erupt in the oral cavity. Due to this, there are rarely people these days that have a complete set of 32 teeth.

Erupting/partially erupted wisdom teeth cause an opening in the gums leading to entrapment of food debris and bacteria that cause pain and swelling. Partially erupted teeth are more prone to decay because of difficulty in accessing them by a tooth brush.

When not in appropriate position, they may align themselves horizontally, angled towards the 2nd molar or away from it. In such cases, they are usually indicated for extraction. Those that do not erupt in right positions can cause a lot of problems like:

  • Food lodgment
  • Infection
  • Pain
  • Cysts
  • Tumors
  • Damage to neighboring teeth
  • Gum disease
  • Crowding of teeth
  • Tooth decay (involves the adjacent tooth usually)

For the decision to extract or retain, radiographs are recorded which can show the exact position of the tooth in the jaw.

Routine dental check-ups help the dentist decide whether the tooth should be extracted or retained. Extraction of teeth that can cause deleterious effects on the neighboring teeth is always advisable.

We, at Dr. Saurabh’s Dental Clinic & Implant Center adopt latest methods for extracting wisdom teeth, making it a painless experience for the patients. Visit us if even you have experienced some trouble due to wisdom teeth.

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