Getting wisdom teeth removed early can be a wise move indeed – with persistent pain, teeth alignment issues, damage to gums and the potential of infection just some reasons as to why people may need to undergo a wisdom teeth removal procedure.
These wisdom teeth, otherwise known as third molars, erupt in the back four corners of the mouth, usually between the young adult ages of 17 to 21.
There can be complications with wisdom teeth, where some can fail to fully come through the gum bed, causing the teeth to become impacted or create other problems with alignment.
The Wisdom Teeth Removal Procedure
A dentist or oral and maxillofacial surgeon will determine which wisdom teeth need to be removed using x-rays. This will also indicate which ones will also be functional. A dentist may need to only cut away some soft tissue to allow the tooth to erupt properly, allowing the wisdom tooth to be functional.
If the whole tooth needs to be extracted, some surrounding bone may need to be cut, and if the tooth removed was large, the socket may need stitches to help with the healing.