Our permanent set of adult teeth consists of 32 permanent teeth – 16 each on both the upper and lower jaw. Wisdom Teeth which are the last teeth in our jaws, typically erupt between the ages of 16 and 21.
When Do You Need to Extract Your Wisdom Teeth
For most people, their wisdom teeth will be blocked from erupting by the permanent second molars or the surrounding bone and gums due to a smaller jaw. Hence these wisdom teeth become impacted and excising them is the most common solution. The impacted wisdom tooth may be showing only the crown of the tooth or totally submerged in the gums. The wisdom tooth may also grow at an angle towards or away from the second molar or even grow at a right angle.
Complications of Impacted Wisdom Teeth
An impacted wisdom tooth is sometimes painless. However if ignored, it could lead to other dental problems. Food is easily trapped between a partially impacted wisdom tooth and the overlying gums. Due to the position of the wisdom tooth, it can be a challenge keeping it clean as well. These factors make it an ideal breeding ground for bacteria to form, resulting in cavities or gum diseases.
And if the wisdom tooth is growing at an angle towards the second permanent molar, empty pockets may form between the two teeth. Food is then easily trapped between them which is difficult to remove with brushing or flossing. The bacteria that form in these pockets not only causes cavities and decay on the wisdom tooth, but also affects the adjacent molar as well. When that happens, additional procedures, such as root canal treatment, have to be done to restore them, which is more expensive. In severe cases, you can even lose your permanent second molars.
The wisdom tooth can also develop in a sac within the jawbone, which may become a cyst that damages the jawbone, surrounding teeth, and nerves. And in rare scenarios where a non-cancerous tumour develops, it will require the surgical removal of tissue and bone.
Such conditions may develop over time and when signs and symptoms do show up, it causes pain, distress, anxiety together with more costly dental treatments.
Our dentists will do a comprehensive dental examination and take x-ray of your mouth to check the wisdom teeth’s alignment and condition. Dental surgery may be recommended by the dentist, depending on the wisdom teeth’s condition.
IV Sedation and General Anaesthesia
For patients who will require IV sedation and general anaesthesia, our day surgery rooms are equipped with IV anaesthesia services and we follow surgical scrubbing protocols for dental surgical procedures. We also work closely with a group of experienced and gentle anesthetists.