Wisdom teeth

Wisdom teeth are the last set of teeth to emerge. They are the posterior-most teeth and usually emerge when a person is in their late teens or early twenties. In most cases, wisdom teeth emerge without any hassle, but in certain cases, they tend to get stuck in between the gums and the jawbone. This makes the condition very painful and, if left untreated, could lead to oral infections as well.

What are the types of impaction?

Wisdom teeth impaction can be distinguished into the following types based on how much a tooth emerges. They are:

• Soft tissue impaction: The wisdom tooth remains under the gums, almost completely. A small slit will have to be
  made on the gums to gain access to the tooth, after which it will either be removed wholly or in sections. Leaving it
  untreated can be highly painful.
• Partial impaction:The tooth would partially emerge out of the socket, leaving it stuck midway. The risk of infection
  in this type of impaction is quite high.
• Bony impaction:The tooth emerges almost fully, but would still have a small portion of it stuck in the socket. This
  can cause a lot of pain and even infect the tooth and gums.

Is the removal of a wisdom tooth so important?

Of course, it is. We usually have 2 sets of wisdom teeth that are present on either side of the upper and lower jaws. A
condition where all 4 wisdom teeth get impacted is very rare. In most cases, patients experience the impaction of just 1 or 2 wisdom teeth, which can get highly painful whenever you chew food or brush teeth. Sometimes, just the teeth coming in contact with each other itself can become very painful, let alone chewing food.

The toothache also leads to pain in the jaws, neck, shoulders, etc. Sometimes, patients wake up with a severe headache
that won’t just go away. Infection can start off right at the gum line, which may worsen with time and even lead to cavities and gum diseases. It is best to have these teeth extracted.

Call us at (262) 886-9440 to schedule an appointment to know more about wisdom tooth extraction.