Should You Have Your Impacted Wisdom Teeth Removed?

 Unfortunately, no matter how skillful or experienced an oral surgeon near me might be, procedures like removing impacted wisdom teeth, receiving dental implants, or getting a dental bridge, having surgery to correct sleep apnea or TMJ always involve some level of risk.

Some of the complications that could result from removing impacted wisdom teeth include an allergic reaction to the anesthesia, serious sinus infections that require surgery to correct, temporary numbness or permanent nerve damage, dry sockets, and damage to adjacent teeth.

Again, each of these complications is only a possibility. The chances of them occurring are very small, but the chances do occur.

As a result, it's critical that you as a patient are aware of these possibilities and that you know that your oral surgeon of choice is prepared to deal with these unforeseen emergencies.

One of the ways your oral surgeon can and should be prepared to handle these potential complications is by being on staff at local oral sedation dentistry. While the vast majority of oral surgery procedures will take place at your doctor's office, it's still important that your oral surgeon have hospital privileges so they can have access to a hospital should the need arise.

What Is The Best Time To Have Wisdom Teeth Removed?

The standard recommendation is to have wisdom tooth extraction near me before age 20, somewhere between 16 and 19 years of age. This window is based on the fact that the teeth have less developed roots at this stage and the surrounding bone is less dense. This makes it easier for the oral surgeon to wisdom teeth removal near me remove them without complications. Wait too much longer and the roots will be longer and more firmly embedded into the tissues of the jaw. Allowing the wisdom teeth to erupt and claim space in the jaw can also lead to overcrowding, so an ideal time to get them out is just before they erupt.

The warning to all these general recommendations about wisdom teeth, of course, is that every mouth is different. Some young people will be at the ideal stage to have the wisdom teeth extracted by age 15 or 16, and some people may need to wait until they are 20 or older. There really isn’t a precise deadline that works for everyone. We all have different genetic traits that affect the way our teeth erupt.

If you are the parent of a teenager, the best way to make sure you are doing the right thing for your child is by taking advantage of routine dental health services. When you take your child to the dentist regularly, he or she will be able to chart the growth of your child’s wisdom teeth throughout the teen years. Wisdom teeth first start forming in the jaw at about age 10, and they can be seen clearly in dental x-rays. By monitoring when they start developing and how quickly they grow, your regular dentist can estimate the best window of time for extraction.