To Extract Or Not: The Wisdom Tooth Question

The Wisdom Tooth Question

A wisdom tooth, in humans, is any of the usual four third molars. Wisdom teeth usually appear between the ages seventeen and twenty five in age. Most adults have four wisdom teeth, but it is possible to some to have also fewer wisdom teeth or more in which this case is called supernumerary teeth. Most of the wisdom teeth may affect other teeth as they develop and become impacted or coming in sideways. 

They are often extracted when this situation occur. There is less reports of people do not have the wisdom teeth or have not developed. Sometimes wisdom teeth fail to erupt completely through the gum bed and the gum at the back of the wisdom tooth extends over the biting surface, forming a soft tissue flap or lid around the tooth called an operculum. Teeth that are covered by an operculum can be difficult to clean with a toothbrush. Additional cleaning techniques can include using a needle less plastic syringe to vigorously wash the tooth with moderate pressured water or to softly wash it with hydrogen peroxide.

There are two reasons when wisdom may be extracted. First reason is either the wisdom teeth have already become infected, or the wisdom teeth could potentially become problematic if not extracted. Potential problems cause by the presence of properly grown in wisdom teeth include infections caused by food particles easily trapped in the jaw area behind the wisdom teeth regular brushing and flossing is difficult and ineffective. The second reason why wisdom teeth need to extracted is because, of the misalignment which rubs up against the tongue or check causing pain, potential crowding or malocclusion of the remaining teeth as well as orthodontics.

The wisdom in removing the wisdom teeth before they cause the trouble has long been debated. In only a small percentage of people do they grow in straight and healthy? The human jaw has been steadily decreasing in size for millenniums and few are having a jaw that is large enough to accommodate for more teeth in the back of the moth. As a result many teeth grow in sideways, emerge only part way from the gum or remain impacted, and forever trapped beneath in.

The debate in whether to extract the wisdom tooth or not before such problems may occur or wait until they do. Some of the dentist that don t bother the wisdom until they bother you.. Some also believed that it is better to get the malpositioned wisdom teeth while you are young and healthy rather that they may cause trouble eventually. Those who suggest that as patient age it more difficult to have a surgery rather than you are younger. The complication is more numerous and longer time to heal.

The risk of the complications that is associated with malpositioned wisdom teeth is not in question. The argument is how likely the complication may occur, such as the possible infection of the surrounding gum tissues, or having the fluid cyst formation. Lastly the decay or dental carries this makes the wisdom teeth hard to clean and repair.
To conclude, healthy and normally positioned wisdom teeth can be very valuable additions to a person’s mouth and should not be removed.