Why Do Wisdom Teeth Need to be Extracted During the Teeanage Years

Wisdom Tooth wisdom tooth extraction infection Arun Narang Smile by Design Olga Krikunenko Dr. Gillis Dr. Greg J. Huang Dr. Raymond P. White Jr.

By Camille Hutchison , Parent Herald Jul 17, 07:52 pm

Extraction of wisdom tooth is needed when there is an infection in its surrounding area to avoid problems. Arun Narang, a dentist and oral surgeon at Smile by Design in Ontario, Canada, strongly recommends the pulling out of the wisdom tooth before it starts causing problems. They usually emerge in the late teen years, making the procedure easier and predictable.

Teens do not have wholly formed wisdom teeth, and their roots are not entirely established. In addition, teenagers have a shorter recovery time compared to adults.

According to The New York Times, such extraction happens annually despite the risks of surgical procedures and asymptomatic wisdom teeth as part of college preparation.

Dental plans cover the extraction of infected teeth which have partly grown in or are impacted below the gum.

Why do Wisdom teeth need to be removed during teenage years?

Wisdom teeth usually appear between the ages of 16 and 21, the first sign that they need to be removed.

According to Olga Krikunenko, a dentist at Mint Dental of Franklin in Massachusetts, she hopes patients can go to the general dentist for checkups at any age.

In these appointments, dentists can monitor the teeth over the years as they take Panoramic X-rays every few years. However, higher-risk patients may need it done more often to evaluate the growth and positioning of the wisdom teeth.

Dr. Edward R. Gillis of the American Dental Association (ADA) revealed that pain, infection, cysts, tumors, and many things that can damage the way you chew or the jaw placement are signs that wisdom teeth need to be removed.

Chairman of Orthodontics at the University of Washington in Seattle, Dr. Greg J. Huang, said that he is not against removing teeth, but if wisdom teeth are not pulled out at a young age, a patient is just postponing the inevitable.

A professor of surgery at the University of North Carolina School of Dentistry, Dr. Raymond P. White Jr., stated that approximately 60 to 70 percent of patients with wisdom teeth would sooner or later have trouble with them, according to their data.

Therefore, early wisdom teeth removal is safest, per Children's Health.

Effects of removal of wisdom teeth

There isn't enough space in most teenagers' mouths for such extra teeth, and overcrowding can damage the mouth's teeth, nerves, and bones. Getting wisdom teeth removed may seem bothersome, but leaving them in is far less convenient in the long term.

The usual side effect of wisdom teeth extraction is a dry socket that occurs when wounds don't clot properly, leaving the nerves and bone exposed and causing pain as food may be trapped in the socket.

Hence, dry sockets can be treated by another visit to the dentist in which doctors clean out and apply dry socket paste medication and restitch if needed.

Damage to the adjacent molar, nerve injury, broken roots, numbness, and sinus aggravation is typically the serious side effects of the extraction, per Forbes.