Wisdom Teeth Surgery
Surgical Exodontia
Anthropologists believe wisdom teeth served an important purpose pre-historically, but are now vestiges of human evolution. Back then, oral hygiene was inadequate and the diet was much more challenging. It was not uncommon to lose teeth while still in their teens. The wisdom teeth would erupt around that age and provide a fresh set of teeth to replace the worn teeth. Today, we keep our teeth longer, and our jaws are dimensionally smaller; as a result, there is not enough room for wisdom teeth to erupt comfortably. The wisdom teeth become impacted, and can negatively affect the surrounding structures.
Reasons for removal of impacted wisdom teeth:
- Bacteria can populate the area around impacted teeth and lead to an increase in periodontal disease.
- Pericoronitis can develop around a partially visible impacted tooth leading to intermittent pain and swelling.
- Destruction of surrounding structures can occur, especially affecting the second molar next to the impacted tooth.
- There is an ongoing debate whether impacted teeth can cause shifting of other teeth, i.e. crowding of the incisors.
- Timely removal of impacted teeth can prevent odontogenic cysts and tumors from developing.
- When considering jaw surgery (orthognathic surgery), removal of impacted teeth may be necessary.
- Those who engage in contact sports may be vulnerable to jaw fractures in areas where there are impacted teeth.
There is now significant evidence to support the removal of impacted teeth (American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons White Paper on Third Molars 2007).
Importantly, there is an increased risk of complications in older patients, as well as an increased tendency for a prolonged recovery. Younger patients have an innate ability to heal more effectively and at a considerably faster rate. We encourage you to take advantage of this healing capacity in determining whether to remove your wisdom teeth.
