Do you have straight teeth? Perhaps you wore braces during your adolescence to maintain a healthy occlusion and improve the positioning of your teeth. Did you know that your wisdom teeth pose a threat to the spacing and positions of other teeth? It’s true; as wisdom teeth begin to emerge, they tend to cause orthodontic and occlusal issues because the mouth is too crowded for their arrival. This crowded situation normally means that teeth will begin to shift out of alignment. They might even become rotated and overlapped from the forces associated with wisdom tooth eruption.
Tooth Removal is typically recommended when it comes to wisdom teeth. Removing wisdom teeth can prevent unwanted tooth movement along with a host of other oral health issues. Our oral surgeons provide gentle wisdom tooth removal to help patients maintain optimal oral health.
Why do wisdom teeth cause problems?
Wisdom teeth, technically known as “third molars”, contribute to a variety of dental issues including increased risks for periodontal disease and dental caries. The reason these teeth cause problems is due to the time when they arrive and where they are located in the oral cavity.
Third molars erupt in early adulthood. This is many years after the last permanent, adult tooth has emerged. For years, adult teeth are left undisturbed while their roots establish their positions in the jaw. When wisdom teeth emerge, their arrival will crowd existing teeth while generating force to move teeth to unwanted positions.
The crowded situation that typically accompanies most wisdom tooth eruption means that many third molars will be impacted. An impacted tooth cannot fully emerge through the gingiva and instead becomes trapped in the bone and/or gums. Impacted teeth are practically impossible to clean. Many impacted teeth become infected. It’s not uncommon for patients to develop dental caries and gum disease on their wisdom teeth as well as neighboring teeth.
If your dentist has recommended wisdom tooth removal, call us at Permian Basin Oral Surgery & Dental Implant Center today to reserve a consultation with our oral surgeons.
