The wisdom of extracting the Wisdom Tooth
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Prof (Dr) Waikhom Robindro Singh
A wisdom tooth is a third molar, typically one of four, located at the back of your mouth. They are the last teeth to erupt, usually between 17 and 25 years old. Sometimes they cause issues, sometimes they chill. Not everyone develops four wisdom teeth; some might have fewer or even none. Genetics dictates the number of wisdom teeth you have, and none to four is absolutely normal. The moniker “wisdom tooth” is a nod to the tooth’s timely emergence, coinciding as it does with the putative advent of maturity of an individual – intellectually perhaps, but largely developmental. The name has endured as a quaint relic, even as the tooth itself remains stubbornly unremarkable.
In fact, they show up a little late, don’t clean up themselves during masticatory function,can trash your gums and bone, and cause much discomfort to their first cousins, the second molars.While the first molars are the most vulnerable teeth in the mouth, probably with the shortest lifespan owing to other issues, they are the distant cousins of the wisdom teeth, and being a little distant, arerelatively safe from them.
A wisdom tooth can be:
* Fully erupted – whole crown of the tooth is above the gum and usually unproblematic
* Partially erupted – the tooth is midway in the eruption process when part of the crown has broken through the gum but still partially covered by a flap of gum tissue.A partially erupted tooth can be either impacted (stuck) or simply still in the process of erupting.
* Fully impacted – the tooth remains entirely encased in soft tissue or bone.
Stats vary, but roughly 60-70 pc of the population have impacted or partially erupted wisdom teeth.
Fully erupted wisdom teeth are like the cool kids, but impacted ones are the ones lurking in the shadows. Your x-ray’s the detective. Impaction is like the tooth getting stuck and trying to squeeze into a packed traffic. The usual suspects: lack of space, awkward angles of the tooth while erupting and evolutionary changes of our jawbones. Our jaws ain’t what they used to be earlier in evolution, when we were like apes – the Java man, Peking man and the lot had bigger jaws which had enough room for the eruption of wisdom teeth.
Erupted Wisdom teeth pose no problem if you maintain an impeccable oral hygiene.If they are hard to clean, they can trap food and bacteria, which can contribute to periodontitis andsurrounding bone loss. Sometimes they push against the second molars, causing pressure and discomfort, difficulty in cleaning, and potential damage to its structure. Orthodontists often weigh in on wisdom teeth, especially if they cause shifting of other teeth, crowding or alignment issues in the dentition.
Erupting wisdom teeth breach the gumline, inviting pericoronitis, an infection of the surrounding tissue, which can cause swelling, bad breath and mouth opening issues. Their awkward positioning turns them into a hotspot for plaque, upping the ante for tooth decay and gum disease.
Meanwhile, fully impacted wisdom teethare the silent assassins, stealthily orchestrating cystic and neoplastic transformations, sabotaging surrounding bone and neighbouring teeth, sometimes causing a vague pain that is hard to pinpoint. Often they don’t make a peep until things get complicated.
Dentists often push for a pre-emptive strike in the late teens to the early 20s – softer bones, partially formed roots, and easier recovery make it prime time.
Removal is on the cards:
* If they are impacted and causing pain/infection
* If they are pushing on other teeth. Orthodontists are like, “Are they causing chaos or chilling? If they are behaving, we let them be, but if they are trouble, it is eviction time!”
* Before they cause major issues like cyst or tumours which can damage the surrounding bone and nerve (To be contd)
A wisdom tooth is a third molar, typically one of four, located at the back of your mouth. They are the last teeth to erupt, usually between 17 and 25 years old. Sometimes they cause issues, sometimes they chill. Not everyone develops four wisdom teeth; some might have fewer or even none. Genetics dictates the number of wisdom teeth you have, and none to four is absolutely normal. The moniker “wisdom tooth” is a nod to the tooth’s timely emergence, coinciding as it does with the putative advent of maturity of an individual – intellectually perhaps, but largely developmental. The name has endured as a quaint relic, even as the tooth itself remains stubbornly unremarkable.
In fact, they show up a little late, don’t clean up themselves during masticatory function,can trash your gums and bone, and cause much discomfort to their first cousins, the second molars.While the first molars are the most vulnerable teeth in the mouth, probably with the shortest lifespan owing to other issues, they are the distant cousins of the wisdom teeth, and being a little distant, arerelatively safe from them.
A wisdom tooth can be:
* Fully erupted – whole crown of the tooth is above the gum and usually unproblematic
* Partially erupted – the tooth is midway in the eruption process when part of the crown has broken through the gum but still partially covered by a flap of gum tissue.A partially erupted tooth can be either impacted (stuck) or simply still in the process of erupting.
* Fully impacted – the tooth remains entirely encased in soft tissue or bone.
Stats vary, but roughly 60-70 pc of the population have impacted or partially erupted wisdom teeth.
Fully erupted wisdom teeth are like the cool kids, but impacted ones are the ones lurking in the shadows. Your x-ray’s the detective. Impaction is like the tooth getting stuck and trying to squeeze into a packed traffic. The usual suspects: lack of space, awkward angles of the tooth while erupting and evolutionary changes of our jawbones. Our jaws ain’t what they used to be earlier in evolution, when we were like apes – the Java man, Peking man and the lot had bigger jaws which had enough room for the eruption of wisdom teeth.
Erupted Wisdom teeth pose no problem if you maintain an impeccable oral hygiene.If they are hard to clean, they can trap food and bacteria, which can contribute to periodontitis andsurrounding bone loss. Sometimes they push against the second molars, causing pressure and discomfort, difficulty in cleaning, and potential damage to its structure. Orthodontists often weigh in on wisdom teeth, especially if they cause shifting of other teeth, crowding or alignment issues in the dentition.
Erupting wisdom teeth breach the gumline, inviting pericoronitis, an infection of the surrounding tissue, which can cause swelling, bad breath and mouth opening issues. Their awkward positioning turns them into a hotspot for plaque, upping the ante for tooth decay and gum disease.
Meanwhile, fully impacted wisdom teethare the silent assassins, stealthily orchestrating cystic and neoplastic transformations, sabotaging surrounding bone and neighbouring teeth, sometimes causing a vague pain that is hard to pinpoint. Often they don’t make a peep until things get complicated.
Dentists often push for a pre-emptive strike in the late teens to the early 20s – softer bones, partially formed roots, and easier recovery make it prime time.
Removal is on the cards:
* If they are impacted and causing pain/infection
* If they are pushing on other teeth. Orthodontists are like, “Are they causing chaos or chilling? If they are behaving, we let them be, but if they are trouble, it is eviction time!”
* Before they cause major issues like cyst or tumours which can damage the surrounding bone and nerve (To be contd)