Wisdom teeth removal. Yes or No?

[Rowan]

I've been researching wisdom teeth extraction for a while now. I've also talked to dentists and had a consultation with a dental surgeon about wisdom teeth extraction. The conclusion that I've come to is that if somethings not broken, its not fixable. Prevention is better than cure, right? Well what if the prevention could cause you long term/permanent damage and put you $3,000 out of pocket (Australian priced wisdom tooth extraction.) Id have to say that after speaking to both the dentist (who recieves money for refferal and sometimes performs the surgery themselves) and the surgeon, that its all about making money as a buisiness. Someone who has wisdom teeth will surely be reccomended having them out, maybe not as much as someone whos teeth are shown impacted on x-rays, then its a definite yes. I've found people who've told stories about having permanent damage after unecassary wisdom tooth extraction and also from people who supposedly needed it. Supposedly leaving them in can cause infection. But what ever happened to anti biotics? Ill tell you that if I get an infection in my toe, im not about to have it removed. Also, whilst speaking with the surgeon it was just as I expected it. He used time pressure scare tactics in order to convince me to have them removed. He said that people who leave them in CAN have shifting teeth, CAN have infection etc, it can happen when you are 30 or 40 or 50 and by then its much harder to operate. There was no 'definite" although I wouldnt put it past another dentist to use the word 'definite'. Now I know there are people who wish to have their wisdoms extracted due to agnoizing pain, now this would be a time to consider having them removed and weighing up the risks. If you are someone who is experiencing no pain then Ill tell you what a dentist told me.

"just have them out if theres a problem"

Going by that, why else would you have them taken out? Im very against wisdom tooth extraction since everyone I've spoken to has had them out based on what a dentist has told them , not by how they were feeling. This causes me to pull a silly statistic from the air in which somewhat 90 percent of people I asked, had them out because they were told too. None of which though were left with any permanent damage to themselves. My beliefs are based upon my own. If I ran a buisiness, I would not deny myself the opportunity to gain money, especially if its in the thousands of dollars. If I was a dentist and having wisdom teeth removed is such a common procedure and it make me rich, I would reccomend it to everyone.

just keep that in mind.

[Yoko]

Interesting. I went to my dentist because I has a tooth coming through behind my molars. I knew what it was right away. I had also been having unexplained headaches that would last for almost days. I went to a dentist in the area, paid for a bunch of silly x-rays, a cleaning, a consultation THEN the surgery. I'm lucky what most was covered through my dad's benefits. If I didn't get them taken out, I would have been in more pain then I already was. I was doing exams during that time too. I have no idea how I passed. I went into many tests/exams with a massive headache before then.

Mine were also impacted. They gave me antibiotics. They also told me that if I didn't get them out soon, my body could get immune to the antibiotics and the infection could get worse. That's why I don't like taking antibiotics too often.

I have friends who don't need their wisdom teeth removed. It isn't about the money. It's whether or not your jaw can actually hold them. If you don't need them to be taken out, then don't. If they are coming in sideways and are impacted, get them out as soon as you can. You'll be saving yourself a lot of trouble in the long run.

[loaf]

Went to Dentist in June of 2009. Told me by the end of the year I would need my Wisdom Teeth removed.

It's 2011 September. Wisdom Teeth still here, not once have they given me pain.

But I would probably want them removed...my bottom row of teeth is ****ed.

[Alpha]

Definitely not, unless they are actually doing you harm, which is very uncommon.

I think it's similar in Australia, but here the government pays all dental costs up to age 18. But I'm in the understanding that the government dies not pay the full cost of these (and what can the dentists do... they can't charge minors). So they make money elsewhere, by making adult dentistry more expensive. Ultimately I think that's fair as children's dental health is more critical, and children's dental health should be for everyone, not just those who can afford it.

But if you keep your teeth healthy and don't drink soft drinks, you're unlikely to need more than a 6 month/yearly check-up as an adult. So what's a definite income stream from adult patients? Wisdom teeth (if the risks are exaggerated).

My dentist gave me horror stories and statistics about infections, but I ignored them, as my budding wisdom teeth did not give me any trouble. Now they're fully developed, abd nothing ever happened. Not one moment of pain. My teeth are still straight. And I saved several thousand dollars -- the price of an entire year at university actually.

My brother did get his removed, as they were causing him so much pain he couln't eat solids. I don't know if that was temporary, but they key thing is that you should't do anything if they aren't causing symptoms. Prevention is one thing, but that's some pricey speculation.

[Rowan]

Went to Dentist in June of 2009. Told me by the end of the year I would need my Wisdom Teeth removed.

It's 2011 September. Wisdom Teeth still here, not once have they given me pain.

But I would probably want them removed...my bottom row of teeth is ****ed.

Can you solely blame your wisdom teeth on the shifting of your other teeth? Some dentists say only the jaw is responsible for the shifting of teeth and that it would be impossible for wisdom teeth to have any impact on any other teeth in your mouth, while other dentists say the exact opposite.

Something alpha mentioned is also important. Wisdom teeth will stop growing at a certain point, meaning there can be no possible change in your other teeth caused by wisdom teeth growth. That would also possible eliminate the chance of infection more especially if the teeth are impacted and underneath the gum.

I think one would agree it would be wise to leave them in until there is a problem, but you have to acknowledge that its a buisiness, and just like selling cars, there will always be harlots after your hard earned dollars. It takes between 20 - 30 mins to surgically extract 4 wisdom teeth under anesthetic, during which time a dentist will recieve thousands of dollars. I dont think im the only one who thinks that looking at this from a buisiness perspective is an important aspect. Afterall, some people strive for these jobs to get paid a lot of money. Who dreams of sticking their fingers into peoples mouths for a living? at least not me, and I could very well be your dentist wanting your cash and telling you that you need to have them out solely for the reason that I wish to be richer.

[Michael Swayne]

My widom teeth don't bother me. They came in when I was about 20. I have only flt pain when they first came through. Since then, it has been easy-peasy.

That wasn't the problem in my mouth.

My problem was when I was 10. I had two sets of baby teeth. In 5th grade, I almost choked on a tooth that had fallen out while I was sleeping, then one fell out at 10 am, one at 1:30 pm, and two at 2:45 pm. We went to the dentist in an emergency. He checked my records, and asked why did the records show I had lost my baby teeth. He checked my mouth, and new teeth were already showing.

He ended up pulling my fifth loose tooth that day. I forget the medical term for it, but kids at school called me "shark" for a month. Since sharks grow new teeth in when they lose one.

On a financial note: I normally received a dollar from the "tooth fairy", that day I got $20. And then I was immediately told the "tooth fairy" wasn't real.

[Furore]

If any of my teeth start causing me too much grief I'll save money by grabbing a pair of pliers, some pain killers and something with a strong alcohol percentage to sterilise.

Because screw paying a few grand.

[Vogue Star]

I made a post about this not long ago. About two weeks ago I had to make an emergency visit to the dentist because of one of my wisdom teeth. I had the x-rays and discovered that mine are horizontally impacted. He just gave me antibiotics to sort out the pain, and reassured me that the operation required to remove them was much more severe than the problem they were already causing. The dentist also said he had been suffering from the same infection as mine, and periodically took antibiotics to deal with it over the years!

My pain cleared up in about 2 days, and I stopped taking the antibiotics after that as they were making me have the most weird dizzy spells.

[Rowan]

I made a post about this not long ago. About two weeks ago I had to make an emergency visit to the dentist because of one of my wisdom teeth. I had the x-rays and discovered that mine are horizontally impacted. He just gave me antibiotics to sort out the pain, and reassured me that the operation required to remove them was much more severe than the problem they were already causing. The dentist also said he had been suffering from the same infection as mine, and periodically took antibiotics to deal with it over the years!

My pain cleared up in about 2 days, and I stopped taking the antibiotics after that as they were making me have the most weird dizzy spells.

You mention the operation being more severe than the actual problem. What was the dentist reffering to when he said the operation was more severe?

Never heard a dentist admit that before.

[Judge Magistrate]

I won't remove them unless I really have to. I see no point at all in getting the removed, unless you really want to pay the dentist to do it.

[Vogue Star]

You mention the operation being more severe than the actual problem. What was the dentist reffering to when he said the operation was more severe?

Never heard a dentist admit that before.

In my case, my wisdom teeth are very large, horizontally impacted, and their roots are lying very near the nerves in face. The extraction would be difficult because the surgeon would have to cut out the gum tissue at the back of my mouth to expose the teeth and then cut them in half so there is room to drag the roots out of the back of my face avoiding the delicate nerves.... sounds lovely doesn't it. Of course I would be put to sleep during the operation though

My cousin had the same operation done and they must have nipped one of the nerves in her face, because for about two weeks after she got the phantom sensation that she was dribbling constantly

I've spoken to many people that have had the operation, and most said it was a pain in the ass mostly because you can't eat properly and your face gets bruised and sometimes swells up like a giant moon!

So for two weeks you may look like Drop Dead Fred in this scene...
drop dead fred fridge scene - YouTube

[Horhay]

Unless your teeth actually cause some sort of complication or discomfort, you don't need any of them removed, or have any surgery performed. My Junior year, everyone got their Wisdom teeth taken out because they all thought the purpose of Wisdom teeth was to cause complications, when this is not true. All they did was remove teeth that probably weren't going to cause any harm in the first place if they had no complaints before.

A dentist convinced my dad when I was a lil' tyke that I needed my gums cut open to bring up my molars because he said they wouldn't come up otherwise. Then, guess what? They did! Just a little before the surgery was scheduled. My molars emerge, just a little later than average apparently.

Don't get me wrong, though; I'm very glad, and very fortunate to have dental insurance. I never have problems with my teeth due the cleaning they do every 6 months. But dentists will try to rip you off by suggesting unnecessary operations, even on children as young as 5-6. Just have them clean your teeth, close up cavities, and do operations only if needed.

[Lucid]

I've had my wisdom teeth removed because they had caused me trouble more than once. It got to the point that my mouth was swollen so bad that I could barely open it to eat and I had to end up going to the hospital to get antibiotics.

It only cost me $1800 to have mine removed and I don't regret it one bit. It was my first time being put to sleep though, so it was a little scary. But I'm glad I got them removed. It hurt after the medication wore off, and was a little annoying to eat, but after it healed, it was worth that little bit of inconvenience.

[Josh_R]

My wisdom teeth came in when I was about oh 16 hurt like a bitch when they where cutting through. Since then I have had zero problems with them. Went to two different. One told me that because I had gaps in my teeth when I was young that they came in perfect, and would not cause me problems ever. The other told me he was surprised that I had not experienced any pain, and that he needed to remove them immediately before they caused me any pain. Told him to suck it, and never went back.

[Pete]

I wouldn't have any surgery done without reason. If they're gonna ruin your teeth or cause a lot of pain, do it, otherwise don't worry about it.

I had mine taken out when I was 17, after they started to kill my jaw and they actually stated to affect my sinuses. Called my dentist on a tuesday, did some xrays and had them out on friday. Milkshakes and painkillers all weekend!

[Rocky]

Mine didn't really start bothering me until I was 19 (I'm a latebloomer ), but they would have this yo-yo like effect in my mouth. They'd start to push in and cause lots of pain, then they would regress and go back into my gums. It caused me lots of pain and not wanting to eat since they were going in crooked, and it would potentially affect my bite if left unchecked. The regression also left me vulnerable to infections as well. So, they needed to go!

Luckily since I was covered under my mom's health insurance, and she works at a hospital so she had the good insurance, we didn't have to pay out of pocket. Feels good man.

When I went to the oral surgeon, I was put under with sleeping gas for the first time. It was a wierd experience lol, but I recommend it for anyone. The 10 seconds of me taking it went from "this is a real surgery, I could die from it....who cares!" then I laughed my way to sleep. The first couple of hours after surgery, I was still groggy/trollsy from my drugs, but then the pain set in. It sucks!

After about 2-3 days, everything was back to normal. Well worth the zero dollars I spent on surgery. trololol.