In which cases should wisdom teeth be extracted? What happens if they are not extracted?
When wisdom teeth erupt into the mouth, they are very difficult to clean due to their location. For this reason, the risk of caries in the neighboring molars, which are the main functioning teeth, increases. Gingival infection and related complaints such as severe pain, swelling, restricted mouth opening, and sometimes fever and weakness may occur around semi-erupted wisdom teeth.
Wisdom tooth pain can be local or radiate to neighboring teeth, throat, ear or head. Impacted wisdom teeth can cause superficial or deep melting of the tooth due to the pressure on the surfaces of the neighboring teeth. For this reason, it may rarely cause the neighboring tooth to be extracted. It is recommended to extract wisdom teeth at the age when they are seen.
There is a growth follicle around the impacted teeth. The growth follicle carries the risk of cystic transformation. For this reason, it is recommended to evaluate this risk with a dental examination every 6 months even if the impacted teeth are not extracted.