Wisdom Teeth Removing

[DawnM]

would you get a second opinion?

 

I am wondering if as many people who are told they need their wisdom teeth removed really do.

 

Any stories?  Anyone not get them removed even though they were told to?  

[Guest]

Well, if you're having doubts, I wouldn't hesitate to get a second opinion. I had mine out at 16, but in my case even the lamest dentist could tell there was no where for them to fit without causing major havoc to the teeth in front. Despite my impressive number of words used a day, I have a small mouth. :)  I didn't have to have braces and I really didn't want to risk needing them later so I happily had them done. If this situation had a person that seemingly had plenty of room I could definitely see getting a second opinion- it's not the most fun of procedures to endure, that's for sure. 

Edited May 19, 2016 by texasmom33

[Anne]

^{Before we had wisdom teeth removed, we looked at x-rays - the teeth were coming in sideways!  Also, small mouths with big teeth - not a good combination!}

 

^{A second opinion is always a good idea if you have doubts.}

 

^Anne

[hornblower]

I didn't have mine removed even though they were impacted. 

And then they rotted one by one when I was in my 20s. Luckily, it never happened during exams / vacations / important work events. I had them removed one at a time under a local after they suddenly swelled up overnight with no warning. One of them I couldn't even open my mouth for the exam. They had to jam a needle randomly in there to freeze me to get it to open up a bit and then freeze more... It was messy and gross. 

I'd consider a second opinion but if they're impacted, they're impacted. If they're in the grey zone that's trickier. 

 

Ds is getting a first opinion at the end of the month. His ALMOST fit. They're out but on 2 the back wall of the tooth is right up against the jaw tissue. He's already had one episode of pericoronitis which required oral antibiotics. I don't doubt the surgeon will say to remove them but we will think about it. 

[marbel]

Well, the dentist shows me the x-rays and then sends me to the oral surgeon, who does his own exam and then says yes or no.  At least that's how it happened with kid #1; kid #2 is going for her oral surgeon consultation next week.   So, there's two opinions.

 

With kid #1, there was no question it was needed.  If I was unsure, though, I'd get a second opinion, though I don't know if I'd get it from another dentist or another oral surgeon.

 

Our dentist is someone I trust completely, though, so I'm inclined to follow up without a lot of questioning if he says something needs to be done.

[GoVanGogh]

DH didn't need to have his removed as a teen, but around age 35 his wisdom began shifting and - almost overnight, or so it seemed - crowded his front teeth badly. He had his wisdom teeth removed then but still hasn't done braces. He really should as he has problems flossing his front teeth due to teeth being so crowded and crooked.

I don't know that wisdom teeth are something that most people can avoid. Maybe so. But I know so many people that have had them out as adults, after they became problematic.

I had mine out as a teen. DS will be getting his out soon. (We just scheduled it today, in fact.)

I would get a second opinion, if I wasn't comfortable with the dentist or his advice.

[JFSinIL]

Only one of my kids (knock wood) has NOT needed his out.  Thank goodness my now adult son with autism has not needed them removed, as I am sure recovery for him would have been confusing and brutal.  He has wisdom teeth, sideways in her jawbone, but the oral surgeon said that by since they have not moved and do not look like they are affecting any other teeth, they can stay put. 

[Lolly]

I've been given conflicting reports on my kids. One dd's orthodontist said plenty of room. They all 4 came in. Changed dentists. He said they all need to come out. I told him ortho said they were fine. He snorted. Two years later, one of them had a bad cavity, as in nasty. We took the two out on that side only. Another dd only had two. Dentist said plenty of room for the two. Changed dentist he wanted both removed asap. She hast two. Ds was planning military career. We had them all 4 removed so that he wouldn't have to have it done on their terms. Lastly, the remaining dd had hers out before she went into braces. We didn't worry about if there was room or not in her situation.

[Cinder]

Dh had his done in the military. His teeth were impacted sideways. Both sons had theirs removed--x-rays showed them impacted. OTOH I have a biiiig mouth and I had 3 WT come in; I've never had a dentist recommend they be pulled, though a few years ago one did need to be pulled due to a cavity. I was able to have that done with just novacaine; dentist just pulled it out! I was always told that I had plenty of room for those teeth and that I *could* have them pulled if I wanted but it wouldn't be necessary unless there was decay. Since those teeth don't erupt as fully as the regular teeth, any decay could not be treated--they'd have to go below the gum line--so they'd just pull the tooth in that event.

 

My SIL didn't have hers pulled when it was recommended. She went years with her teeth impacted and not only did it cause her front teeth to crowd up, it gave her headaches. She was afraid to get them pulled because any nerve damage to her mouth would have affected her work as a musician. I'm not sure how many years went by before she finally got them pulled. It all went well and she continued her professional career for years afterward. She's the only person I know of who didn't get her teeth pulled when it was recommended.

[December]

The dentists wanted to remove mine when I was a teenager, just preemptively, so I wouldn't have to have it done when I was older.  They also showed me on the X ray how they were coming in sideways and said there wouldn't be room for them, but turns out that is normal and they came in just fine.  I am 33 now and no issues with them so far!

[SKL]

I was told at age 22? that I would need them all surgically removed since they were all jacked up under the gums.

 

At age 48? my first wisdom tooth started to erupt.  The rest are still in there.  So far no major issues.  My current dentist doesn't say I need to do anything.

 

So I tend to be skeptical.  I guess the only downside to having them removed is the cost, the drugs, and the short-term pain; but if it isn't needed, then I would rather not do it.

 

Maybe I will need it done after all, but now I can afford it.

[Joker]

I had mine removed at 15 before they came in because the roots were actually going to cut through nerves. It was necessary.

 

Dh has only had two removed and that was when I was married to him and they had become infected. 

 

Neither dd has had theirs removed and neither have been told to do so and they are almost 14 and 17. 

[HSmomof2]

My ortho said mine had plenty of room after my orthodontics was done, and they came in fine. I'm 43 now and still have my wisdom teeth with no problems. My dentist put sealants on them a couple years ago to prevent decay, but they weren't showing any signs of decay. He even did the sealants for free, since our insurance wouldn't cover them for adults.

[Pawz4me]

Oldest DS's orthodontist said "get them out ASAP" after he took off DS's braces.

 

Our dentist (laughingly) said "None of them are anywhere close to causing a problem right now, I'll let you know if I see a problem developing."  She showed us the x-rays and my untrained eye couldn't imagine them being a problem at that point.

 

We changed dentists, and the new dentist said essentially the same thing as the first one.

 

Oldest is 20 now and still has all of them.  But . . . he has a dentist appointment this afternoon.  I'm probably being a jinx by posting this, and she'll say it's time for some of them to come out!

[2ndGenHomeschooler]

The dentists wanted to remove mine when I was a teenager, just preemptively, so I wouldn't have to have it done when I was older. They also showed me on the X ray how they were coming in sideways and said there wouldn't be room for them, but turns out that is normal and they came in just fine. I am 33 now and no issues with them so far!

This is me too! Growing in sideways, not enough room...They flipped around and are growing in fine. I have the top 2. One of the bottom ones is trying to grow in. I'm also 33.

[The Girls' Mom]

Our current dentist said that the latest studies/line of thought were that removal wasn't nearly as needed as once thought.  They are now leaning towards a wait and see approach.  This shift was just in the past couple of years.  My oldest had hers out, but they were obviously going to cause problems.  (tiny mouth, already pushing on nerves).  

[SparklyUnicorn]

I had 2 removed.  Those were the worst of the 2.  I couldn't afford to have any of it done so that was the compromise.  I was an adult at that point.

 

My husband still has all 4.  They have never erupted.

 

 

[MrsWeasley]

I did not get them removed as a teenager, though it was recommended. Instead, they were partially erupted and I had repeated gum infections. I eventually had all four removed under local anesthesia and wish I had done it years earlier.

[displace]

Mine erupted in my 20s. It came in sideways but it didn't bother me. My dentist recommended removal and I said I didn't want a procedure if there was no problem. She said fine, you can wait, and when it gives you problems you can pull it then. Within a year or two the gum got inflamed and I had it pulled. I didn't notice at the time but it did subtly change my bite and I wish I had pulled it immediately, though there's no way to know if there will be a problem.

[bethben]

My ds had all of his removed at 15.  He had two that erupted on the bottom.  On one side, he was constantly chewing on his inside cheek because of where it was positioned and on the other side, it wasn't going to come in all the way and had already started an infection cycle ( every 2-3 months, it would get a little infected).  Since we were getting the bottom teeth out, we just had them do the top teeth which weren't in yet just to get it all over in one shot. 

 

My 17 year old special needs kiddo still hasn't had them erupt.  I'm hoping a little that they don't because with him, it's a trip to the hospital for general anesthesia and can't be done in the oral surgeon's office.

[PrairieSong]

My husband never had his removed. I had one lower one removed because it was coming in sideways. I don't have a lower one on the other side. I only have three. My two uppers have never come in and my dentist said they likely never will. My kids have had theirs removed, mostly for orthodontic reasons, except the youngest still has his at age 16.

[OneStepAtATime]

Definitely get a second opinion if you aren't sure.  I was sure.  All 4 were impacted and all four were moving and all four mucked up my other teeth so I ended up wearing braces twice.  

[flyingiguana]

It can sometimes be a hard call.  What I was told by one oral surgeon is that as the teeth grow, they get closer to an important nerve or wrap around it completely.  So if one waits it is *possible* that there is a higher probability of facial paralysis following the surgery.

 

I've never known what the statistics were on that, or if it was just his random opinion.

 

Dentists tell me that they can cause a lot of crowding later on when they come in.  Again, though, no one ever tells me any numbers on this and I was never able to find anything.  There are certainly lots of anecdotes one way or the other, but that isn't going to help much with the decision.

 

If biological relatives had certain problems with not removing wisdom teeth, I'd be inclined to weight that more.

[flyingiguana]

One oral surgeon we used did tell us the operation was a lot less common in Europe.  Whatever that means.

 

He also wanted to take out his wife's wisdom teeth because they were causing her mild problems, but she would not do it because of the risk of facial paralysis at her age.  She was some kind of professional woodwind player, as I recall.

[goldberry]

I didn't get any removed until one started causing pain, then I had that one removed.  Later I had to have the corresponding bottom one removed.  Apparently if you have one removed, the other one on the same side can start to come upward (or downward) because it has nothing to brace against.  So if you do have one removed, go ahead and remove the other one on the same side. 

 

I still have both on the other side with no problems.

[Carol in Cal.]

I still have mine.

Two dentists suggested removing them, but neither of them really had a reason except that they were hard to reach for flossing and such.  I started to use an extender for flossing and kept them.  No problems.

 

When DD was 16  or 17 our dentist (a less invasive one) suggested that we remove hers, since she was presumably finished growing, but her teeth were just coming in, and had not formed roots yet.  He said that it would be easier to remove them now than later, and that there was clearly not enough room for them.  I thought this over and consulted DD.  In our family, there is a history of late growth, so we jointly decided to keep them and risk more difficult oral surgery later on if necessary.  She is almost 20 now, and it's worked out well--she has grown at least 1 1/2-2 inches in height since the convo, and her face has widened as well.  Plenty of room now!

[LucyStoner]

My husband had perfect teeth when we married when he was 22. Now his lower front is crowded because he waited to get them out. They were all there but they were causing jaw pain and one was getting infected. They all got removed at age 31 and he hasn't seen anymore shifting.

 

Mine were taken out, along with three other teeth before I got braces at age 30. My jaw was way too small for all my teeth and they were causing headaches and pain.

[AK_Mom4]

DS24's wisdom teeth were not invited to go to the air force academy with him. He had them out the summer before his senior year (preventative).

 

DD22 had her jaw swell up and the incoming tooth was infected.  They pulled all four because the other three didn't look any better.

 

DS20 had his out the summer between junior and senior because they had started to come in and were pushing his teeth forward - undoing thousands of dollars of braces.

 

DD15 still has hers.  Her dentist suggests waiting until they start to move and see how she ends up.  

 

We always got a second opinion on wisdom teeth - except for DD22 since her tooth clearly had to come out due to the infection.   

[HS Mom in NC]

My mother is in her 70s and they've been telling her for decades if she doesn't get them out there will be doom and gloom.  There hasn't been any doom or gloom yet.

I kept mine in and all but 1 came through.  The only problems were one of them caused some just barely noticeable misalignment in my bottom teeth. I had it removed. Depending on how they come in they can make flossing a bit of a challenge (just like any other misaligned teeth)  which increases the likelihood of tooth decay.