Wisdom teeth are one of those oral health problems that most of us don’t think about until we start having problems. Because third molars generally don’t emerge until the patient’s late teens or early twenties, the problems associated with these teeth can take some people by surprise. Our Glendale Wisdom Tooth dentists are here to help you recognize and understand problematic wisdom teeth—let’s get started!
Your wisdom teeth are located in the very back of your smile, behind your functional molars. The problem for many people is that they simply do not have enough space along their jawlines to comfortably accommodate the wisdom teeth.
When your wisdom teeth first start to come in you may notice a feeling of soreness or tightness in the back of your jaw. You may also notice that your gum tissue around your wisdom teeth is damaged, sensitive, and swollen.
Some people have wisdom teeth that emerge upright from the gum tissue, similarly to other teeth. However, many people will find that their wisdom teeth come in at odd angles, even horizontally. Sometimes, wisdom teeth are so impacted in the jawbone tissue that they don’t really emerge at all.
Wisdom teeth, and the gum tissue around the teeth, are very difficult to keep clean. That is why these teeth often become hotbeds for bacteria production—leading to cavities and gum disease. Many patients notice that they develop hard-to-treat bad breath due to these infections—the same oral bacteria that infect your teeth gums release unpleasant odors.
When your dentist completes a wisdom tooth assessment, they’ll be able to tell you how your wisdom teeth should be extracted. If your teeth are somewhat visible, they may be able to pull them out as they would pull any other tooth. Patients with impacted teeth will likely require surgery to extract the tooth from the jawbone tissue.
The best way to get started protecting your smile is to schedule a consultation with our Glendale wisdom tooth dentists. Give us a call to speak to a member of our team!