Impacted Wisdom Teeth

What Are Wisdom Teeth?

Third molars are commonly referred to as wisdom teeth. They are usually the last teeth to develop and are located in the back of your mouth, behind your second molars. Their development is usually completed between the middle teenage years and early twenties, a time traditionally associated with the onset of maturity and the attainment of wisdom.

Are Your Wisdom Teeth Causing You Pain?

Don’t suffer any longer! Drs. Maharaj or Pham can gently extract wisdom teeth to prevent future complications.

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Wisdom Teeth Presentation

To provide you with a better understanding of wisdom teeth, we have provided the following multimedia presentation. Many common questions pertaining to wisdom teeth are discussed.

Wisdom Teeth Presentation

What are impacted wisdom teeth?

Most people develop 32 permanent adult teeth, it is rare that a person has room to accommodate all 32 teeth. Inadequate space prevents the teeth from erupting properly, these are called impacted. There are 3 types of impactions: soft tissue, partial bony, and complete bony. Each of these impaction levels can come with its own risk factors. An oral examination with x-rays can determine if there are present or future potential problems.

X-Ray and Diagram of Impacted Wisdom Teeth

Why should you remove wisdom teeth?

Not having enough room for these teeth to fully erupt can create a number of problems. These can include:

  • crowding
  • infections
  • formation of cyst
  • pain
  • swelling
  • problems chewing
  • damage to neighboring teeth
  • cyst formation
  • bone loss
  • in rare cases, tumors
  • shifting teeth, possibly reversing the work of orthodontic braces
Diagram of soft tissueSoft Tissue
Diagram of partially bony impactionPartial Bony
Diagram of complete bony impactionComplete Bony