IMPACTED TEETH
Impacted Teeth: Wisdom teeth, which are usually the last teeth to erupt between the ages of 17 to 21 are most likely to get impacted. By the time that wisdom teeth — also known as “third molars” — come in, the jaw has often stopped growing. The mouth and jaw may be too small to accommodate them and usually occur because of crowding or lack of space in the bone.
Impacted wisdom teeth can result in pain, damage to other teeth and other dental problems. In some cases, wisdom teeth may cause no apparent or immediate problems. But because they’re hard to clean, they may be more vulnerable to tooth decay and gum disease than other teeth. Such wisdom teeth can cause pain or other dental complications.
Impacted wisdom teeth can cause several problems in the mouth:
- Damage to other teeth: If the wisdom tooth pushes against the second molar, it may damage the second molar or increase the risk of infection in that area. This pressure can also cause problems with crowding of the other teeth or require orthodontic treatment to straighten other teeth.
- Cysts: The wisdom tooth develops in a sac within the jawbone. The sac can fill with fluid, forming a cyst that can damage the jawbone, teeth and nerves. Rarely, a tumor — usually noncancerous (benign) — develops. This complication may require removal of tissue and bone.
- Decay: Partially impacted wisdom teeth appear to be at higher risk of tooth decay (caries) than other teeth. This probably occurs because wisdom teeth are harder to clean. Also because food and bacteria easily traps between the gum and the tooth.
- Gum disease: The difficulty cleaning partially erupted wisdom teeth increases the risk of developing a painful, inflammatory gum condition called pericoronitis (per-ih-kor-o-NI-tis) in that area.
