Do you feel like you’ve been hearing an awful lot about third molars lately? Perhaps you have started to wonder whether you require wisdom teeth removal but you don’t notice any signs that something is wrong with your smile. In fact, you’re not even certain what a wisdom tooth is or if you have any. Do yourself a favor and allow us to dispel some common myths about these teeth – you will walk away with a clearer understanding of whether or not you may require our restorative dental care for this issue.
Myths and Facts: About Your Wisdom Teeth
Myth: If you develop wisdom teeth, you will definitely need wisdom teeth removal – there is no reason for you to keep them.
Fact: Actually, we have patients show up with a variety of needs. Some patients never develop wisdom teeth at all. Some develop them without any problems, which means it is perfectly fine to leave them without an extraction (unless they’re too hard for you to clean). However, if these third molars threaten your oral health, we will suggest removal to protect your smile.
Myth: Wisdom teeth may show up at any point during your life – they are called wisdom teeth because they often appear when you are quite old.
Fact: For the most part, if you are going to develop these teeth, they will make an appearance after all of your other teeth have finished growing. Usually, these molars will appear from the ages of 17 to 25 – their name signifying the fact that you are older and wiser than during your tween or teen years when your other permanent molars erupted.
Myth: The only way to determine whether you are going to need wisdom teeth removal is to wait and see if they erupt.
Fact: We can track the progress of these molars before problems occur with the help of advanced imaging.
