Wisdom teeth. Keep or remove?

[jessBsemple]

If you can keep them clean-keep 'em! If you start having any trouble (cavities, rot, etc.) with one or all- take 'em out!

[deerwatcher51]

My wife is 69 and still has her wisdom teeth, with no issues. I had a problem with one of mine 35 years ago so I had them take all while I was under.

[jbarr]

Well I ended up getting my wisdom tooth and molar pulled last Thursday and it’s been the worst procedure I’ve ever had. I ended up getting bone grafts as it was recommended to me by oral surgeon, the procedure went good and I also had the risk of nerve damage but none so far. Now for the problem, I believe I have TMJ or lock jaw now. I have been laid up in bed for last 2 days because if I talk, chew food or anything remotely active I get a pounding headache that no pain meds will get rid of. I hope it gets better by Tuesday or I’ll be back to the surgeons office to see what the deal is. I had to get mine pulled due to wisdom tooth pushing back molar higher than other teeth and causing crowding. Good luck and hope you have better luck then I did.
Here is my wisdom tooth x Ray and the red line is the nerve you are talking about.



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[ctom87]

They were supposed to send my xrays but didn't Will get both next Thursday.

[bow4my2]

Mine were taken out. 3 of 4 came out piece of cake. 4th one had to be broken, sore for a couple days. No problem since. My jaw was hurting a ton before. I’d do it again.

[locolobo]

I had a dental office tell me 20 yrs ago I needed to have mine pulled. I'll add here that this office is owned by a corporation out of Houston and I rarely got to see the same dentist twice in a year because they move on. Thinkin most are recently fresh out of school. They also push things like teeth whitening, laser cleaning and a lot of cosmetic stuff that costs big $. When they suggested removing my wisdom teeth I had them give many "reasons" over the years like, "they will crowd your other teeth making them crooked" They weren't then and now, 20 yrs later still haven't done much damage. "They will make cavities 'Cause they grow too close to the others"", "They are hard to keep clean". They haven't and they're not hard to clean. When a dentist suggested "Most people have them taken out anyway" I Lost it. Found another dentist. I'm now 63 and these teeth have grown in straight, are not hard to clean and have caused no cavities. They have caused a little crookedness in the others but not too noticeable and @my age I don't care.
I have had another dentist fill several "cavities". Just about every time I went for a check-up he would find new cavities. He even showed me the x-rays of said cavities.
2 years ago he quit taking my insurance so I had to find another. He had told me @ the last visit there were 2 more cavities that needed attention. The first visit with a new dentist they did x-rays and the new dentist informs me I had no cavities. Man was I pizzed. Glad I had lost the previous one. But now I don't really trust any dentist. Next time one tells me I have a cavity it will have to be causing me pain before I will have anything done. And my wisdom teeth are doing fine.

[ctom87]

I've prayed about this and have come to a decision. I will have 3 of my wisdom teeth removed July 12 with the 4th being removed at a date TBD in 2020. This was the recommendation of my surgeon. I feel confident in his abilities and I believe it will go off without any hiccups. Please continue praying for me. Usually I make decisions and don't have a hard time coming to a conclusion, but this has given me some serious anxiety.

Thanks everyone for your input.

[RiverRat1]

I have extraction scheduled for June 24th. Was told 17 yes ago to leave them that they weren't bothering anything and plenty room to come in. Well they are all in and 1 is perfect up and down. All others are sideways pushing on my molars. I did have pain about 3 wks ago on one of them. Not so much the tooth but the gum around the tooth. Based on X-Rays everything looked good but the gum line. I'm 33 and have 32 teeth in my mouth. Dentists said they all look good however he wants to remove my wisdoms. I sometimes think it's just a way for them to make some money. I went ahead and scheduled the extraction however I am debating on whether or not to proceed. In reality I will probably get it over with now while I have insurance that covers it 100%.

100% true.

I made the mistake of having mine removed. Didn't cause pain but after I did it I found out it was not needed..A lot of them always try to remove everyone's wisdom teeth.

OP - Ask the one dentist that wants you to remove them what percent of his patients he recommends removing.

I'd leave them in until they cause an issue. But really either way you'll probably be fine. I bet they over exaggerate the 20% number also



Good luck. Just saw your last post. Nothing to fear IMO

[critter69]

I was told by a number of dentists and my orthodontist for years to get my wisdom teeth pulled and my toncels out. They weren’t bothering me in any way. I didn’t have either removed, 56 now and as of yet they haven’t caused me one single problem. Probably until now, because I wrote this. I would wait until they caused issues. How bad are your teeth, do you really need braces ? I had them, they suck. But my teeth were pretty bad. Ended up removing them my self, I think the orthodontist moved or quit practic3, retired or something.

[Acameron52]

Get them SOBs out. Nothing worse than tooth pain!!

[Grant2]

Took my 13 year old today and they said pull them and get it over with. He said yes you can keep them 10-15 or 20 years, but one day you will pull them. It's just a matter of when and you heal a lot faster at a younger age. He is scheduled for July 14th and nervous LOL!!

[Pushbutton2]

The Military removed mine while I was on Active Duty in 1990. They said the was growing into my molars.

[Calrob]

Find the oldest, country dentist you can and ask him. Not them folks that just moved here from communist states.

[Brute Killer]

I have mine, but a dentist removed my bicuspids when I was a kid. Probably soon after they grew in.
Only issue was my bottom front teeth buckled just a little, but they don't show.

[Ryanm]

Had mine removed when I was a teenager, well before they really started developing. Will have our kids done the same way.

My wife waited to have hers removed when she was 25. I think they were messing with her other teeth. Surgery caused minor nerve damage and she still can't feel part of her lip. Not life changing, I just have to tell her to wipe food off her face occasionally.. hope that makes you feel better.