Wisdom Tooth Surgery

A wisdom tooth is extracted to correct an actual problem or to prevent problems that may arise in the future.

Some of the problems that can occur when wisdom teeth come in are:

1. Your jaw may not be large enough for them, and they may become impacted and unable to break through your gums.
2. Your wisdom teeth may break part way through your gums, causing a flap of gum tissue to grow over them. Food and germs can get trapped under the flap and cause your gums to become red, swollen and painful. These are signs of infection, know as Pericoronitis.
3. More serious problems can develop from impacted teeth, such as infection, damage to the surrounding bone, or a cyst formation.
4. Tooth decay in the adjacent/neighbouring tooth.
5. One or more of your wisdom teeth may come in at an awkward angle, with the top of the tooth facing forward, backward, or to either side.
6. Crowding of the back teeth.