Despite the fact that it doesn’t always seem like it, any pain or discomfort in your tooth should be treated as an emergency situation. It often indicates a problem that, whether minor or severe, will gradually get worse the longer you ignore it. When it comes to your wisdom teeth (third molars), pain and discomfort are even more of a warning. It often indicates an impaction of one or more of your wisdom teeth, and ignoring it can give them time to cause significant damage to your dental ridges. If you notice any pain or sensitivity in or around your wisdom teeth, we advise scheduling a visit to address it as soon as possible.
What the discomfort means
Wisdom tooth impaction is when a third molar is unable to fully and correctly erupt. As the last of your permanent teeth to develop, third molars are often left with little room at the ends of your dental ridges, and the crowding can cause the tooth’s structure to become impacted before it has the chance to erupt. The discomfort associated with wisdom tooth impaction is different for every patient who experiences it. It may be mild at first, or sudden and intense. It may occur at the early stages of impaction, or you may feel nothing until the impaction has already become severe. Any signs of discomfort should be treated seriously and assessed by your dentist or oral surgeon.
The dangers of wisdom tooth impaction
If your wisdom teeth don’t hurt and you don’t notice the impaction for a while, or if you hesitate to have your wisdom teeth extracted, the impact they can have on your oral health will grow worse. Depending on the specific position and angle of the molar, this can include damage to the bone structure surrounding it as well as damage to the nearby molar and its root. As the wisdom tooth continues to develop and try to erupt, the force with which it pushes against these structures will increase, and the damage might be extensive if you wait long enough to seek treatment.
Addressing the emergency by extracting them
When a wisdom tooth becomes impacted, there are few options for addressing it. The only way to do so conservatively is to extract them as soon as possible, which will require oral surgery. The process of surgically extracting wisdom teeth involves carefully accessing the tooth’s structure underneath your gums, then gently removing the tooth structure and closing the incision. While it may be more involved than general tooth extraction, it’s still a conservative treatment option, and will help alleviate your discomfort as well as prevent the molar from causing any more harm to your oral health.
Don’t hesitate if your wisdom teeth hurt
When your wisdom teeth start to hurt, the impaction that causes it can become much more severe before you realize. To schedule your consultation to have your wisdom teeth extracted, call the Texas Institute of OFI Surgery in Midlothian, TX, today at 469-649-8259. We also serve patients who live in Dallas, Mansfield, Cedar Hill, Duncanville, Desoto, Red Oak, Waxahachie, Ft. Worth, and all surrounding communities.