Chicago Wisdom Teeth

Wisdom teeth are your third set of molars. They generally come in at around 19 years of age and take a couple of years to fully erupt. Some people don't have wisdom teeth. That is perfectly normal and nothing to be concerned about. There are some common dental problems in dealing with wisdom teeth. The most common cause of wisdom teeth problems is when they do not erupt properly. As you can see from the illustration on the left, there are several ways that wisdom teeth can erupt improperly. When this happens it is called impacted wisdom teeth.

The recommendation with impacted wisdom teeth is to have them removed as soon as possible, even before they are giving you problems. The reason for this is if you wait until they are bothering you, the surgery to remove them becomes more complicated. It just makes sense to have the surgery when it will be the easiest.

What to Expect with Wisdom Tooth Extraction

In order to remove the impacted tooth, it will require surgery. There will be an incision of the tissue surrounding the tooth, and it is possible some bone will have to be removed in order to successfully complete the operation. This is not an easy surgery to recover from, and you will need to take a couple of days off to rest afterward. You will be sore from the swelling, and it may be difficult to open your mouth for a few days. In addition to taking pain medication, you will need a soft food diet for a few days.

Dr. Olono has a lot of experience with impacted wisdom teeth and gets great satisfaction in helping his patients by taking care of these problems. If your wisdom teeth are bothering you, we'd be happy to see you. To request an appointment and evaluate your wisdom teeth, you may contact our office.