Frequently Asked Questions about Wisdom Teeth

I enclose a number of the most frequently asked questions and hope this will be of benefit to you.

1. Do I always have to have my wisdom teeth out?
The answer to this is No. Just because wisdom teeth are present does not necessarily mean that they need to be removed. In fact the British facility of the College of Surgeons recommends that symptomless third molars are not removed unless they have had some kind of pathological event. Therefore the direct answer to this question is No.
However once they start to give symptoms then this is a good indication for their removal.
2. Will the removal of my wisdom teeth be painful?
Generally speaking during the operative part of third molar removal this is undertaken for the patient under either local anaesthesia, sedation, or general anaesthesia and consequently should be a pain free procedure. Despite our reputation oral surgeons are not interested in hurting patients and as far as we are concerned the pain free environment is what is required for operating on wisdom teeth.
3. Do I have to have a general anaesthetic to remove my wisdom teeth?
Here again this is a matter of choice between the oral surgeon and the patient. For some patients the idea of any kind of surgery is a ‘no no’ and they will request and require general anaesthesia for even the most straight forward surgery. On the other hand there are some very stoic patients who would prefer not to have any kind of external adjunct to the local anaesthesia and that of course can be accommodated within good oral surgery practice.
The answer to the question is therefore no you don’t necessarily have to have a general anaesthetic but the type of procedure undertaken for the removal of wisdom teeth generally is a point of discussion between the oral surgeon and the patient and in some circumstances general anaesthetic is indicated and as is sedation or local analgesia. This question can best be answered at your consultation appointment with the oral surgeon.
4. Are all wisdom teeth impacted?
Not all wisdom teeth are impacted because the term impaction really means caught behind or stuck behind and this may be bone, tooth structure or soft tissue. There are a considerable number of patients who have more than enough room within the oral cavity and the wisdom teeth erupt into the oral cavity and become a normal part of the masticatory apparatus.
5. Do we all have four wisdom teeth?
Not necessarily, with the change of diet over the centuries together with the evolutionary changes that have taken place between the maxilla and mandible (facial bones) the number of wisdom teeth present may very from between one and four and in some unlucky individuals! Teeth behind the wisdom teeth have been known to occur thus these unfortunate patients not only have 8’s they also may have 9’s.
6. Will I have swelling and soreness afterwards?
Yes I know of no oral surgeon who can remove impacted wisdom teeth where there is absolutely no swelling or no post operative discomfort. In this day and age most areas of discomfort following surgery can be well coped for with medication and even the swelling, which is related to the amount of extra vascular fluid in the tissues, can be helped with the use of ice packs, exercise etc.
7. Does my jaw have to be dislocated to remove my wisdom teeth?
This is a question that has been asked many times and I am unaware where the myth regarding this has arisen from. It is most unlikely, not to say very rare, to sublux the jaw for the removal of wisdom teeth. I think this myth has arisen because it is not unknown following third molar surgery to have limitation of opening of the mouth due to a small amount of spasm in the muscles of mastication. So the real answer to this question is as a general rule in fact in 99.9% dislocation of the mandible is not a feature and it would be a rare case indeed that this is required on.