Wisdom teeth, despite the term, can cause significant dental issues. These molars, known as wisdom teeth, are the last to come in during the “wisdom years” of late adolescence and early adulthood. Impaction occurs when a wisdom tooth is impacted because it doesn’t have enough room to erupt properly.
A lack of space in the mouth is the most common cause of impacted wisdom teeth. When wisdom teeth become impacted, they become wedged either partially or entirely beneath the gums. It is possible for a tooth to erupt partially and partially impacted. In contrast, when a tooth is fully impacted, it is located below the gum line.
The four types of wisdom tooth impaction are mesial (front), distal (back), horizontal, and vertical. In this article, we’ll take a closer look at the various forms, the signs and symptoms of wisdom teeth impaction, and the available options for care. Discuss your treatment options with an expert family dentists in Burlington, Ontario.
Impactions caused by Wisdom Teeth
Impact on the Mesial Plateau
Wisdom teeth are typically impacted in a mesial position. For the same reason that they feature a tooth that is only half erupted and coming in at an angle to the front of the mouth, angular impactions are occasionally used as a synonym.
Impaction at the Distal End of the Bone
But distal impaction, another sort of angular impaction, might easily be mistaken for a mesial impaction.
Resulting from a Horizontal Force
When an impacted tooth is totally submerged behind the gums in a horizontal position, this is known as a horizontal impaction. Horizontal impacts are extremely unpleasant and can do significant damage. This is because the tooth will keep trying to erupt even though it is facing the incorrect way, eventually pushing the root of the adjacent tooth out of its proper position.
Impacted wisdom tooth: the treatment
As the degree of impaction increases, so does the difficulty of treating an impacted wisdom tooth. Some people’s wisdom teeth (very seldom) do not need any kind of treatment at all. Unfortunately, surgical tooth extraction is usually the only option for removing impacted wisdom teeth. To remove an impacted tooth, a dentist will need to make a little cut in the gums. In order to extract the tooth, it will first be fractured into several pieces. The last step involves suturing the gums and packing the region with cotton. Extraction of teeth is usually a simple procedure with minimal downtime.
