Human beings have two sets of teeth. We have milk or primary teeth in childhood. Some of the milk teeth are replaced by adult or permanent teeth. One characteristic feature of adult teeth is the presence of wisdom teeth or third molars. They are four in number, one on each side of the upper and lower jaw. They appear in late teens and early twenties.

The wisdom teeth come behind the second molars provided there is enough room for them to align properly.

More often than not, wisdom teeth and their first appearance are troublesome. When there is a gap due to loss of a baby tooth, the remaining teeth move into the space reserved for the new wisdom tooth. This leaves insufficient room or space for a new tooth to emerge. The wisdom tooth fails to emerge fully because there is not enough space in the jawbone to accommodate the tooth or there is a problem in alignment. Then it is called as an Impacted wisdom tooth.

If the wisdom tooth is completely encased in the jawbone, it is a called as a bony impaction. If the wisdom tooth has erupted out of the jawbone but not through the gumline, it is called a called as a soft tissue impaction.

In some occasions, the wisdom tooth does not erupt completely through the gum bed and so the gum behind the wisdom tooth extends over the biting surface and covers the tooth. This is called as operculum. Such teeth are difficult to clean by normal brushing.

If brushing is not proper, bacteria can easily accumulate under an operculum and may cause infections. This can cause an infection. This is called pericoronitis. Common symptoms include swelling and redness of the gum and pain which may even extend to jaw and neck. Untreated pericoronitis can give rise to a more severe infection.

If the operculum does not disappear, recommended treatment is extraction of the wisdom tooth.

My daughter just had all four wisdom teeth extracted 8 days ago using general anesthesia. We got extracted before they became impacted. Her appointment was at 8:00AM and by 8:50, she was on her phone texting her friends that she was finished and OK. She rested Friday and kept using ice packs (frozen peas). She went out with friends Saturday night. The only difference was she did a course of prophylactic antibiotic for her CVID

My granddaughter, 13, has CVID and had her wisdom teeth, all four, removed last December. She is allergic to most antibiotics but managed to do well. She was nauseated the second and third day, and having the surgery for acid reflux, she cannot throw up but we managed to get something down her to stop the nausea. It took her longer to heal, because of CVID, but did and now glad she had it done.

Clark64 Wrote:
I'm now 40 yrs old, recently I visited a dentist for tooth scaling, after inspecting my teeth the dentist told me that I have still 2 milk tooth. Is it possible that milk tooth continues to exist even in adults? I have one more question about Dental Tourism. In my home country the Dental Implants are too expensive. One of my friends recently visited India with the help of a Medical Tourism Company, do you think it is safe to visit other places for cheap treatment. What about post-treatment support?

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> Human beings have two sets of teeth. We have milk
> or primary teeth in childhood. Some of the milk
> teeth are replaced by adult or permanent teeth.
> One characteristic feature of adult teeth is the
> presence of wisdom teeth or third molars. They are
> four in number, one on each side of the upper and
> lower jaw. They appear in late teens and early
> twenties.
>
> The wisdom teeth come behind the second molars
> provided there is enough room for them to align
> properly.
>
> More often than not, wisdom teeth and their first
> appearance are troublesome. When there is a gap
> due to loss of a baby tooth, the remaining teeth
> move into the space reserved for the new wisdom
> tooth. This leaves insufficient room or space for
> a new tooth to emerge. The wisdom tooth fails to
> emerge fully because there is not enough space in
> the jawbone to accommodate the tooth or there is a
> problem in alignment. Then it is called as an
> Impacted wisdom tooth.
>
> If the wisdom tooth is completely encased in the
> jawbone, it is a called as a bony impaction. If
> the wisdom tooth has erupted out of the jawbone
> but not through the gumline, it is called a called
> as a soft tissue impaction.
>
> In some occasions, the wisdom tooth does not erupt
> completely through the gum bed and so the gum
> behind the wisdom tooth extends over the biting
> surface and covers the tooth. This is called as
> operculum. Such teeth are difficult to clean by
> normal brushing.
>
> If brushing is not proper, bacteria can easily
> accumulate under an operculum and may cause
> infections. This can cause an infection. This is
> called pericoronitis. Common symptoms include
> swelling and redness of the gum and pain which may
> even extend to jaw and neck. Untreated
> pericoronitis can give rise to a more severe
> infection.
>
> If the operculum does not disappear, recommended
> treatment is extraction of the wisdom tooth.