My dentist woes :( Wisdom teeth question

[Stackie]

Many of you were in chat last night when I was freaking out about going to the dentist. They were wanting to pull my tooth, but I got a second opinion.

They can save my bad tooth and just put on a crown...however...I have 4 huge wisdom teeth I have to get cut out!!!

Now, I have never had problems with my wisdom teeth. I was beginning to think I never had any, as they've never bothered me and they never came in. However, the dentist today said that they would need to come out and referred me to a specialist. I am 21 and have yet to have problems with my wisdom teeth.

So...do I really need to get them taken out asap? Or should I wait until they start causing me problems?

 

[3CsMommy]

The problem with wisdom teeth is that they can screw up other things (like your other teeth and your jaw muscles) as they come in. If you ever had braces, a crooked wisdom tooth can push all of those teeth out of place again. They can also get infected during that period too. Mine grew in as far as they could before I had them out, and had they not been tilted toward my cheeks I'd have been all right. But since they were crooked, they were wearing down my other teeth unevenly and contributed to a couple of cavities. Once I got dental coverage again, I had them removed. It's nice to not bite into my cheek every time I close my mouth without thinking.

 

[alli713]

I hate dentists.

Having said that, I've had my wisdom teeth out and it sucked so bad. But I think it may have been the oral surgeon I went to as my sister went to the same one and had issues as well.

But, my fiance is 25 and still has his wisdom teeth. So far he hasn't had any issues and no one has forced him to get them out. Although he does have other teeth issues from playing hockey. In fact, right now he still has one baby tooth lol! So perhaps because of that the wisdom teeth aren't an issue.

 

[caiti]

My wisdom teeth never bothered me and I got them all out. Basically, look at the x-rays. If they're crooked then you know they're impacted and you probably should get them out.

But I've also known people who waited til they started causing problems and they were ok when they finally did get them out. If you think you're going to have more money/better insurance in the next year or two then maybe think about waiting. I knew I was going to have the same insurance for a while so it wouldn't have made a difference to me if I got them out when I did or later so I opted to be safe and get them out asap.

 

[Jenn]

Stace, are your wisdom teeth erupted ( present in your mouth) or are they beneath the gums? They are easier to remove when erupted, but there can still be complications if the roots are too close are become entangled with its neighboring tooth. If the tooth hasn't erupted yet, the dentist will have to make an incision in your gum to get to the tooth. In either case you will be very numb and won't feel anything more than pressure during the visit. I would get them out sooner than later. First, waiting until the situation goes bad makes it all that much worse and can amplify any complications. It is also best to get your wisdom teeth out when you are young, as you will recover much more quickly. Most of us have to have our wisdom teeth out because we simply don't have the space in our mouths for them. It is usually no more than a few days of recovery time...keeping the sockets clean and free of infection, restricting your diet so no injury happens to the healing site...stuff like that. My wisdom teeth hadn't erupted yet, but my dentist was able to remove mine for me when I was 21. For me, it was no big deal at all. I was a dental assistant before I had kids...it's been awhile since I've been in the field, but if you have any more questions, feel free to ask!

 

[mishellyshel]

i actually just had to have a tooth pulled because i cracked the tooth under the crown and the post was stuck in there. i cant believe that it didnt hurt at all! the oral surgeon was awesome. i now have to have a porcelin bridge made to cover that area and another bad tooth. that may happen to you down the line with the one that you are covering with the crown.

i also had my wisdom teeth out probably when i was around your age. they didnt bother me either, however; when i went there 2 were impacted & 2 had popped thru. i had too many dental problems at the time so they pulled them all. i wont sugar coat it. it hurt. you didnt actually feel them pulling them, as i was in the "twilight" stage but i woke up and they had this huge tool in my mouth to keep it open and my jaw was sore for a while.
it is also a PITA to keep the area clean when you start eating.

i would get the xrays from either the dentist or the oral surgeon and get their professional opinion if you can wait or if they feel the direction of the teeth are going to affect your current teeth.

i have seen picture of you smiling and you have a gorgeous smile & nice teeth. so you definitely want to keep it that way.

i could buy a car with the amount of money i have spent on my teeth over the years, but it is worth it to me. i have no visible silver in my mouth yet most of my back teeth have either had root canal or have crowns on them. hey what can i say.....i like candy!!

 

[Stackie]

Thanks everyone.

The wisdom teeth are still under my gums. I am going to wait until I get some better insurance before I go get them done. The dentist said I still had time and it wasn't something that had to be jumped on right away. It will definitely be within the next year though.

I was just so excited the one thing I had going for me dental wise was that my wisdom teeth never bothered me. Then today..there the ugly suckers were. ugh.

There was one that looked okay, but the others looked like they were pretty angled. I'm just a wuss when it comes to surgery of any kind, especially with my teeth. I'm going to be doing well to not freak out when I get my little cavities filled. *sigh*

 

[caiti]

The surgery wasn't too too bad. The first day was the worst, I think. But after that I really don't remember it being so bad. Plus, I got percoset which helped a lot. And made me really sleepy. The main thing I remember is the swelling!! After a couple of days I went to see my friend and he just pointed at me and called me chipmunk the whole time. I could have smacked him but I really did look like a chipmunk hehe.

 

[alli713]

I'll say that I preferred the wisdom teeth extraction over cavities only because I was completely put out for the wisdom teeth. It was nice. I get so worked up over getting cavities filled that it's horrible.

So, perhaps when you get your wisdom teeth out you can be put out completely. Then it's not so bad ) For me, it was the after care that sucked. Vicodin makes me sick so I was in pain or sick. And they didn't heal right so now I have pockets back there where food gets stuck and if I don't floss it does get infected sometimes. It also took way longer than normal to heal.

 

[3CsMommy]

I'm with Alli: Drugs are Good! Just getting me through the door to a dentist usually requires an ativan. The day of the surgery, I remember the anesthesiologist telling me he was my bartender today, the nurse/assistant taking my hand for the IV and asking me to count backward from 100, then waking up in an entirely different room spitting out the packing because I couldn't answer all the people talking to me with that stuff in my mouth. I hadn't slept that well in weeks. I think fully asleep was another $400 to the cost of surgery, and in my mind, it was worth EVERY penny!

 

[BooBoo*TheKiddo*]

I had mine cut out about a year ago. ALL Four at one time. I didnt have room in my mouth for them and they were pushing my other teeth.

I was put to sleep and all 4 removed. I had no problems relating to the teeth being cut out (more problems before the operation because I'm severly afraid of needles and the nurse wouldnt listen to me)
But I didnt have any problems after surgery. I went by what the surgeon told me to do after surgery and everything was peachy, though I slept 2 days after surgery because they put me on pain meds and I dont usually take meds so his doseage was to strong for me and it knocked me out for a while. lol

If I were you, I'd do it now before they start pushing through or causing other teeth to move.

 

[Laurie]

Stack I know you don't want to hear this but, I refuse to be put to sleep--I've had a couple of surgeries and wouldn't allow it and my wisdom teeth was one of them. I had novocaine only and my bottom were impacted. My dentist was positive I would be in a pain and having issues after they were pulled out, but I had no issues other than some bruising. I'm sure with surgery and drugs you'll do great because I did great without the surgery. One thing I can say though is do not eat clam chowder afterwards! It made me sick and that was not fun!

 

[sheltiefan]

I absolutly hate dentist. I cannot go to one without having a panic attack. Im not sure if i have my wisdom teeth or not. Im 26 and haven't had any pain. Only problem i have is have a super bad cavatiy that needs to be pulled but i rather die than get it done. I had 2 teeth pulled ( cavaity problem ) the 1st one sucked BAD but the second tooth i had NOS and it wasn't as bad.

 

[minrex]

I had my wisdom teeth out when I was 21, and they did have to cut out my bottom ones. But it wasn't bad at all. I was completely under when they did the surgery, and the worst part of the whole experience for me was coming out of the anesthesia, because it made me really emotional. It wasn't a very painful experience for me at all, and I had no complications. I've often joked that I'd do it again.

The longer you wait to have them out, the more risk of complications you'll have. It's much easier and less risky to have them out when you're young.

 

[Olallie]

I had my wisdom teeth removed, two at a time. I would suggest doing all at once. It would have been faster and easier. My wisdom teeth were pointing the wrong direction, and they broke through the gum. And i had braces before so we weren't taking any chances for my teeth to move.

 

[fanofdmb84]

I got my wisdom teeth out before they erupted. I think I was still in college or maybe even in high school. I asked for general anesthesia. I had a panic attack just for a couple of fillings, so I wasn't about to be awake for that. They gave me nitrous before putting the IV in and that was pretty cool lol. I remember laughing at the ceiling because the tiles were swirling around my head.
Anyway, it went fine, it was sore for a few days but I never had any complications. The only lasting effect is sometimes the gums back there get tender during that time of the month. Not really sure why, but my mom has the same problem since she got her wisdom teeth out.

 

[Sandi]

I'll say that I preferred the wisdom teeth extraction over cavities only because I was completely put out for the wisdom teeth. It was nice. I get so worked up over getting cavities filled that it's horrible.

So, perhaps when you get your wisdom teeth out you can be put out completely. Then it's not so bad ) For me, it was the after care that sucked. Vicodin makes me sick so I was in pain or sick. And they didn't heal right so now I have pockets back there where food gets stuck and if I don't floss it does get infected sometimes. It also took way longer than normal to heal.

Ditto to EXACTLY EVERY WORD that Allison said!!!! Vicodin doesn't bother me now, it's actually been my best friend the last few days but I was 17 when I got my wisdom teeth pulled and back then it was my worst enemy.

I won't even tell you my worst dentist story but it could never happen to you because I was pregnant with a bad tooth infection and wasn't allowed the "guns" as far as pain meds.

 

[alli713]

I'm also sure you could ask for different pain meds if you knew specific ones that bothered you. I had no idea vicodin would make me sick, but now I know. I've had Tylenol 10 or whatever that high strength tylenol is, with no problem before when I had to have a tumor surgically removed, so from now on I think I'd just stick with that.

 

[aznmexaggie]

I had my wisdom teeth removed when I was 19 due to impaction and crowding of my lower teeth. I would also much rather have my wisdom teeth removed again than have a cavity filled... With the wisdom teeth removal, I was put out and didn't feel a thing... and I just hate the feeling and sounds of having cavities filled. I got Vicodin for the first day and after that used Tylenol with Codeine I believe and I didn't have much pain. I did have an issue with one pocket which healed too fast and healed over a particle of food but that was my own fault.

I would definitely get it out sooner than later, especially if your dentist doesn't think they would be able to come in normally without causing any problems.

 

[smhufflepuff]

Only problem i have is have a super bad cavatiy that needs to be pulled but i rather die than get it done.

Consider what you're saying. Depending on the extent of your "super bad" cavity, you very well could die - a la Deamonte Driver. The kid was only 12yo and died for lack of care. Please don't mess around with unattended cavities.



To the OP, I'm thinking that you could take the referral to the specialist and see what s/he says about the timing. It's always better to get another professional opinion than have to figure it out on your own.

My own story is I had mine out in 10th grade. None of them had erupted; there just wasn't any space for them and, based on x-rays, they were going to try and come in sideways. I was originally going to get the laughing gas (I forget the real name for it) and novocaine. But I was too scared that I wouldn't have full control of my sensibilities and opted for novocaine only at the last moment. There was a fair amount of pressure and yucky sounds (I had a walkman tuned to my favorite radio station), they had to cut into the gum and take them out in pieces. I remember looking at the clock a fair amount - 20 minutes for each bottom tooth, 10 minutes for each top one... including stitching the gums back up. It really wasn't that bad... but, of course, I was a 15yo kid at the time, so healing went pretty smoothly. Learned something scary though: you can eat a McDonald's cheeseburger without chewing.