Wisdom teeth are the last molars to sprout from our mouth. They typically come out around the age of 17 to 24, or even later. Since they take long to appear and mouths come in all kind of shapes and sizes, there might not be space for those wisdom teeth.
Impacted wisdom teeth are when these last molars do not have the required space to come out correctly. This leads to wisdom teeth that are impacted, at the wrong angle, or simply they are at a very awkward angle.
For today’s article, we will be talking about impacted wisdom teeth. As such, you will find points such as: what disadvantages they bring, how they are diagnosed, how they are usually treated and how the recovery carries out after having them removed with the help of Los Algodones dentists.
What does it mean to have impacted wisdom teeth? 
Impacted wisdom teeth means trouble in most of the cases. As they are situated far back in the mouth, they might not have space to properly come out. This can lead to many unwanted scenarios, such as:
- Pain. As they come through, they may get trapped with your gums and even jawbone. This uncomfortable position brings pain and discomfort.
- Cavities and tooth decay. The awkward position the impacted wisdom teeth is at invites bacteria to comfortably sit and wreck havoc. It also makes food remnants get stuck with more ease.
- Gum disease. As it happens with cavities, the uncomfortable position and bacteria make gum disease all that much easier. Plaque buildup and tartar form as it is difficult to brush.
- Trouble brushing. As you may have guessed it, impacted wisdom teeth also make it troublesome to brush and floss. Like we mentioned previously, it is even easier for food particles to get stuck. This makes it troublesome for the toothbrush to reach and get to those places.
How is it diagnosed?
This is a fairly simple task to do. The dentist first checks your back teeth for any visual signs that your wisdom teeth are impacted. X-rays are also used to know what position they are in and if they have damaged anything else.
Once the overview and tests are done, your dentist will tell you if it is necessary to remove your wisdom teeth.
So how do you treat impacted wisdom teeth?
If they start causing you problems and discomfort, then it is time to visit the dentist. The best procedure for this is to get the wisdom teeth extracted, which only takes a day.
This extraction is commonly called wisdom tooth extraction, and it is a fairly simple procedure, especially with young adults. It is rather short compared to other extensive procedures, taking only between 30 to 60 minutes:
First anesthesia is used to numb the area and make the whole procedure painless. Then, the dentist proceeds to make an incision on your gums or bones in order to be able to remove the wisdom teeth. They then stitch the incision and make use of stitches to soak the blood. And that’s it! What’s left is the recovery, which we will cover right now.
Recovery from a wisdom tooth extraction
Although the operation is quick, it takes a few days to recover from it. Usually, you’ll experience some discomfort for the first 4 days, while the whole mouth will take a couple of weeks to heal properly.
It is important to not be anything harsh as you recover, as it can make it all the more painful. The wound inside your mouth needs to properly develop a blood clot. In order to help this recovery, our dentists in Los Algodones recommend the following tips:
- Calm down the swelling with an ice pack.
- Slowly exercise your jaw by opening and closing your mouth.
- Make sure to keep hydrated.
- Eat soft foods: soup, rice, and pasta are all good choices.
- Don’t eat anything hard or sticky. Even crunchy foods!
- Avoid drinking through a straw, as it can dislodge the blood clots.
- Brush after the first day, and do not brush against the blood clots that develop.
- Also no smoking, as it slows down the healing.
- Make sure to contact your doctor if the pain and swelling do not get any better and you get a fever.
We hope that these tips help you improve your oral health care. Remember that you can get in contact with us to get cheap prices for dental procedures in Los Algodones.