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Wisdom Teeth Questions

  • Thread starter WantWisdomTeethGone
  • Start date
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WantWisdomTeethGone

Junior member
Joined
Dec 30, 2021
Messages
6
Location
USA
Good afternoon, I need to have impacted wisdom teeth removed because they have come in at an angle and my dentist said it could cause decay in the teeth in front. The teeth have not erupted at all and have never caused me any problems.

I have a phobia of IV sedation but I do want to have my teeth removed before they cause problems to my other teeth. I am looking for some alternatives to IV sedation which is what everyone has strongly suggested.

I am wondering if any dentists on here know anyone who does impacted wisdom teeth removal while patients are awake or lightly sedated with oral medication/nitrous oxide? Is this an option? Is it manageable for patients or incredibly traumatic? I've never been afraid of the dentist though I am somewhat nervous about the injections because I've heard it requires a lot.

Is the wand anesthesia delivery device an option for a procedure like this? I feel like if I knew the injections weren't going to be bad I would have no problem staying awake.

Please advise.
 
It's perfectly possible to have the teeth out without sedation, I had mine removed with just local because I was nosey and wanted to see what it felt like :)
It's not really any worse than any other extraction, bit of pushing and some weird noises.

You could use a Wand for some of the injections but not all of them. 4 injections per side. I'd get it done in 2 goes if it was just local or RA, 4 at once is a bit much IMO.
 
Thank you for your response...
I'm really struggling with this decision and it has caused me more anxiety than anything else I've ever had to do....

If you have time for a few more questions, could you tell me whether you routinely recommend removal of fully impacted wisdom teeth? Mine have not come through the gums at all and have never caused me any problems. I'm being told they could damage adjacent teeth, but I'm wondering if I could just get a root canal in the tooth in front if something did happen instead of having to have all the teeth out? This is just such a fearful thing for me and I'm really anxious about it so any advice would be great.

Also, if I must do something to the wisdom teeth, would a Coronectomy make the procedure easier to bear while being awake? I'm assuming it requires less pressure? My bottom two are the ones that are angled toward the teeth in front and so I was wondering if the simplest fix might just be to do a Coronectomy on those and leave the roots alone since they are curved and I've been told they will be difficult to remove.

Have you ever had anyone keep their impacted wisdom teeth and not have issues?
Sorry for all the questions...like I said, I am so fearful and anxious about this and have truly had such a hard time. I appreciate your advice.
 
1) No. In this country guidelines are very firm, only extract wisdom teeth if they are causing repeated issues. Not for prophylactic reasons. As long as regular exams are done to head off any damage to other teeth then there's no reason to extract them before hand.
2) No real difference from the patient's POV than having them out to be honest, in some ways there's more work involved in coronectomy than some extractions.
3) Yes lots of people. Biggest surprise was when I discovered my father had 2 impacted upper wisdom teeth when we were playing with my new OPG machine. He'd had (he thought) all his upper teeth removed in the Navy in 1947. 35 years later the uppers were still lying there :) He never did have any issues with them.
 
@Gordon thanks for your answers!
I find this such a hard decision because here in the U.S. they tell us keeping them is such a bad idea and yet I really really want to avoid surgery if possible.

I’ve attached my X-ray here with one last question. Since my teeth are angled, do you think it is likely to cause damage to the other teeth? That’s what they keep telling me. I certainly don’t want to lose 8 teeth instead of 4 and that fear is what makes this such a difficult decision. If damage does begin to occur, would a root canal in the second molar solve it? E4B196DC-0CBA-4CA0-A899-EFF6D0801F63.jpeg
 
It's possible they can cause damage. However only a tiny percentage do... the trouble is we have no way of predicting which ones will. It's a risk you need to be aware of and act accordingly. By which I mean, keep attending the dentist regularly and get them x-rayed.

A root canal won't make any difference, the trouble is if they are left to do their damage for long enough, then there is so much tooth substance lost of the tooth in front that the tooth isn't restorable.

The trick is to monitor them regularly, with repeat x-rays about once a year so that you can catch any damage early on and remove the wisdom tooth then.
 
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