A wisdom tooth for a modern person is rather an extra acquisition than a necessary one. Evolutionarily, the outer molars were necessary for our ancestors to chew rough, raw food. Until today, in some people, the gene responsible for the growth of the wisdom tooth is mutated due to the lack of need for this tooth. But still, most people still experience the growth of a wisdom tooth. Why does a wisdom tooth grow? What complications can occur with the growth of a wisdom tooth? Read the tactics of the doctor's behavior if the patient has a problem with difficult growth of the wisdom tooth at estet-portal.com.
Why do third molars grow? Reasons for the growth of wisdom teeth
Wisdom tooth growth is observed between the ages of 16 and 35 and is always accompanied by excruciating pain and inflammation of the gums. The fact is that in the course of evolution, the human jaw has decreased in size due to the lack of the need to chew rough food, and the number of teeth is genetically incorporated the same as it was before. Therefore, the growth of a wisdom tooth is always a painful process.
When a patient complains of pain in the growth area of a wisdom tooth, it is recommended to remove this tooth, since it is not used in the process of chewing food. The growth of the wisdom tooth is difficult and contributes to the development of such disorders like retention and dystopia. Also, the process of growing a wisdom tooth threatens with some complications.
What are the possible complications of wisdom tooth growth?
- Osteomyelitis
- Lymphadenitis
- Abscesses and phlegmons
- Periostitis
- Pericoronitis
The main difficulties that occur with the growth of a wisdom tooth
Retention means a delay in the eruption and growth of a normally formed wisdom tooth. The retention of the wisdom tooth is more often observed in the lower jaw. Retention of the growth of the wisdom tooth is the result of a lack of space in the jaw due to its reduction. This confirms the process of phylogenesis of the facial skeleton. Violation of the proportion between the growth of the jaw and the growth of the alveolar process for various reasons provokes a lack of space for a part of the alveolar process. After exposure of one or both medial tubercles of the wisdom tooth, their distal part is covered with periosteum or mucous membrane. During chewing, part of the mucous membrane on the tooth is injured, which provokes the development of erosions and ulcers. The penetration of microflora into such places of damage contributes to the development of the inflammatory process.
Wisdom tooth growth dystopia is observed when the wisdom tooth is not positioned correctly in the dentition or when the impacted tooth is abnormally located in the jaw. Dystopia may be due to a violation of embryonic development, surgery or trauma. Dystopia happens both on the upper jaw and on the lower one.
Clinical manifestations of difficulties in the growth of the wisdom tooth
Dystopia and retention of wisdom tooth growth are most often asymptomatic, and are detected incidentally during x-ray examination. Retention can be suspected when one of the permanent teeth is missing in the alveolar arch. In the patient's history, it turns out that there was no earlier tooth in that place. When viewed on the alveolar area in the area of the retention tooth, you can feel a slight thickening (protrusion of the tooth), which does not have sharp boundaries. Sometimes the contours of a tooth or its part are felt in the form of a protrusion of a bone area. The place of the retention tooth may be occupied by the milk tooth, or this place may be occupied by adjacent teeth.
Dystopic or impacted teeth can be a source of inflammation and odontogenic cysts. Such growth of the wisdom tooth provokes the development of neuritis and neuralgia due to pressure on the nerve fibers and their endings. A characteristic feature of semi-retained teeth – this is the appearance of a part of the crown of a tooth that cuts through the bone or mucous membrane at any part of the alveolar process of the jaw. Conditions are created for permanent injury (by an erupting tooth and an antagonist tooth), inflammation of the mucous membrane that surrounds the tooth develops.
Doctor's tactics in case of difficult wisdom tooth growth
The method of treating difficulties with the growth of a wisdom tooth is individual. If the impacted wisdom tooth is correctly positioned and there is a place in the jaw, the treatment should be aimed at creating a tooth. It is important to know that the minimum space for the growth of a wisdom tooth in the lower jaw, it must be at least 15 mm, and the distance from the front edge of the lower jaw branch to the posterior edge of the tooth crown must be at least 5 mm.
If the growth of a wisdom tooth is accompanied by intense pain, a violation of the chewing process and the development of general malaise against this background, the wisdom tooth is removed.
Wisdom tooth growth is accompanied by unpleasant symptoms, anxiety that can sometimes make a person partially disabled and depressed. If the growth of a wisdom tooth causes pain, fever, painful chewing and general weakness, you should not put off going to the dentist. Timely removal of a wisdom tooth will only positively affect the well-being and health of the patient.
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