Wisdom teeth – 3rd Molar Teeth

Wisdom teeth are the third molars in the backmost region of the jaws. They erupt between the ages of 16-20 years. Therefore, they are called wisdom teeth.

It was reported that there were 44 teeth in the old skull found during the archaeological studies. Today, the ideal number of teeth is considered to be 28-32. We can define this reduction in the ideal number of teeth with the changing lifestyle and the adaptation of the organism to the varying lifestyle.

In our eating habits, the transition from the hard foods to the soft foods and, accordingly, the reduction of our chewing time caused a volumetric shrinkage in the jaws. As a result of the volumetric shrinkage of the jaws, some teeth could not find enough space in the mouth and could not erupt in the oral environment in a healthy way. All of these teeth are called impacted teeth.

The teeth that remain most frequently impacted in the jaws are wisdom teeth.

Wisdom teeth are observed to remain impacted in the jaw due to the lack of space, deviations in the eruption position, or bone density in the eruption path.

Why is a wisdom tooth extracted?

a. Infection/Abscess
Wisdom teeth can be contaminated with saliva in the oral environment and become infected when they are partially impacted. The infection that starts in the tooth can spread to the surrounding soft tissues.

b. Pressure in/damage to the adjacent tooth
Wisdom teeth abut against the adjacent teeth and cause damage to the teeth to which they are adjacent.

c. Orthodontic problems
Wisdom teeth may apply pressure to the adjacent teeth and cause crowding in the natural teeth alignment.

d. Cystic formations
Wisdom teeth originate from a soft tissue called "germ follicle". The germ follicle is mineralized by the precipitation of calcium ions during growth and development and forms the dental tissue. The residues of the germ tissue around the tooth may sometimes exhibit a cystic transformation.