By Dr. Andre Baptiste, Baptiste Orthodontics
Hey guys, it's your friendly neighborhood orthodontist here.
For those I have not had the pleasure of meeting yet, I’m Dr. Baptiste, the founder of Baptiste Orthodontics. Today, I want to tell you what I think is the biggest misconception in dentistry - wisdom teeth.
Wisdom teeth are just your third molars. They are just the last tooth to erupt, and often, our mouths do not have enough space to accommodate them. They are no different than the rest of your teeth. There seems to be an entire universe of misinformation surrounding them.
Do you need to remove them? The short answer is no, but the long answer is sometimes.
One of the main reasons people give me for removing wisdom teeth is because they don’t want them to shift their other teeth. This brings me back... way back before I knew anything about dentistry, to when my dentist told me to get my wisdom teeth out so they don’t make the others crooked.
So, being an obedient patient, I went to the oral surgeon. On the day of my extraction, he asked me why I wanted them out. I told him what the dentist told me, and he pointed to the X-rays and said, “Do you think these four teeth can move 28 other teeth? “
And then he pulled them.
Once I got to dental school, I sat in classrooms where we learned and were shown studies that prove wisdom teeth do not shift teeth, and people get the same amount of shifting whether they have wisdom teeth or not. It is just that wisdom teeth tend to erupt shortly after so many people have decided "retainer" life is not for them.
It’s a correlation that does not equal causation scenario.
So when should someone get their wisdom teeth removed? Anytime a wisdom tooth is causing pain, impeding eruption, has a cavity or pathology, or you cannot properly clean them. Those are all good reasons to extract them.
But, like anything, don't be afraid to ask questions before someone removes parts of you. I hope that sheds a little light.
For more questions and answers, follow me on
Instagram at the Orlando orthodontist.
For a free Orthodontic consultation, visit
www.baptisteorthodontics.com. We have three convenient locations in
Apopka, Orlando, and Dr. Phillips.
