At the Healthy Smile Centre, we don’t take out your teeth unless there is absolutely no alternative. And there’s one type of tooth that is more likely to be removed than any other and that’s the ones that erupt last. That’s why we make a whole special service of wisdom teeth extraction in Erskineville.

What’s the point of wisdom teeth anyway?

Wisdom teeth are our third set of molars and they tend to come through in early adulthood, 17-25 years, several years after all our other adult teeth have erupted. Anthropologists believe they arrived late as back-up chewing power for when we were starting to wear out our first and second molars chewing all that rough, coarse food, like roots, that we no longer eat. The modern diet is much softer than back in pre-historic times and now we don’t tend to wear out our molars with hours of chewing like we used to.

Now, wisdom teeth are classed as vestigial organs, body parts we no longer have a use for. Our jaws are smaller too, so often the teeth, which begin forming when we are aged about 10, don’t come through properly, or at all for some people.

Why do we need wisdom teeth extraction in Erskineville?

Often wisdom teeth only partially erupt, or come through at an awkward angle. This can create great places for food to get stuck between the tooth and the gum, and this can lead to dental decay and infection.

Sometimes wisdom teeth don’t erupt at all, but stay hidden away under the gum, causing problems such as crowding or displacing the other teeth. Rarely, impacted wisdom teeth can also have cysts of fluid form around them and this can damage the jaw or other teeth.

When’s the best time for wisdom teeth extraction in Erskineville?

If you are thinking about getting your wisdom teeth removed, it’s better to do it earlier than later on in life. If you can get it done in your teens or early 20s, the roots will only be about two-thirds formed, so they will be much easier to remove. Oral surgery after the age of 35 takes a lot longer to heal from.