Why Do We Have Wisdom Teeth?

Your wisdom teeth are somewhat of a mystery. While many would think anything having to do with wisdom being a mystery sounds strange, it’s still more or less true.

Wisdom teeth are what’s known as a vestigial organ. They are one of several that the human body has, actually. Other vestigial organs include the appendix and the coccyx, known to most as the tailbone.

Vestigial organs are ones that have stuck around with our bodies throughout the centuries despite having lost their original function. No one is entirely sure what the appendix does, though some scientists believe it may have been designed to digest plant matter more effectively.

Your wisdom teeth are another mystery. Everyone has two molars at either end of the upper and lower arrays of teeth, but the third set, and sometimes a fourth set, which come in later in life seem to serve no purpose.

Seeing as teenagers have no trouble chewing food before the wisdom teeth show up between the ages of 17 and 23, it seems like the extra choppers are unnecessary.

It is possible that the extra set (or sets) of molars may have been left over from a time when humans had more elongated faces, rather than their more rounded shape today.

The extra teeth would have been useful for grinding down large bites of food within the larger mouth cavity.        But because our skull shape has changed over the millennia, the extra set of teeth doesn’t always fit.

Wisdom Teeth Removal in Houston

As a result of the smaller oral cavities, wisdom teeth sometimes cannot fit in a person’s mouth without pushing against adjacent teeth.

This can lead to toothaches, gum disease, and an uneven bite. Wisdom teeth that remain impacted (partially or totally covered by the gums) can cause gum disease to flare up.

It is for these reasons that Houston dentists often recommend getting wisdom teeth removed. They can be a major burden if there is insufficient room to accommodate them.

Regular visits to the dentist will give your local Tanglewood area dentist a good idea of how the teeth are developing in a child and teen. By age 20, the dentist will know for sure whether the wisdom teeth are going to pose a problem for the patient.

If they are going to be a problem, the best thing to do is to have them removed all at once. The recovery time for wisdom teeth removal is one to two weeks at best, so removing one at a time can be a burden.

If there are only one or two teeth that will cause a problem, then only those teeth need to be removed. The others can be removed as well, but it usually isn’t necessary.

Procedure for Removing Wisdom Teeth

First, your Houston dentist will determine which teeth should be removed. You may have them extracted that day, or it could be scheduled for a later date.

On the day of the extraction, you may want to take some pain medication just before your appointment to reduce discomfort at the start of the operation.

Local anesthetics and sedation dentistry can be used to help lessen the discomfort. Once the teeth are removed, you will be removed from any sedation. The feeling of drowsiness or discombobulation will take up to a couple hours to pass. It is best to have someone drive you home.

When you get home, get plenty of rest. Avoid probing the surgical sites with your tongue or any other object to prevent the sites from bleeding.

If they do bleed, firmly, but gently bite down on a piece of gauze for 30 minutes. You can also use a moist tea bag, as the tannin acid in the tea constricts blood vessels and slows bleeding.

Avoid any strenuous activity for a few days and don’t eat anything hard or crunchy. Swelling should peak around day 3 or 4 and decrease after that.