Third Molar Damage Can Be Sneaky

Our third set of molars, commonly known as wisdom teeth, most often come in during your late adolescence or early adulthood. These can cause numerous difficulties in your oral health, as well as significantly impact the way your smile appears. Using x-ray imagery, we can track the development of these structures and address them before they cause irreparable damage.

Today, your Maple Grove, MN dentist explains how monitoring this development can save you both time and money. Not only that, but we can eliminate future pain and struggle!

Don’t We Need Our Teeth?

Teens are often understandably questioning when it comes to wisdom teeth. After all, if we didn’t need them, why do we have them? The answer to that lies in our evolutionary development.

We used to have much larger mouths as a species, that could fit an extra set of molars. The extra teeth also would benefit significantly without dentistry around to save any from infection or periodontal disease.  But today, our jaw has narrowed and there simply isn’t enough room for a lot of people.

Wisdom teeth can grow in all sorts of strange directions, which can crowd the teeth, and can also be incredibly painful. The pressure can also lead your teeth to crack, leaving them weaker structurally. And it also leaves them susceptible to bacterial infections, which can require a root canal or even an extraction.

Unfortunately, we cannot speed up the evolutionary process, so we are still making these molars even though we don’t need them functionally. And they can cause major problems to your teeth’s alignment. For many of you, you have just stopped wearing braces or a retainer, and all that hard work should be preserved.

Come In Soon!

Your dentist will need to take x-ray images of your jaw, so that they can see any collisions before they occur. Being able to have that sort of knowledge can mean all the difference in your oral health future. If you could know what happens next, you’d most likely use that power to your advantage, right?

If you are experiencing any pain in your face, please do not keep that to yourself. You may think that the issue will fix itself over time, but more often than not, you can only cause more damage which will need to be repaired. And while it is something common in teens, it is also something that needs to be monitored appropriately.

Call Us Today!

If you or your child are of the age where wisdom teeth develop, do not ignore your visits to the dentist! To schedule an appointment, or if you have any further questions, please call Elm Creek Dental in Maple Grove, MN, today at 763-416-0606.