Danger Of Wisdom Tooth Misalignment

7 March 2017
 Categories: Dentist, Blog


Depending on the spacing of your child's teeth, wisdom teeth can either move in effortlessly or they may need some additional space to come up. However, sometimes wisdom teeth don't grow in the way they're supposed to, and cause severe danger to a child's health. It's extremely important that your child is seen regularly by a dentist in order to monitor the growth of their wisdom teeth to determine if they will pose a hazard. Read on to learn more about wisdom teeth growing in wrong, symptoms of the problem, and what is done to correct it.

What It Is

In normal growth, wisdom teeth grow in like any other tooth. The growth process begins below the surface of the gums, and as the wisdom tooth matures and lays down roots, it gradually travels upward, eventually piercing through the gums and taking its place among your child's other teeth. However, not all wisdom teeth grow in the way that they should.

In some instances, the wisdom teeth will be misaligned, growing in sideways or even upside down. This is a problem because if a wisdom tooth grows in sideways, it will try to move outward in that direction, shoving other healthy teeth out of its way. This can be a very painful process and will misalign your child's other teeth.

Worse still, upper wisdom teeth that are growing in upside down can actually pierce through the jaw bone. In some instances, wisdom teeth have continued upward until they were in danger of penetrating the nasal cavity or the brain.

Symptoms

Unfortunately, symptoms of misaligned wisdom teeth are few until they're already causing damage. Since the tooth will remain in its proper place until it's ready to move upwards, most children won't have any negative effects until the tooth is pressing on nearby teeth or tissues.

Once the tooth is matured and ready to move out, your child may experience toothaches in the neighboring teeth, jaw pain, or sinus pain, depending on what direction the misaligned wisdom tooth is moving in.

However, since these symptoms only develop once your child's wisdom tooth is ready to move outward, it's best for you to get regular dental x-rays. Dental x-rays can immediately reveal whether or not a wisdom tooth is appropriately aligned and moving in the right direction. If your dentist discovers that there's a problem, they can act immediately.

Treatment

Wisdom teeth that are misaligned can only be removed. Unfortunately, realigning them isn't possible. However, if caught early on, wisdom teeth can be extracted before they develop roots, which will make the extraction process much easier, far less painful, and with a shorter recovery time. In addition, early discovery of a misaligned wisdom tooth means it won't have the time it needs to push other teeth out of the way or to penetrate through tissues it shouldn't.

Most children's wisdom teeth will grow in properly, but even so, many will need to be removed due to inadequate space in the jaw. It's imperative that your child see a dentist regularly and have dental x-rays in order to prevent pain and health complications.

Visit websites like http://www.childrensdent.com to learn more.


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