Periodontist Consultation Africa

What are wisdom teeth?These are the most back teeth in your jaws. They are the last teeth to erupt and there is one in each side of both the upper and lower jaws, so that makes them a total of 4 wisdom teeth. What are impacted wisdom teeth?It is not uncommon for one or more of your wisdom teeth to be missing, they either have not developed at all or that they have not got enough space to erupt in their place and so are still inside the jaw bones, this is when we call them "impacted". Impacted teeth lost their potential to erupt due to different reasons such as:-Insufficient space in the dental arch.-Improper alignment.-Tough jaw bones or gums that are difficult for the tooth to penetrate.Can impacted teeth cause any problems?Impacted teeth can reside harmlessly inside the jaw bones for variable periods of time and can at one point or another start to cause any of the problems below:-Inflammation of the overlying gums:This is what we call "pericoronitis" and it is particularly true when the tooth is partially covered by the gums. Food and bacteria start gathering beneath the gums causing pain and inflammation. The pain is of the cyclic type with typical episodes of remission and exacerbation; it is of the "on and off" type.-Tooth decay of the impacted or adjacent teeth:Being inaccessible for tooth brushing, food may accumulate between impacted teeth and their adjacent ones starting a process of tooth decay.-Referred pain:As a source of chronic deep pain input, impacted wisdom teeth can cause jaw, muscle and temporomandibular joint pain (TMD). Pain can also be referred other nearby structures such as the ears or teeth in the same or opposing jaw.-Pathological lesions:In some cases, cysts may start to form around impacted teeth destroying the surrounding bone. Such cysts can remain unnoticed till they reach large sizes and start threatening vital structures su

When a tooth has had root canal treatment, or when a substantial portion of the tooth structure (enamel) has been lost, a full crown may be needed. A fractured tooth, or large or old restoration with open leaky margins and decay may also call for a crown. Crowns can last for many years, but proper care and upkeep are required to maintain the health of your tooth and bone beneath the restoration.