Krisitin is 16 1/2 and were told in November that she should have all 4 wisdom teeth removed because eventually as they come up they will crowd her mouth and ruin her beautiful smile. She is supposed to have them removed during their break at the end of March. I started to do some research because the closer the date comes the more sceptical I become. Should I get a second opinion?

I don't want to make the wrong decision. There can be some complications and nothing is bothering her at this time, but from what I've read, it's better to take them out at a younger age before the problems really start. The dentist did not mention that they were impacted.

Has anyone had any experience with this decision or know anyone who went through this? I would greatly appreciate hearing your thoughts.

TIA my fellow mycouponers!!

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"Try to see the glass half-full."

Reminds me of when the military told my dh basically the same thing. I said, what, they have a time slot to fill? He had no problems, didn't have them taken out, and is still fine.

With a teen, I would get a second opinion if she isn't having problems. If you do move forward, don't make a big deal out of it. I did have two taken out and people tried to scare me. One was cut out in three pieces, but the anesthesia meant I couldn't feel it. I was given three meds, two were controlled. I took the first dose upon getting home and no more. It was a dull throb for me.

dl

Well I would get them taken out. If they become impacted the surgery just gets worse. If she can get IV sedation I recommend it. I had it (had all 4 wisdom teeth out, some were impacted) and it was a breeze. I took only one pain pill afterwards, was eating that night (lukewarm mushy foods). My brother had gas and shots. He was seriously swollen, miserable and lived on shakes for a week.

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I've never lied to you. I've always told you some version the of truth.

I had all mine removed at the same time when I was 25. Mine were all 4 impacted. It sounds worse than it is. They put me out, it took about 40 minutes. I took pain killers and was "groggy" that night, but was fine after that. You just have to be careful not to drink through a straw or eat anything that can jab it for a couple days. The worry before was worse than the actual surgery and recovery.

After my dd got her braces off they said she'd probably have to have her removed in high school. She's a sophomore now and now they're saying she might not have to have them out. We'll see.

Lisa

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"It's not having what you want,
It's wanting what you've got"

DD had to have all 4 taken out when she was 18. To this day (she's 29), she will not talk about it I remember her laying in bed with tears streaming down her face that day

She had a very, very hard time, but they had to come out so there was no choice.

I'm not trying to scare you, but you need to be prepared that everyone's experience is different. Because I had my 4 wisdom teeth taken out when I was about 40 and it wasn't really that bad, I wasn't prepared for my DD to suffer so badly

I did not have mine removed, but should have. Oddly, I only had two and they eventually came in in my early twenties. The two wisdom teeth shifted my straight teeth and I really do need braces again.

You can get another opinion, but trust me, you do not want any shifting of teeth going on.

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I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it!

I would get a second opinion. My oldest daughter was told the same thing, and we opted to have them removed when she was 16. She had a horrible recovery. Missed a week of school and lost 12 lbs. They said the same thing about my teeth when I was a teen. I am 47 now....wisdom teeth are still there and have never bothered me. I found that at the high school I work at, a huge amount of students are all being told the same thing. Not one of them has ever said that their wisdom teeth are actually bothering them, just that they were told they *might* have a problem in the future!

My experience was like this... it was horrible. I had mine out in 12th grade and now I'm 55 and I STILL remember it. I was only numbed and they had to be cut out. Had to have stitches and one wouldn't stop bleeding and the dentist had to go back in and pack it (without renumbing it). I remember opening my eyes to see a small pair of scissors sticking out of my gums! Of course that was a long time ago so I'm sure many things have improved since then. I ended up missing weeks of school, swollen and bruised and couldn't eat for a long time. It has made me so leary of dentists now.
OP, just make sure your daughter knows in advance what is going to happen and be sure the professional is the BEST at what he/she does.

I'm sure you child will be just fine but I would get a second opinion, just because...when my ds was 8, a dentist with a good rep. and a new fancy office told me that my ds needed 3 fillings in molars, I was shocked as we are big on dental health....the "cavities" were 3rd degree (something like that, meaning deep) and the fillings were to be expensive, so I thought I'd get a price from someone who wasn't paying for a new office...well, TWO OPINIONS LATER THERE WAS NO edvidence of cavities...he is 16 now and never had any problems.. YES, I reported that dentist and NO nothing ever came of it karma will get that creep....Dr Brooks in Topeka KS,,,not to drop names or anything....

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Love, J.

I had mine out at 18 and it was fine. Sure, my face was swollen and I looked a bit like a chipmunk for a day or so but honestly, it wasn't THAT bad. I am glad I did because given the problems I have had later in life with my teeth, I think it was easier then than it would be now. My DH should have had his taken out but they didn't have the money and now his bite is all screwed up.

I would get a 2nd opinion but honestly, it comes down to what you want to do. You can't see into the future to see if it would have been a waste or beneficial. Everyone here will have a different experience

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Proud to say I haven't shopped at a Wal-Mart since Sept 2003

If you are skeptical get a second opinion.
My 14 yr ds had his out last Tues. He needed to have a baby molar removed so the permanent molar could come in. The x-rays showed his wisdom teeth were there and growing in sideways toward his other teeth. They were afraid that if we waited the roots from the lower left tooth would wrap around the nerves in the back of the mouth and cause complications later on.
He was knocked out, which is what I would recommend if you get them out. His face was swollen and slightly bruised, but wasn't in a lot of pain. He has had to eat soft foods for the last week. That has been the biggest problem for him.
I had mine out at 19 and didn't have any problems. Mine were just like my 14 yr old's. The hardest part was not eating or laughing.
HTH,
Judy

I had mine out with novacaine about 30 years ago. No problems with recovery, etc... (just the pain med he gave me didn't work so I got something else and it was fine). My oldest had all 4 removed with no problems (he was put under for it). My 18 yr old is going to get all four of his out this summer on college break. It's easier to get them out now, waiting gets them set in firmer and they are harder to take out the older you get or so the dentist told us. I don't want his teeth to move since he just got his braces off so they are getting taken out.

If your daughter's teeth are impacted, I would probably have them all done at one time. If they aren't, you can wait until thet erupt and have them extracted.

I had braces.We pulled 3 of the teeth as soon as they erupted. The last one was impacted and removed surgically when I was 21 or so.

I had no problems with any of them.

Everyone reactions differently. I have 3 kids and when they were in their teens they were all told to have them out. My oldest was told to have them out at 16 but we did not have the money. Shortly after that I was looking in the health section of the Washington Post and noticed an ad. Basically, you could have your wisdom teeth removed for free if you completed a study. So signed up my son. He had to stay at the office for about 6 hours because they wanted to monitor the pain. He did not have any. About 2 years later the second son was told the same thing. I called up the dentist to see if he was still doing the study and he was so son no. 2 got them for free. My dd was not so lucky because 2 years later he had stopped the study. She had to wait until my dental insurance kicked in. My dd and son no. 2 had pain but not bad. So I got 3 for the price of one.

When I was 20 I had 7 teeth pulled at the same time. my wisdom teeth and 3 more. I was also sick so they wouldn't put me to sleep. It kinda hurt and recovery was a little slow, but it wasn't that bad. My Nana took me and cared for me afterwards at her house. She did just what they said and I was putting frozen peas on each side for 15 minutes at a time. Tell her to be strong. It is liveable!!

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-Kristi

All I can say is IF you decide to do it go with an oral surgeon and not a regular dentist. I had one of mine removed by a regular dentist and it was the worst experience, the tooth broke, later got infected, also he used so much pressure pulling and tugging that he damaged nerves in my mouth and I had numbness for years in certain areas. The rest I had removed on 3 other occasions by oral surgeons with no problems, I did end up having problems with all of mine and waited to have each removed when I had problems so I had to go through it 4 different times. The last time I was pregnant and believe it or not it was the easiest, I couldn't have any major drugs, just Novacaine, but I was in and out within 15 minutes from start to finish. No swelling, I took one regular Tylenol after and didn't even need that, didn't take anymore, so no pain after, no bruising, nothing.

Both my oldest DD's (adults) have had theirs out, one in their 20's and one as a teen. The one in her 20's had alot of pain and swelling, the one that had hers out at 19 had some minor swelling and no problems at all, stopped on the way home for ice cream.

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Thank you all so much for sharing your experiences. I think I may seek another opinion. I just don't want her to have any unnecessary surgery. My sister in law is convinced that they are crooks and since she didn't need any other dental work at her appt., they are just looking for something to bill.

I cannot tell you how much I APPRECIATE this board. I don't post often, but when I do, this board has ALWAYS come through with answering my question!! I tell some of my friends about this board, but I could never describe how your advice, warmth, compassion and knowledge has touched my life. Only here, at the cafe, would you all know, how I feel.

Have a Wonderful Day!!

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"Try to see the glass half-full."

I think I've posted on dental threads before, but here it is again:

I'm almost 40 and still have all 4 of my wisdom teeth. I have relatively straight teeth. I had an "old school" dentist who thought that by and large braces were a waste of time and money; thus my dentist extracted permanent teeth to make sure none were crowded. I had approx. 5 perm teeth extracted when I was 12-13 y/o (over the course of several months). While it hurt at the time, I am thankful to the old school dentist! I have had very few problems w/ my teeth--and only had my first cavity at 38 y/o!

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Mental that one, I'm telling you. ---Ron Weasley, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets"

I had all 4 of mine out when I was a senior in high school and had no major problems.

I just had novacaine/gas and had them all out at once, two of them were impacted. My face was swollen and I had crazy bruising which wasn't unexpected since I bruise VERY easily. There wasn't much pain after the first day or two and even then the pain wasn't bad. The worst part was the way I thought everything tasted "off" for a week afterward.

My expereince wasn't bad at all but then I'm no stranger to tooth extractions. I had 8 of my baby teeth removed at the same time and later had 4 more teeth removed before my braces went on so I was a "pro".

Get a second opinion if it makes you feel better but I'd have them taken out now, I've herad it can be more difficult if you wait until you're older.

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