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Alternative names Return to top
Tooth - unemerged; Unemerged tooth; Dental impactionDefinition Return to top
An impacted tooth is when a tooth fails to fully emerge through the gums.Causes, incidence, and risk factors Return to top
Teeth emerge through the gums during infancy and when the primary (baby) teeth are replaced by the permanent teeth. If a tooth fails to emerge, or emerges only partially, it is impacted. Because they are the last teeth to emerge, the most common teeth to become impacted are the wisdom teeth (the third set of molars), which normally emerge between the ages of 17 and 21.Symptoms Return to top
Signs and tests Return to top
Your dentist will look for enlarged tissue over the area where a tooth has not emerged, or has emerged only partially. The impacted tooth may be pressing on adjacent teeth. The gums around the area may show signs of infection, such as redness, drainage, and tenderness. As gums swell over impacted wisdom teeth and then drain and tighten, it may feel like the tooth came in and then went back down again.
Dental x-rays confirm the presence of one or more teeth that have not emerged.
Treatment Return to top
The goal of treatment is to relieve irritation of the mouth caused by the impacted tooth. If the impacted tooth is not causing infection or inflammation, or is not affecting the alignment of the other teeth, no treatment may be necessary.
Over-the-counter pain relievers may help. Warm salt water (one-half teaspoon of salt in one cup of water) or over-the-counter mouthwashes may be soothing to the gums.
Extraction (removal) of the tooth is the usual treatment for an impacted tooth. This often is performed in the dentist's office under local anesthesia. If the tooth is deeply impacted or difficulty with extraction is expected, the dentist may refer the person to an oral surgeon for tooth removal. Antibiotics may be required prior to tooth extraction if the area around the tooth is infected.
Expectations (prognosis) Return to top
Impacted teeth may cause no problems for some people and may never require treatment. If the impacted tooth is causing symptoms, treatment -- including extraction -- is usually successful in resolving the symptoms.
It is often preferable to have wisdom teeth extracted when a patient is under 30, due to the flexibility of bone, which will allow an easier extraction and better healing. As a person ages, the bone becomes more rigid and complications can develop.
Complications Return to top
Calling your health care provider Return to top
Call your dentist if there is an unemerged tooth (or partially emerged tooth) and pain in the gums or other symptoms have developed. Update Date: 10/9/2003 Updated by: Michael Kapner, D.D.S., Comprehensive and Aesthetic Dentistry, New Rochelle, N.Y., Editor, Ninth District Dental Association. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.
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Page last updated: 28 October 2004 |