Impacted Wisdom Teeth

What Are Wisdom Teeth?

Third molars are commonly referred to as wisdom teeth. They are usually the last teeth to develop and are located in the back of your mouth, behind your second molars. Their development is usually completed between the middle teenage years and early twenties, a time traditionally associated with the onset of maturity and the attainment of wisdom.

Wisdom Teeth Presentation

To provide you with a better understanding of wisdom teeth, we have provided the following multimedia presentation. Many common questions pertaining to wisdom teeth are discussed.

Wisdom Teeth Presentation

What Is An Impacted Tooth?

Although most people develop and grow 32 permanent adult teeth, many times their jaws are too small to accommodate the four wisdom teeth. When inadequate space prevents the teeth from erupting they are called impacted. This indicates their inability to erupt into the proper position for chewing and cleaning.

A diagram half mouth X-ray with teeth impaction and half digital graphic highlighting impacted teeth

Types Of Impactions

We will need to see you for a consultation to determine if you will benefit from wisdom tooth removal. A special x-ray of your mouth and jaws (panorex) will be taken to determine if your wisdom teeth are impacted, if there is room for them to erupt, and how difficult it will be to have them removed.

  • Soft Tissue Impaction: There is not enough room to allow the gum tissue to retract for adequate cleaning of the tooth.
  • Partial Bony Impaction: There is enough space to allow the wisdom tooth to partially erupt. However, the tooth cannot function properly in the chewing process, and creates cleaning problems, among others.
  • Complete Bony Impaction: There is NO space for the tooth to erupt. It remains embedded in the jaw bone or if even partially visible requires complex surgical techniques for removal.The impacted wisdom tooth may also be in an unusual position and difficult to remove. This situation can also arise when the shape or size of the jaw bone and other facial structures make removal of this tooth significantly more complex.
A representation of a wisdom tooth impacted by soft tissueSoft Tissue
Partial Bony
Complete Bony

Oral & Facial Surgery Center of Prescott

5 out of 5 stars based on 4 Wisdom Teeth reviews.

Our Latest Patient Testimonial

If you need oral surgery, I could not recommend Oral and Facial highly enough. They should be your first, only, choice.

- Michael K

5 out of 5 stars on

Our Latest Patient Testimonial

Was a great experience all around from Dr. Abt to all of his staff. Great team and we will definitely recommend this office.

- Tim B

5 out of 5 stars on

Our Latest Patient Testimonial

Dr. Abt is wonderful! He and his staff made me feel very comfortable and took good care of me while i was in the office as well as after. I would recommend them to anyone.

- Kayla G

5 out of 5 stars on

Our Latest Patient Testimonial

Wow !!! Just Plain Awesome !!! ..... And those are only 2 of the many words that come to mind after my much needed visit to Dr. Abt's Oral And Facial Surgery Clinic, because I'm not sure how to fully express my gratitude, because mere words are not enough, of how thankful I am to Dr. Abt., who is a really nice and caring person, that along with his caring and very attentive staff really truly made sure I had the best experience, with the least amount of stress possible, and Dr. Abt quickly got me started on the track to some much needed relief with some issues that I've been struggling with physically for several years now and he even found one thing in particular that I was not even aware of. And I mean I didn't really know what to expect and was kind of uneasy because of several bad and painful past experiences that I've had at other places throughout the years when dealing with my dental and mouth issues. And I was getting ready to fly to Honduras with my wife on a missions trip for 8 days to go visit and help at a special home for young girls who have been through very sad and painful situations in their lives and it is located up in the mountains of Honduras and we were also going down to record, film, and create a small documentary as a donation gift to them to help let others know more about the great work and healing that this ministry is doing in these young girls lives and also so that they know that God loves them very much. And through a proper quality made video presentation with a simple web link, more people will come to know about the awesome work that is being done at "PROJECT TALITHA CUMI" in the mountains of Honduras in Central America. And I mention all of the above because I really needed to go down and be focused on doing my work in the best way possible and because I work with audio and video and music all the time and my wife and I go on other trips like these and do ministry work all over Latin America throughout the year, and as a matter of fact, we have to fly back out this same week, to Colombia this time, and well, my obvious point is that I don't want to be distracted and stressed about pain issues, especially in my mouth, but instead I want to enjoy these trips along with my wife, who also works with me, and I want be productive in helping others and do my best and feel great at the same time. And here I am on an airplane finally writing this review on my flight back home from Honduras, very very tired, but having had a wonderful and very productive trip without going through unnecessary pain issues during the time I was down there. And well, my prayer is that God will bless Dr. Abt, his staff, and his practice 1000 times over, because he really does care about his patients and finding the best solution and relief ASAP. And I know it and have experienced it myself. And please be aware that I AM NOT a previous friend, relative, or colleague of Dr. Abt's, or previously acquainted in any way prior to my first visit to his clinic, so there is no outside influence on my words or my praise for Dr. Abt and his staff. It just is what it is. šŸ™‚ And I mean every word that I am writing and expressing. And well, I just can't say enough or thank Dr. Abt and his caring staff enough for the very blessed experience that I had at his clinic. So, once again .............. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU !!!! And God Bless You Dr Abt and all your staff and know that you have truly blessed me. "You definitely put a smile on my face" šŸ™‚ Sincerely, CALEB SHAW ( Chino Valley, AZ. )

- Caleb S

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