My teeth used to be straight – until my wisdom teeth came in. Do wisdom teeth cause crowding?

A series of studies have shown that, while your experience with crowding is not an infrequent phenomenon, there is little relation between the presence of wisdom teeth and crowding.

Studies have compared the amount of crowding in each of four groups: patients with impacted wisdom teeth, normally erupted wisdom teeth, wisdom teeth already extracted, and those whose wisdom teeth were congenitally missing. All patients were between ages 18-22, and none had had orthodontics. There was no difference among the groups.

The crowding that you experienced is an age-related phenomenon that has more to do with an increase in the strength of the lips that occurs in later adolescence. As the muscles in your lips mature, the front teeth tend to upright, often causing a worsening in the alignment. Unfortunately, this also tends to occur in the years following orthodontic treatment and can require special management in most cases.

My dentist has recommended that I get my wisdom teeth out. They aren’t even in the mouth yet; is this too early?

Numerous studies have shown that patients who have their wisdom teeth (third molars) removed early have better long term dental health - especially in the region of the second molars - than those who have them removed later. The older patients are, the more likely it is that they will have aggressive bacteria which will infect the area; these infections have a greater impact on older patients. While genetics plays a role, age and the angle at which the third molar is intersecting with the second molar are good predictors of increased negative effects. Finally, younger patients have been shown to heal better, especially with improved hygiene methods being applied.