Are wisdom teeth pulled too early?

Study: Symptomless wisdom teeth are pulled too fast.

In many patients, healthy wisdom teeth that otherwise do not cause discomfort are pulled for prophylactic reasons. According to a study by the University of Bergen, most health complications begin only after removal of the wisdom teeth. A general recommendation for surgical removal of wisdom teeth can not be given from a medical point of view.

Orthodontists repeatedly argue to patients that the wisdom teeth should be removed, otherwise the front teeth could move. But a scientific basis for the removal of wisdom teeth does not exist at all. On the contrary, it can not be proven to this day that wisdom teeth displace other teeth through their growth. In the course of the study, scientists came to the conclusion that wisdom teeth are not able to move the front teeth at all. Second, there are no long-term comparative studies on whether leaving or removing wisdom teeth is beneficial. "After all, there are the most serious risks in every tooth removal, such as facial paralysis, when the nerve is injured, so a flimsy indication puts patients at great risk." Lars Hendrickson.

The dentist Lars Hendrickson also accuses his colleagues. The removal of wisdom teeth is a financially lucrative business. Remove disobedient wisdom teeth without any scientific basis, show how unscrupulous dentists can be. The health of the patients is recklessly put at stake. (sb, 19.09.2010)

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Picture: Maren-Beer