<p>There are other reasons to have them removed aside from no room/crowding, coming in crooked, infected, etc. They can come in just fine with enough room but still need to be removed in order for your jaw to fit together right so that your front teeth don’t get worn down.</p>
<p>That <em>is</em> very optimistic… I had mine out, and each of the roots had <em>hooks</em> on the ends of them. It took them so long to do the procedure that I started to wake up while they were working. It was a pretty painful recovery, and I was eating milkshakes for lunch for a good week and a half. I now question the talent of my oral surgeon-- a year and a half later, I still have three open sockets. I’m sort of dreading going into the dentist because I know they’re gonna yell at me and make me have more surgery…</p>
<p>My dad, whose wisdom teeth are nearly exactly like mine, still has his, and they have never bothered him. Mine didn’t bother me until I had them taken out.</p>
<p>Most people don’t have these sorts of problems, but… probably should keep flexible plans for a couple of days afterwards.</p>
<p>Yikes - I won’t let her read about your experience - sorry you had it so bad. </p>
<p>These are plans that can definitely be cancelled. </p>
<p>I had mine out when I was 19 and had no problems at all except that I went under a lot deeper than the doctor anticipated and turned blue. He was a bit worried and called twice than evening to check on me.</p>
<p>After young adults have ortho, it is generally recommended that wisdom teeth be extracted because as people age, teeth drift mesially causing shifting. Third molars are difficult to reach which impairs adequate hygiene in the posterior region. If it has been suggested that your S/D have these third molars removed, I would highly recommend doing so. It’s better to do it when they are still on your insurance program; oral surgery fees are escalating.</p>
<p>My wisdom teeth all erupted, no problems, or so I thought. Ten plus years later, after seeing all sorts of dentists for jaw pain, having x-rays for jaw pain, fighting cluster headaches for nearly ten years, etc. I had my wisdom teeth removed and never had another headache like that. Apparently the roots were realy long and curly and just “tickled” the facial nerves, all the time, but that is difficult to diagnose 
I still have my tonsils, but I am all for wisdom teeth being removed after that.</p>
<p>D’s wisdom teeth removal presented no problems. The dentist said they were pretty easy to get out and he expected a quick recovery and that was the case. She took her pain meds for a day and then switched to Motrin for a couple of days. She was eating pretty much what she wanted after day 2 and was out and about the next day. She did do the on/off ice thing the whole first day - I had ice with me for when she walked out of the doctor’s office. I think that helped a lot since there was still some swelling. It could have been much worse. Just wanted to put a “it’s not so bad” story out there.</p>
<p>cartera45, thanks for the update. I’ve been watching your posts as well as Binx’s pretty closely since I found out that my son needs to have his wisdom teeth pulled this month. I remember my own horrible experience so it’s good to read about kids who sailed through it without too many problems. I’d hate for him to go through what I did.</p>
<p>My son had his wisdom teeth out a few weeks ago. I didn’t realize but two of his teeth were growing in sideways, so it was a good thing he went in. The first day he took it easy, but he never needed ice or any pain medication. I made him stay on a soft food diet for a couple of days but I was totally amazed at his speedy recuperation.</p>
<p>Both my kids had theirs out at age 15, when the buds were small and the roots not well-developed. I think that’s a good way to go, and they did not have any problems. In our city, there are 2 or 3 different drug-testing companies (Pharmaco, etc) and they remove wisdom teeth for free if you agree to test the painkilling drugs. (The oral surgeons are good ones, and practice privately also - the downside is that you may get a placebo and end up needing to use “rescue” medication if the pain gets too bad.) Are there any of those in NYC that your Dd could use? Can your daughter soldier on with Motrin and wait to get her wisdom teeth removed until she has time to return to a lowercost area? The prices you quote seem awfully high.</p>
<p>Just had one of my “common sense” tooth (#13 to be exact) removed. My choices are to 1) make a bridge between the commonsense teeth which means damaging two other teeth and probably have a replacement in 8 years. Or 2) have a inplant, which should last my lifetime, or about 8 years.</p>
<p>when I had mine wisdoms out, my dentist had short stubby fingers. Get a doctor with skinny long fingers, preferrably a female’s hand.</p>
<p>Anxiousmom, I think your post was asking me, yes? Things are actually pretty set at this point. The issue is that my daughter is not home hardly ever here in Vermont where it would cost more like half of what this NYC surgeon is charging. I know because my other D had it done here and I called the surgeon here that our dentist referred us to now. I realize a lot of college kids go home for breaks or summers but that is not the case with my D given the things she is involved in. This past year she was only home two days at Thanksgiving, six at XMas and five in May and the next time will likely be Thanksgiving or XMas again. And the surgeon here would require three visits…the consultation, the surgery and the week later follow up. Impossible for her to do and that is out of the question it appears. Another issue is that insurance will not pay anything, unlike what others are saying in their cases. I made numerous calls to insurance and got a different answer each time and one person said it was covered (later found this to be wrong) if the surgeon was in network. Then, another round of calls and found out that NO oral surgeons in VT are in this network AND that the doctor my D already has had the consultation with in NYC (which I have already paid cash for) is also not in network. This became a moot point as it turned out on MORE phone calls that it is NOT covered no matter what. In fact, a VT oral surgeon’s receptionist went beyond the call of duty to call my insurance company to get the answer as I got a different answer depending who picked up the phone each time! So, then it basically means we have to pay and also she has to do it where she lives …NYC. </p>
<p>The thing is, my husband is only comfortable that she goes to a surgeon that someone recommended. So, he asked a family we know (whose D went to college with our other D) who recommended the surgeon that D2 now has gone ahead and had the consultation with and has lined up the surgery with. It could be that other Manhattan surgeons cost this much but I don’t honestly know and I wish I had another referral from someone! But my husband doesn’t want to take a chance going to a random doc generally speaking (originally D located her own oral surgeon by reading reviews on the internet but my husband made her cancel that appointment) but also our D’s career involves singing. She has had oral surgery once before to remove teeth coming in the roof of her mouth prior to braces. No problem that time. </p>
<p>So, the other thing is that she has about a week off this month and we are going down to NYC see her in a musical and then the next morning is the surgery and we can take her to it. Then, she has some days that are not scheduled and no rehearsals or work (all performance related jobs) to recover. I am not happy about the cost at all as it is beyond our means. At this point, the plan is set. I appreciate your suggestion but for one thing, my husband would never agree because the doctor would not be a personal referral and also, our D would never agree (and I would understand) to do it without guaranteed painkillers/anesthesia/IV. I wouldn’t either. But this is a kid who was afraid even of shots her whole life. She also has been through EXTREME pain three years ago from very serious injuries in a car crash including surgery, intensive care and so forth. I even had to give her a shot every day in her stomach for six weeks following surgery in recovery. So, your idea is a good one but not for her. :D</p>
<p>I appreciate your thoughtfulness, however. Had you known a Manhattan surgeon who was cheaper than the one we will use that you had gone to, I would have taken that suggestion. At this point, the surgery is scheduled, and I have spent some money already, and her window of opportunity is in a couple of weeks and at no other time in the foreseeable future and most docs would be booked up at this point.</p>
<p>PS, my other D had them out at age 17, the summer before she began college. But D2 went away to college at 16 and so we never dealt with wisdom teeth by that point (and come to think of it, the six months leading up to the first day of college were either in a hospital bed or in recovery…not a time for another surgery!)</p>
<p>Sooz- too late for you, but my DD had similar complications, except her school offered coverage, in that area, yet I needed to be there to take care of her- long story short, we did the surgery the day after finals, got in the car and drive 3 hours to nearby family; stayed there for a few days to recuperate and then drive the long 15 hour drive home.</p>
<p>No way to go back for the check up a week later, but we discussed that throughly in advance and I had all the info to know when to possibly consult another dentist in one of the areas where I was.</p>
<p>My D was going to be competing on the US jr national team in her sport in a few weeks, so we had to get it done ASAP, yet not during classes. D recovered in general quite quickly, but was surprised to have headaches for several weeks, including at the tournament, though Advil type, not Vicodin, but there was residual discomfort, more so than we expected, maybe because she was more fully active than a normal person, but that would probably describe your DD too!!</p>
<p>You can do it and miss the final check up, if you work with the doctor, have resources where you are going and are medically experienced. It’s not ideal, but it can be done, though you would have another fee.</p>
<p>If your kid is extremely active they might be surprised that a month later they still have some level of discomfort, it takes a while for that jaw bone to grow back.</p>
<p>About coverage, our major medical does not cover this either.</p>
<p>I had my wisdom teeth out at 19. It seemed like standard procedure. All my friends had theirs removed as well. They never bothered me, but xray showed they were somewhat crooked. For years afterward I ‘missed’ them. It just felt like a big gap in the back of my mouth (and still does, actually). I’ve always wondered if it was really necessary, though after reading some of these posts maybe it was… </p>
<p>Does Mother Nature/evolution/whatever really stick such a high percentage of us with problem molars? Am guessing there are plenty of other peoples and cultures who leave them be. Wonder if the majority of adults then have problems down the road — or not?</p>