How common is wisdom tooth extraction in Europe?

10 comments

1. Fairly common. While a lot of people go their whole life without ever feeling their wisdom teeth, some of us need to have them removed, and it seems to be, at least not an uncommon, occurance. Other lucky bastards just get all 4 teeth without complications, and don’t have to pay the expensive dental care costs.

   I can’t find any statistics, but I would say that most people have one or more wisdom teeth removed, or at least know people who have had one or more removed.

   I’ve had two removed this month, while my other two were fine, and thus were left alone. So now I have more teeth in one side of the mouth than another.

2. Here, only if they cause problems. I’m 40 and for some reason 3 of mine are still chilling out down in my gums and the other one has come out about halfway then given up. No pain, no infection, no removal. Long may it continue!

3. They are extracted if they cause problems, like pain, or if it is impacted, if it has deep caries, etc.

   I still have mine and had no issues. In any case, dental care is covered under public healthcare, the basic stuff, not implants or bridges – unless there are a lot of teeth missing, from an accident or whatever. So overall it is not a “class” thing.

4. Only if necessary. Dental care is relatively expensive in Portugal, so most dentists are not prone to intervene if the patient doesn’t have issues with it. For braces, for instance, if it’s not affecting your ability to function, most dentists won’t insist on you getting corrected. They also don’t push for bleaching, not even crowns.

   That said, I did have all 4 removed on my request. The dentist was surprised to say the least, but when I explained my motives she just shrugged and said ok (they were easy extractions, no surgery required). In my family and friend group, I’m the only wisdomless one. A couple of them have had one or another extracted for being impacted, but that’s it.

5. As far as I know it isn’tthat common. Extractions are done only if it causes pain or chewing problems and these can’t be solved with minor operations such as the incision of the gum or filing the teeth.

6. Only when they’re in the way or something. All 4 of mine were extracted, because there was literally no space for them anywhere in my jaw.
   Many people need to get one or a few, or sometimes all of them extracted.
   Braces are relatively common, I’d say, especially amongst teenagers.

7. Veneers are not common at all. I mean they literally file down/destroy the top of your tooth to put a veneer on. Why would anyone do that to a healthy tooth?

   Braces and wisdom tooth extraction are fairly common for medical reasons.

   I had 3 of my widsom teeth removed because there wasn’t enough room for them in my mouth and they were growing at all kinds of crooked, hard-to-clean angles and pushing adjacent teeth around.

8. Depends on the dentist and orthodontist. One dentist of mine wanted to pull my wisdom teeth when I was like 11, just because. My mom said absolutely not unless they cause problems.

   In my late 20s they started to cause problems and I had all is them extracted at once.

   Regarding braces: I feel like every child in 5th grade gets braces here. At least when I was that age.

9. In Finland I went to a privately owned dentist where they said that I should have them removed as they “might cause problems” in a way clearly suggesting that I should remove them. Got one side removed then read online that it’s very rarely necessary and didn’t have the other side removed. Never had any problems, just a money grab (to nobody’s surprise) from the private sector. I’d imagine public side they are rarely removed.

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