What will happen if impacted wisdom teeth aren't removed?

Not all impacted wisdom teeth are the same. I was lucky that mine were only touching soft tissue... it made their removal easier, and they weren't causing any immediate damage to the rest of my mouth. Some wisdom teeth are tilted to the point where they are at risk of burrowing straight into your other teeth. In those cases, if they are not removed you risk plenty of pain and damage to those other teeth.  more

The precise reasons why a individual's wisdom teeth should be extracted should be explained to them by their dentist, after an examination which almost certainly will need to include x-rays. While each person's situation is different, some of the more common topics dentists discuss when describing to a person why their wisdom teeth should be removed are listed below. The first group of reasons given here each relates to the fact that wisdom teeth, either partially or fully erupted, can often be very difficult to clean effectively. The term "erupted" means that the wisdom tooth has, at least to some degree, penetrated through the gums. Any location in the mouth where plaque is allowed to accumulate and persist, such as around a partially erupted wisdom tooth, a person will run the risk of developing dental problems such as tooth decay ("cavities"), periodontal disease ("gum disease"), or reoccurring infections. Typically it is the partially erupted impacted wisdom tooth which is more ...  more