Wisdom teeth need to be removed for most people. In most cases, there simply isn't enough space in the jaw to accommodate four more teeth. For this reason, if your child experiences any of the following symptoms, it's likely a strong sign that your child's wisdom teeth not only need to be pulled but are in fact overdue for it. Here's what you should know about these three signs.
Bleeding
Bleeding never means anything good when it comes from the mouth. But when it comes to wisdom teeth, it's an especially important sign that shouldn't be missed.
If your child's having bleeding near the back of the mouth — they should be able to taste it, even if it can't be seen, since it's so close to the tongue — that's a likely sign that the wisdom teeth are starting to break through the surface of the gums. When the gum tissue tears to make way of the teeth, a little bleeding occurs. The bleeding itself isn't a huge cause for concern in this case, but you should be aware that if your child's mouth doesn't have room for those wisdom teeth, matters will only get worse.
Pain
Pain is another common problem that children experience with wisdom teeth. As previously stated, having the gum tissue tear can cause bleeding and a significant amount of pain, too. This is a fairly normal process — remember when your child was teething? This is basically the same thing, except with four large teeth. If your child experiences any kind of pain in their mouth, especially near the rear, get to a dentist right away in case those wisdom teeth need to go.
Tooth Crowding
Last but not least, teeth can be pushed out of the way by your child's wisdom teeth even before they breach the surface.
There are two ways that crowding can happen. One is that the wisdom teeth have already started to come in and don't have space, so other teeth get pushed out of the way by the two teeth colliding.
The other way that this can happen is if overcrowding is happening under the gums. This is possible, especially if a wisdom tooth is coming in crookedly. It can start to push another tooth out of the way from under the surface, which can cause overcrowding, pain, and potential tooth loss if left untreated.
Any one of these problems can mean that your child has wisdom teeth coming in. If your child hasn't been seen by a pediatric dentist for a while, head on in and ask for dental X-rays to find out what's going on with their wisdom teeth.
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