Exposure of Impacted Teeth

What is an impacted tooth?

A tooth is considered impacted when it is unable to emerge or fully break through gum tissue in the mouth. Patients frequently develop problems with impacted third molars, or wisdom teeth. These teeth get “stuck” in the back of the jaw and can develop painful infections, among a host of other problems (see Wisdom Teeth Removal for more information). Since there is rarely a functional need for wisdom teeth, they are usually extracted if they develop problems.

The maxillary cuspid (upper eyetooth) is the second most common tooth to become impacted. The cuspid teeth play an important role in your bite. They are the first teeth that touch when your jaws close together, so they guide the rest of the teeth into the proper bite. The cuspid teeth are very strong and have the longest roots of any human teeth. 

Normally, the maxillary cuspid teeth are the last of the front teeth to erupt into place. They usually come into place around age 13 and cause any space left between the upper front teeth to close tighter together. If a cuspid tooth is impacted, every effort will be made to help it erupt into proper position.

The techniques used to facilitate eruption can be applied to any impacted teeth in the upper or lower jaw, but they are most commonly applied to the maxillary cuspid (upper eye) teeth. 60% of these impacted eyeteeth are located on the palatal side of the dental arch (roof of the mouth). Other impacted eye teeth are found in the middle of the supporting bone and are stuck in an elevated position above the roots of adjacent teeth. They may also be found on the facial side of the dental arch.

Early Recognition of Impacted Eyeteeth Is Key to Successful Treatment

The older the patient, the more likely an impacted eyetooth will not erupt naturally, even if there is space available for the tooth to fit in the dental arch. Patients may be referred to an oral surgeon for extraction of over-retained baby teeth and/or select adult teeth that are blocking the eruption of the eyeteeth. The oral surgeon may also need to remove any extra teeth (supernumerary teeth) or growths that are blocking the eruption of adult teeth.

Likelihood of natural eruption by patient age:

• 11-12 years old – when space is opened for eruption, there is a good chance a tooth will erupt on its own.
• 13-14 years old – an impacted eyetooth will not erupt by itself, even when space is cleared for its eruption.
• Over 40 years old – there is a much higher chance that the tooth will be fused in position. The impacted tooth must be extracted and replaced with a crown on a dental implant or a fixed bridge.

What happens if the eyetooth will not erupt when proper space is available?

In cases where the eyeteeth will not erupt spontaneously, an orthodontist and oral surgeon will work together to help these teeth erupt. The oral surgeon will expose and bracket the impacted eyetooth. The goal is to erupt the impacted tooth and avoid extracting it. Once the tooth has moved into its final position, the gum around it will be evaluated. In some circumstances, minor gum surgery may be required.

Please refer to Preoperative Instructions under the Surgical Instructions tab on this website to prepare for surgery to expose & bracket an impacted tooth. Simply call Griffitts Facial & Oral Surgery at Griffitts Facial Oral Surgery Phone Number (208) 667-0824 if you have any questions.