Adults have up to 32 teeth, of which four are wisdom teeth and these are the last to come through the gums. Wisdom teeth are the ones right at the back of the mouth and usually appear between the ages of 17 and 25 although sometimes they can appear in later years.
If there is enough room in the mouth the wisdom teeth will come through (erupt) in a useful position and there will only be minor discomfort as they erupt. However, wisdom teeth can cause problems if there is not enough room in the mouth. This is very common these days. The tooth could erupt at an angle and gets stuck against the tooth in front or jawbone behind it; the dentist will describe this as ‘Impacted’.
The dentist will be able to assess whether there is sufficient room for the teeth to come through by taking an x-ray which will show the position of the root. Once the x-rays have been taken, the dentist will be able to tell you if wisdom tooth removal will be beneficial to avoid complications and how easy or difficult it will be to remove the tooth.