"Each year five million people have wisdom teeth removed but its up in the air whether all of those surgeries were necessary. Wisdom teeth httpmyoms.orgprocedureswisdomteethmanagement also called the third molars are four teeth that grow at the very back of each corner of the mouth. For most people they start to grow in between ages  and . Theyre thought to crowd out other teeth or cause tooth decay which is why many dentists and oral surgeons think its better to just nip those problems in the bud and take them out as a preventative measure. But theres a serious debate between dentists and oral surgeons should they preemptively remove someones wisdom teeth if the patient doesnt have any symptoms Simply put theres no right answer. It comes down to what you as a patient want. Heres what you need to know to figure that out. Dentists and oral surgeons are fighting over wisdom teeth Dentists and oral surgeons agree across the board that theres cause to remove wisdom teeth if a patient is in pain or if there are signs of disease popping up like tooth decay or infection. Thats an obvious choice. But taking out wisdom teeth when there arent any symptoms is where the professionals get into it. Many dental professionals stick with a watch and wait approach with wisdom teeth to avoid surgery if possible. Many people dont have adequate space in their jaw for the teeth to come into full position but that alone isnt justification of having them all removed says Dr. Scott Tomar of University of North Carolinas School of Dentistry. Tomar says that as a dentist he feels the risks of complication including infection and hitting nerves during surgery outweigh any benefits of preventative removal. In  oral surgeon Dr. Jay Friedman called the preventative removals a public health hazard http in the American Journal of Public Health. The American Public Health Association has sided with this argument since  when it formally opposed http the preventative removal of wisdom teeth. The same thing happened with tonsils http which doctors no longer remove just to get rid of the chance of infection later on. Americans spend an estimated  billion a year having their wisdom teeth removed Some doctors though still see preventative oral surgery as being two steps ahead of the problem. If youre going to need your wisdom teeth out eventually why not have them removed when youre younger and are more likely to recover more easily Some think of removing the wisdom teeth early on as a way to lessen the crowding of other teeth You might not have symptoms now but you cant assume its gonna be that way for the rest of your life says Dr. Ray White an oral surgeon working at University of North Carolina. Rather than let the teeth cause problems later on many oral surgeons remove them. But a  Cochrane review httpsummaries.cochrane.orgCDORAL_surgicalremovalversusretentionforthemanagementofasymptomaticimpactedwisdomteeth of randomized clinical trials found theres no evidence that removing wisdom teeth will prevent or reduce crowding of other teeth down the line. And a different Cochrane review http found that watching and waiting can may reduce the number of surgical procedures by  percent or more. The question comes down to which side of the fence medical professionals fall on Its worth noting that oral surgeons make a good chunk of their paychecks by removing wisdom teeth so there is a financial incentive involved. Are there people gaming the system Sure. You dont get paid much for not doing anything White says. But Id hope we can get past that. The American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial surgeons says There is no pat answer https_based_third_molar_surgery.pdf cookbook recipe or flow chart that is universally accepted regarding the decision making process in these cases. So the question comes down to which side of the fence medical professionals fall on and what works best for their patients. The risks and benefits of removing your wisdom teeth Theres a chance that if you opt not to have your wisdom teeth taken out they might be fine for the rest of your life. Theres also a chance that theyll need to come out later. If thats the case you cant always plan for it. Opting to have them removed gives patients time to plan around the procedure which leaves people out of commission for about three days. But inconvenience isnt the only risk. The risk for complications increases as people get older and the duration of disability after the operation gets longer as people get older says oral surgeon Dr. Thomas Dodson. In some cases the extraction can be more painful if you wait Dodson says. Thats because the tooth is easier to remove if its roots arent fully developed. The common risks http related to the surgery include poor wound healing infection pain and uncontrolled bleeding. Nerve injury in rare cases of wisdom teeth removal can leave people with permanent numbness around the face and mouth according to the APHA. Americans spend billions each year on wisdom teeth Americans spend an estimated  billion a year having  million wisdom teeth removed http according to the American Public Health Association.  Thats a hefty bill for something we may or may not need. How much it costs depends on how the molars are situated. A simple surgical extraction for a wisdom tooth thats showing through the gums should run about  httpshealthcarebluebook.compage_ProcedureDetails.aspxiddatasetdentalgSurgicaltoothremoval according to Healthcare Bluebook. If its impacted pushed against another tooth and unable to fully come through the gum the cost jumps to about  httpshealthcarebluebook.compage_ProcedureDetails.aspxiddatasetdentalgImpactedtoothremovalcompletelybony per tooth."