Will a dentist sometimes only removed one of the four wisdom teeth?

Question

the only one that bothers me is on the bottom right side of my mouth. the other side is pain free and looks as tho is growing through fine, but my other appears to be on its way to getting impacted?

Answer 1

it all depends on the dentist, but usually they will want to go ahead and take out all of them. it also depends on if the person can afford to have all of them taken out at one time.

Answer 2

If it's a good dentist then yes.  The only time wisdom teeth should be removed is if they are causing problems, not just because they are wisdom teeth.  Here is something from my other post about removing wisdom teeth:

Is there a specific reason why you have to have them taken out? Unless you are having a problem such as overcrowding of your teeth or impacted wisdom teeth, you should not have them taken out. Most of the problem occur because the do not grow in straight, but kind of sideways. My dentist never recommended taking them out, because they grew in straight. When I asked why do so many people have them taken out he said that they probably have a brother who is an oral surgeon. He also said that if I pulled my wisdom teeth out and then lets say got into some accident where I lost some of my other teeth, I would have to get dentures or implants because they may not be able to put a bridge in without my wisdom teeth. I had a friend in college whose dentist wanted to to pull his wisdom teeth. I sent him to my dentist for a second opinion. There was no particular reason to have these perfectly good teeth taken out, so he didn't. Today, almost 20 years later, neither one of us had any problems and we still have out wisdom teeth. I think this is somewhat similar to having your tonsils taken out: at one point doctors were ordering this surgery left and right, usually for no good reason. So before you stress over the recovery time, I would ask some other dentist(s) for their opinions.

"In an effort to resolve the controversy the National Institute of Health held a conference in 1979. It was agreed that straight healthy wisdom teeth should be left alone and that those that are diseased or causing trouble for other teeth should be removed. But the main issue, whether impacted but otherwise healthy wisdom teeth should be pulled to prevent trouble was never resolved.

"The panel waffled on this issue." Said Dr. Walter C. Guralnick, a co-chairman of the meeting. After long discussion the, the panel reluctantly agreed, "Impaction or malposition of a third molar is an abnormal state and may justify its removal.

Dr. Guralnick. Professor emeritus of maxillofacial surgery at the Harvard School of Medicine, recently explained, "There has never been a good prospective study done to determine what percentage of people get into trouble if impacted wisdom teeth are left in place.

No such study had begun before 1979 conference, and despite the panel’s recommendation none have been started since. Such a study would follow large numbers of people for many years to see what happens to their impacted wisdom teeth. Experts now have only one small study from which to judge; in it, most other 60-to 70- year- olds who still had their wisdom teeth had no evident disease in their impacted teeth."

Source(s):

From "THE NEW YORK TIMES HEALTH THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 1989"