These symptoms may indicate caries of the wisdom tooth

Pain Discoloration Loss of substance (“hole in the tooth”) Unpleasant taste and bad breath In advanced carious lesions, pain is caused by irritation of the dental nerve. Pain can occur especially when chewing or after eating sweets. But not every caries disease necessarily causes pain.

For the layman, the initial lesion is usually indistinguishable from healthy tooth structure. Only later does a dark discoloration appear. The tongue is very sensitive.

Loss of substance in the form of holes in the tooth due to advanced carious destruction is usually noticed by the patient quite quickly. The bacterial decomposition of food components and tooth substances causes foul odours, which can manifest themselves as bad breath (even after brushing the teeth) and as a taste impairment. More information is also available under: Symptoms with caries

Pain
Discoloration
Loss of substance (“hole in the tooth”)
Unpleasant taste and bad breath

The therapy of a carious lesion depends primarily on the severity of the substance damage.

Initial lesions without loss of substance can be treated by promoted remineralization. The targeted administration of highly concentrated fluoride varnishes is sufficient for the treatment of superficially demineralized areas when oral hygiene is intensified. If the wisdom tooth is very badly destroyed by caries, a crown may be useful.

In general, wisdom teeth are frequently removed because they often do not erupt completely or in the wrong direction due to lack of space. If additional caries occurs, tooth removal (extraction) is advisable. Since without bacterial plaque and a carbohydrate-containing diet no caries spread is to be expected, improved dental care should always be provided by oral hygiene instruction and demonstration at the dentist.

Regular check-ups and, if necessary, professional tooth cleaning help to detect carious lesions early and prevent their development. The colloquial term “seal” refers to an amalgam filling. The substance defect in the wisdom tooth must be filled up so that the tooth regains its form and function and so that the dentine wound is covered.

Only the tight seal reduces nerve irritation and consequently pain. Amalgam is a filling material that has been successfully used for over 100 years and is still the standard material for definitive fillings in the posterior region of adults. The triumphant advance of tooth-colored composite fillings has largely replaced amalgam today.

The use of amalgam is to be reduced in the future as well in order to reduce the environmental impact of mercury. The further the carious lesion spreads, the more healthy tooth substance is lost. This weakens the stability of the tooth crown, so that a crowning is necessary.

This crown made of metal alloy or ceramic splints the tooth to a certain extent and prolongs its preservation in the mouth. Root-treated teeth usually have to be crowned. The wisdom teeth are extracted very often.

This is not primarily due to caries but to their unphysiological position. If the wisdom teeth are destroyed by caries to such an extent that the preservation does not seem to make sense, they can be extracted. However, this decision has to be made carefully, because especially for patients at risk of caries every tooth should be preserved as long as possible. On the other hand, a prophylactic removal can also be considered if the patient is not able to clean the wisdom teeth satisfactorily. You can find more information about wisdom tooth removal under Wisdom tooth extraction