Wisdom Tooth Assessment in Dubai
Wisdom teeth are the last molars, coming through between about seventeen and twenty-five. Many arrive without trouble; some get stuck (impacted), half-erupt and get infected, or push against the tooth in front. At Smart Care Polyclinic in Deira the assessment and X-ray are free, and the dentist tells you plainly whether the tooth needs removing, and where.
For: pain, swelling or infection at the back of the mouth
Takes: consultation and panoramic X-ray
Price: assessment free · removal by referral
What it is
The assessment answers three questions: is the tooth the cause of your symptoms, is it damaging the tooth in front or the bone around it, and if it needs to come out, is that a simple extraction or a surgical one? A panoramic X-ray shows the position of the tooth, its roots and their relationship to the nerve in the lower jaw, which is what determines the answer.
A wisdom tooth that is causing repeated infection, decay it cannot be cleaned free of, or damage to the neighbouring tooth should come out. One that has come through straight and can be cleaned can stay.
For a wisdom tooth that is stuck but causing no symptoms and no disease, the evidence does not settle it. The Cochrane review found only low- to very-low-certainty evidence on whether removing such teeth is better than keeping and monitoring them.1 So the decision is made for the individual tooth — and a dentist who says "leave it and we will check it each visit" is giving evidence-based advice, not avoiding work.
Where the removal is done
We assess wisdom teeth here but do not remove them. Simple extractions of other teeth are done in the clinic at AED 199. A wisdom tooth that needs surgical removal — impacted, close to the nerve, or with curved roots — is referred to an oral surgeon, with your X-ray and the dentist's notes, so you are not assessed twice. Saying that at the consultation is better than starting a removal the clinic is not set up to finish.
Pericoronitis: the half-erupted tooth that keeps getting infected
When a wisdom tooth is part-way through, a flap of gum over it traps food and bacteria. The result is a painful, swollen gum at the back of the mouth, sometimes with difficulty opening. The immediate treatment is cleaning under the flap, a chlorhexidine rinse, and antibiotics only where there is spreading infection. If it keeps recurring, removing the tooth is the cure.
Questions patients ask
No. A wisdom tooth that has come through properly and can be kept clean can stay. One that is impacted, repeatedly infected or damaging the tooth in front should be removed. For a symptom-free impacted tooth the evidence is genuinely unsettled, and the decision is made case by case.
We assess them, take the X-ray and tell you what is needed. Surgical wisdom tooth removal is referred to an oral surgeon with your records. Simple extractions of other teeth are done here.
Pain and swelling at the very back of the jaw, an ache that radiates to the ear, or a sore gum you can feel a tooth edge under are typical. Only an examination and X-ray can confirm it — a molar with decay can feel the same.
This guide is general information about a treatment, not advice about your teeth. Which option suits you depends on the tooth, your bite, your gums and what you want long term — all of which the dentist assesses at your free consultation before anything is agreed.
References
- Ghaeminia H, Nienhuijs ME, Toedtling V, et al.. Surgical removal versus retention for the management of asymptomatic disease-free impacted wisdom teeth. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 2020;2020(5):CD003879. PMID 32368796. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD003879.pub5Cochrane found only low- to very-low-certainty evidence on removing symptom-free, disease-free impacted wisdom teeth, so the decision rests on the individual tooth. Cited for how little the evidence settles.
Sources are listed for the specific statements they support. They are published research and guidance, not a substitute for a consultation — what applies to you is decided by a doctor who has assessed you.