When I was a lad of 20, one of my wisdom teeth got infected... Dentist decided to treat with antibiotics and warned me that I should have all four wisdom teeth extracted because they were gonna be problematic for my whole life...
The operation for the two on the right side was completely awful and took a long, painful time to heal... An awful process.
Later, I told him I would keep the other two clean and free of infection and that extraction would never be necessary... He was skeptical.
Twenty years later, as he was retiring, he acknowledged that I was right... They didn't need to be extracted, after all... Just cared for...
In retrospect, I wish I hadn't had the surgery on the first two... Now 30 years later... The remaining two wisdom teeth on the left side are still there... And there has never been infection...
Along with regular brushing and dental floss or dental tape, I use this instrument (pictured at right). They sell them at the local pharmacy...Meanwhile, I have had a fractured tooth (sensitive to cold and heat) for 15 years that has never required surgery, and a small cavity that was first detected by my current dentist five years ago... Both are still stable and don't need anything other than my extra careful hygienic vigilance...
My first Baltimore dentist whom I saw twice yearly from ages five through 40 still exchanges Christmas cards with me.
The moral of this story?
There is none.
I was just thinking...
And I look forward to my twice yearly dentist appointments and cleanings... I really do.
