As of 12/1/2025, our Tracy office will be consolidated to our Livermore location.

Signs Your Tooth is Impacted and Needs Treatment

Posted on 12/7/2020 by Pacific Oral and Facial Surgery Center

When your tooth fails to break through the gum, just know it is impacted. This is a dental problem that prevents your tooth from emerging or developing normally. It affects your wisdom teeth mostly since they are the last to erupt or emerge. Impacted teeth can cause pain, lead to numerous dental problems, or even damage other teeth. So, how do you know your tooth is impacted?

Symptoms of an Impacted Tooth

In most cases, impacted teeth don't show any signs. But when the problem gets out of hand, you are likely to experience a number of symptoms. The signs may include red, tender, or swollen gums. Sometimes the gums may start to bleed, followed by bad breath, bad taste, and difficulty in opening or closing your mouth. In extreme cases, you can experience pain in your jaws and mouth, especially when speaking, chewing, or biting. These symptoms may appear and disappear on their own after a few weeks or months.

Impacted Tooth Treatment

Once you know you have an impacted tooth, you can come to see us immediately for a possible remedy. We will examine your teeth and even take an x-ray of the entire mouth as part of the diagnosis before treatment. The treatment may include waiting and monitoring, oral surgery, or the use of eruption aids. The wait-and-see approach will entail regular monitoring of the problem through regal dental checkups. Extraction surgery may come in later if you experience unpleasant symptoms such as pain. The affected tooth will be extracted to prevent further damage to other teeth. Use of eruption aids such as brackets and braces will come in handy to help your canine teeth erupt properly. Failure to achieve an eruption may amount to removing the impacted tooth and replacing it with a bridge or dental implant. For more information on impacted teeth, call or visit us to book your appointment.

Board certified in Oral & Maxillofacial surgery

The surgical specialty of oral and maxillofacial surgery requires up to six additional years of hospital based surgical and anesthesia training beyond dental school.

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Friday 7:00 am - 1:00 pm

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1133 E. Stanley Blvd. #215 • Livermore, CA 94550
Phone: 925-290-7727 Fax: 925-294-8800
Email: info@pacificofs.com

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Dental Blog – Pacific Oral & Facial Surgery Center | Oral Surgery Education | Livermore, CA
Read educational articles and updates on oral surgery, dental implants, and facial procedures from Pacific Oral & Facial Surgery Center in Livermore.
Pacific Oral and Facial Surgery Center, 1133 E Stanley Blvd #215, Livermore, CA 94550 \ 925-290-7727 \ pacificofs.com \ 2/5/2026 \ Page Keywords: oral surgeon Livermore \