Can you have fillings in wisdom teeth?

[OhRosalind]

Haven’t been to the dentist in several years (I know this is stupid) but finally had my teeth cleaned last week. The hygienist booked me in with a dentist for a filling on a molar, but also mentioned that my wisdom teeth (bottom ones, not fully out so hard to clean) are showing some decay. She said they don’t do fillings in wisdom teeth since you don’t use them, so either the dentist will leave them for now if they’re not causing me trouble, or will want to remove them. She implied that they would probably need to come out at some point either way.
Is this normal practice? I’m not in the U.K. (Italy) but wondering if this is standard. Surely a filling or sealant would be a better option? I’m scared of dentists anyway and specifically terrified of having them pulled after various relatives experiencing a lot of pain/swelling/loss of sensation.

[TurkMama]

I heard this from uk dentists too if the wisdom tooth is not fully out and a high risk for decay they pull it out instead of working on it. The outlook isnt good for such a tooth.however if its fully out they can just fill it.
Best thing is to ask them to explain your options.

[OhRosalind]

Thanks, that doesn’t sound promising. Definitely not fully out and definitely has some decay already.
I will of course discuss with the dentist but it’s good to know what the options are (or not).

[kwaziseyepatch]

I'm a dentist. We do fillings on wisdom teeth that are fully erupted or not causing any crowding of other teeth. If it's stuck against another one, it's difficult to access and remove all of the decay plus the filling will probably get decay around it very soon - there will still be food trapping. Best to just have removed and prevent damage to the neighbouring teeth. Not a nice extraction to have, wishing you well with it

[TurkMama]

Correct me if im wrong kwazi but is the logic behind it that extracting a non infected tooth is better and easier as tooth will not be as fragile and lower infection risk whereas if you were to fill it badly due to restricted access and then the patient returns when its a full blown infection it makes extraction difficult and a root canal is more complicated and high failure risk?
So i suppose what im trying to say its not the dentist being lazy and cutting corner or fobbing you off its likely that the outlook is just not worth the hassle and has a small success chance.

[TurkMama]

I meant Not worth the hassle for you op.

[Arrowcat]

It's not really about 'hassle' to the dentist. It's about avoiding pain and swelling for the patient.
Wisdom teeth infections in your bottom jaw can get very nasty very quickly and end up requiring hospital treatment so taking them out before that happens is seen as pre emptive. However ultimately it's always up to the patient when to get a tooth out with full knowledge of pros and cons.

[Heatherjayne1972]

Yes you can have a filling in a wisdom tooth. I’ve seen it numerous times

[TurkMama]

Yes i meant for the patient arrowcat.
Dentists are professionals not cowboys.

[OhRosalind]

Thank you for the detailed explanation.

I am breastfeeding. I’m assuming I couldn’t have my wisdom teeth out until I stop (not imminent but probably within the next year) as I’d need anaesthetic? Are fillings ever a short-term solution?

[Torvean32]

I've had all 4 of my wisdom teeth out. They came out with no problem, and I never had any problems afterwards.
I wouldn't think breast feeding would stop you getting an extraction but your dentist can obviously confirm that.

[OhRosalind]

Really? My mum had them out under GA (that was a long time ago though) and says it was worse than childbirth, my brother also had his out in hospital (a decade ago). I’m surprised you wouldn’t need a big dose of anaesthetic! But I know the answer is to discuss with the dentist...