AUTHOR=Schroeder Alan R. , Newman Thomas B. , Girod Sabine , Hashemi Sepehr , Häberle Astrid D. TITLE=Estimated Cumulative Incidence of Wisdom Tooth Extractions in Privately Insured US Patients JOURNAL=Frontiers in Dental Medicine VOLUME=3 YEAR=2022 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/dental-medicine/articles/10.3389/fdmed.2022.937165 DOI=10.3389/fdmed.2022.937165 ISSN=2673-4915 ABSTRACT=Objective

To determine the cumulative incidence and predictors of third molar (3M, “wisdom teeth”) extractions in the United States.

Methods

We retrospectively analyzed a US private dental insurance claims database to create a Kaplan-Meier curve for the cumulative incidence of 3M extractions and used Cox proportional hazards to assess associations between sex, geographic region, and extractions.

Results

Between 2007 and 2016, by age 25, ~80% of patients underwent ≥1 tooth extraction and an estimated 50% of patients underwent ≥1 3M extraction. Factors associated with 3M extractions included female sex (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 1.08, 95% CI 1.07–1.08) and residence in the West (aHR 1.82, 95% CI 1.81–1.85) or South (aHR 1.5, 95% CI 1.49–1.51) geographic regions as compared to the Northeast.

Conclusion

3M extractions are likely the most common surgery performed in US adolescents and young adults. Significant geographic variation suggests that elucidation of the indications for this common procedure is a public health priority.