Wisdom Teeth

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Kyle14

5-Year Member
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I read on the USMMA thread that it is required for students to remove their wisdom teeth. I hadn't known this about the academy prior to reading it on the thread. Does this apply to the USCGA aswell or is it something put in place for USMMA strictly for the sea year?
 
Kyle14 said:
I read on the USMMA thread that it is required for students to remove their wisdom teeth. I hadn't known this about the academy prior to reading it on the thread. Does this apply to the USCGA aswell or is it something put in place for USMMA strictly for the sea year?
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You definitely do NOT want to wait on getting your wisdom teeth out, unless for some reason your dentist thinks you should. Taking time out of your very busy schedule for oral surgery during the school year would wreak havoc on your grades.

I'm not sure if it is mandatory though...but I cannot imagine choosing to wait. Unless of course you are one of the very small percentage that has room for the wisdom teeth!
 
:eek:It's not mandatory but highly recommended. I had mine out when they got impacted. The pain from that was the worst I ever experienced. So get it done and out of the way if you can.
 
you'll have to get them out eventually so i would say do it while you're still home.
 
Thank you, I guess I should start looking for an oral surgeon then.
 
ONLY get them out if you need to get them out.

It is not mandatory before reporting to the USCGA.

You will have to submit dental x-rays with your acceptance paperwork, and if they feel they must be removed prior to R-day they will tell you.
 
Suggest you get your Panographic Xrays done as soon as possible and ask your dentist their recommendation (which may or may not agree with CGA dentist recommendations!) If dentist says they are close, go ahead and get it done. Other candidates have it done preemptively only because it is likely it will be required sometime during the college years and they'd rather have it done at home where it won't potentially interfere with schedule at CGA and they can get more TLC. Also if you wait until impacted-can be more painful.

Our dentist told D removal wasn't needed but during swab summer CGA dental clinic suggested she go ahead and have them removed. As of today she still hasn't had them removed but likely will need to before she's finished at the Academy. (May be sooner rather than later as she was complaining of some jaw pain during the holiday break!):eek:
 
If you're "flagged" for your wisdom teeth at some point in the process, you will have them removed before you graduate.

Remember.....it's on the government's dime if you wait until you at CGA.

I had all 4 of mine done my last year there. After the surgery I had to stay overnight at the cadet clinic. It was a little fun, as some of my classmates were in the clinic too, also having had their wisdom teeth removed.

It's not a bad procedure. You'll have to wait about a day or two, or maybe it was longer, before the throbbing pain arrives, but they do give you pain killers for that.
 
bossf51 said:
:eek:It's not mandatory but highly recommended. I had mine out when they got impacted. The pain from that was the worst I ever experienced. So get it done and out of the way if you can.
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It becomes mandatory for commissioning, if you have one of those "lucky" mouths. The academy dentist will determine that, and you will need to have the procedure before graduation. :thumb:
 
Questions about wisdom teeth for any Service Academy and/or ROTC applicant should be directed to me "if" you want the facts vice opinions. Send me your full name; last 4 SSN; and your posting to Larry.Mullen@dodmerb.tma.osd.mil. I can assist U better from there. Like every other medical condition, dental conditions are individualized also.:thumb:
 
MullenLE said:
Questions about wisdom teeth for any Service Academy and/or ROTC applicant should be directed to me "if" you want the facts vice opinions.
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What "fact" vs "opinion" are you questioning? :confused:

Wisdom teeth removal is NOT mandatory for admission to the USCGA.

No opinion here, but a fact.
 
For the record, commissioning standards are also different from DODMERB requirements for academy admission.
 
Nobody is colliding.

No one is questioning that wisdom teeth extraction is NOT a requirement to get into any Service Academy.

What I was replying to and appropriately so, were the opinions of getting wisdom teeth out prior to being admitted to a Service Academy.

For "some" applicants, that is in THEIR best interest, for "some," it is not. It is dependent on their OWN dentist's evaluation and their OWN circumstances.

Examples:

1. Their dentist assesses there is no problem and they may never have to have them extracted. DON'T have them taken out.

2. Their dentist evaluates that the wisdom teeth will need to be removed within the next year. Most applicants decide to have them removed PRIOR to entering an Academy, so they don't have lost class time at all...let alone should they encounter problematic extractions.

Again, I'd recommend anyone having concerns about this, like the two folks did today, to contact me directly. They did; I answered; and they are no longer confused:thumb:
 
Our '09 graduate, now Ensign had her wisdom teeth out at USCGA only because she was experiencing some discomfort. The clinic knows the cadets are limited on time and make every effort to schedule so as not to disrupt their academics. She had hers removed on a Friday and was only down ONE day!! and they keep very close watch her (overnight in the clinic, lots of visitors). :thumb:
Hers were done in sessions. The second round she was back in classes that afternoon but on a med chit for one week, no overnight required.
The clinic staff is very professional and IMHO will receive excellent care. My wife, who worked with an oral surgeon, couldn't believe the extent of care the cadets received.
 
Her case worked well. Great! All Academy clinics work with cadets/mids to reduce the amount of time away from class. I repeat again, each case is individualized. For admissions purposes....for admission purposes...I'd recommend applicants that have any medical or dental concerns about their admission to a Service Academy or ROTC program...consult me directly so I can provide them the facts...as it pertains to THIER case:thumb:
 
I had mine out in one day, and thankfully through a contractor. I spent the night at the clinic and the next day was back in the barracks.

I will caution you, when they say "eat soft foods"....do what they say. It all feels fine and dandy when you're eating your favorite foods while you're also on pain klillers, but once you are done with the pain killers, you realize having tuna salad in the pits where your wisdom team were is no day at the park.


I fiddled with an annoying "something" in that gum for months...and they one day it came out, a little tooth fragment. I actually saw my oral surgeon at the exchange at CGA weeks later and mentioned it to him. He said it happens every and then.

We build these things up in our heads, but having your wisdom teeth out isn't so bad. You go to sleep, wake up and its done. No immediate pain, and only pains that feel like semi-nasty head aches a few days later. You've been through worse, and you'll be through worse....wisdom teeth is some thing you should just not lose sleep over. :thumb:
 
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