Impacted third molar surgery in older patients—Is patient´s age really a risk factor for complications?

Objectives The aim of this study was to analyze the influence of patients´ age on perioperative complications in impacted third molar surgery and how established risk factors are affected by age. Materials and methods The clinical findings, digital panoramic radiographs and perioperative data of 200 patients (554 impacted third molars) that had been subjected to tooth extraction, from July 2023 until July 2024, were analyzed. Perioperative complications (Inferior alveolar nerve (IAN) hypesthesia, oroantral communication (OAC), lingual nerve (LN) hypesthesia, postoperative bleeding, postoperative infection) as well as impaction patterns and risk factors (angulation type, bone coverage, depth- and risk scores) were analyzed by age (cut-off 30 years). Results The population was divided into two groups by age (Group A = ≥ 30 years ( n = 52) vs. Group B =