None of my fiance's wisdom teeth are impacted, but one of them is partially erupted, and he got some food caught between the tooth and gum, which led to an infection. It was minor, according to his dentist (I asked if it could be life threatening and she laughed), and she said there was a very small abscess which went away. He took penicillin and did topical antimicrobial and he says he feels totally fine now. (he never had a fever or swollen lymph nodes- just some swelling at the gum).
He saw two dentists, both of whom told him he should get all his wisdom teeth out even though they're not impacted or decaying (they did x rays). He doesn't want to remove the teeth and I don't want him to, because I've heard of people dying during that surgery. But I'm also afraid he could die if he DOESN'T remove the teeth.
Everyone else seems to think this is not a life or death situation but I am very worried. If he doesn't remove the teeth, could he die? Or would he just be prone to food getting stuck back there again? Could he prevent that from happening by being better with oral hygiene? (right now he never uses mouthwash)