Hi There, you shouldn't compare yourself to other people when it comes to wisdom teeth removal. It all depends on what age you are, the location and classification of the teeth. Yes it's true that some teeth can be removed under local anaesthetic in the chair, but these are usually more straight-forward extractions. If the teeth are deeply impacted, general anaesthesia is usually a better option. Post operative swelling also differs from person to person and on how deeply the teeth were impacted. Costs involved are- usually associated with paying the surgeon, paying the anaethetist, and paying for theatre time. Anaethetist can be +/- R2000, Surgeon +/- R5000 (depending on how many teeth need to be removed.) And theatre costs vary considerably from place to place.