Dentist Forum

Fistula above root canal

admin — Tue, 15 May 2012 15:34:26 +0000

Dental help wanted – Fistula above root canal

"A few months after having root treatment I experienced some pain and a large lump appeared above the tooth which my dentist called a fistula I think. My dentist cleaned out the tooth but the lump did not go away. He then referred me to an endodentist. I paid upfront quite a lot of money he has taken some x-rays and told me the lump is not tooth related. The lump frequently leaks and has I have a bad taste and smell in that area. I dont know what to do now I have no more money to see another dentist."

Dentures

admin — Sat, 05 May 2012 06:05:27 +0000

QUESTION – New Dentures

“Hi, I am after some advice, I am getting dentures and my dentist has informed me that I need to go to the dental hospital to get 2 roots removed from my top gum, but the waiting time is 10 weeks. Would it be possible to get the lower gum dentures fitted while I am waiting”

Bridge replacement

admin — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 14:55:26 +0000

QUESTION – Bridge Replacement

“I am unsure if you can help me or not, but I do need advice if possible. Perhaps you might be able to point me in the direction of that if you cannot answer this yourselves. This is the situation:

I have a large upper bridge. 7 teeth, four central and two to one side and one to the other. This is easily 30 years old. Recently three things happened:

1. My lovely dentist moved to London and the rest of her practice became private. As I am a pensioner, relying on State pension only, that is a luxury beyond me.

2. I finally found a new NHS dentist (seemingly rarer than hen’s teeth nowadays) and have to say that I am not entirely happy with her but do not wish to name her because that would savour of an official complaint.

3. The veneer on one of front incisors on the bridge, came off. My dentist glued it back on two occasions but it does not last. She also now (see below) says that the bridge is loose and needs to be replaced but does not want to do this herself and suggests I find a cosmetic dentist. This I cannot afford to do. She now says she can ‘try’ to take it out and give me a denture. I most certainly do not want that option. My questions are:

1. Is there a limit to the size of a bridge that one can have on the NHS?
2. Is there any way I could get this bridge replaced without having to pay privately – which I just cannot do.

As an aside, on my last visit this week, she started to excavate for two fillings, scraped out the small cavity on one tooth and had started to do the same for the other, which was adjacent to the bridge. I felt her pressing hard on the bridge and was about to raise my hand to stop her when she stopped herself and exclaimed that the bridge was loose. From my perspective it felt that she had dislodged it but as I cannot prove that and only have how it felt in my mouth as an indication, I would not wish to make that claim. She then said I should make an appointment for her to try and take the bridge off and then stick it back again! I asked if she felt sure she could do this i.e get it back again, and she replied that she was not sure. This is not a risk I feel like taking, especially as her replacement option is a denture. Also, I then came out of the surgery without the two cavities having been filled.

Is there any where I can go to get this sorted professionally on the NHS and without having to make a formal complaint against her? Many thanks for your help/advice.”

ANSWER

The most important thing about dental bridges are the supporting teeth. They have to be strong enough to functionally support the bridge. So are the teeth that are supporting your bridge in good condition? What did the x-ray show? Are the supporting teeth failing? If so this is no grounds for a complaint.

30 years is a very good age for your bridge to have lasted. You were probably told at the time that the bridge would last about 10-15 years, if not you should have been.

You need to talk to your dentist, she needs to explain more about your problem to you in a way you can understand. Discuss your fears with her. You cannot leave a loose bridge in your mouth because of the risk of infection. If the supporting teeth are in good condition she should provide you with a new bridge. If not then … she needs to tell you what your options are.

Best of luck

Lump on lip

admin — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 14:27:42 +0000

QUESTION – Lump on lip
“I’m a 37yr old non smoking male. I had a lump appear on my lip about a week ago, it grew pretty quickly from a red spot to a white rubbery lump approx 1/2cm in height. I went to my dentist yesterday to have it removed and sent away to have a biopsy on it. My dentist didnt seem to concerned but i obviously am. I will have results soon but would appreciate anyones input on this.”

Wisdom Tooth coming through

admin — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 08:33:04 +0000

QUESTION – Irritating Wisdom Tooth

“My wisdom teeth have been coming through for a while and haven’t posed too many problems. However, 2 days ago the top right tooth started poking into the inside of my mouth and it’s getting really irritating. My problem is that I’m off overseas for 7 weeks starting tomorrow and I don’t have any time to see a dentist. My tooth isn’t hurting or causing any real pain, it’s just really annoying. Is this something I should be worried about? Or should I just live with it and deal with the issue when I get back?”

ANSWER

It depends on what you mean by “started poking into the inside of my mouth”. If you mean the tooth is coming through sideways so it is touching your cheek or touching your tongue the other way, then yes it you should be concerned about it. If however it is coming through straight i.e. in a straight downwards direction (you say it is one of the upper ones), then it might be OK, just leave it and see how it goes. It can be normal to irritate a bit, sometimes it can be a bit painful as the tooth pushes through. Only an x-ray/examination by a dentist can really advise you properly so if you are worried about the tooth I am afraid that is what you must do.

Please be very careful with your dental hygiene . Please do NOT poke the area with your finger just to see how it is because you might introduce infection into the area from dirty hands.

Root Canal Treatment or Extraction

admin — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 19:54:07 +0000

Hope someone can give me some advice. I’m 25, and up until I was 22, I had a pretty bad dentist (unfortunately I did not realise this until it was too late). Long story short I went to my new dentist with a huge amount of cavities. Most have been treated with fillings but i’ve had a toothache off and on for a couple of months (very similar to when my TMJ plays up, hence why I thought nothing of it until it started to get worse), went to see my dentist and he said he will fill it but he doesn’t know if it will help. He said I should start thinking about whether I want root canal treatment or extraction.

The tooth in question is second molar on my right side, right in front of where a wisdom tooth has begun to poke through. The dentist said that if I have the tooth extracted, it will give more room for the wisdom tooth to come through and hopefully avoid any potential problems in that department (though he was clear that it would not slide into that position so there would still be a gap). When I asked what he thought I should do he just said “I’d be comfortable with extracting the tooth. Plus, root canal is very expensive.”

I really don’t know what to do for the best. Obviously, i’m going to go ahead with the filling (which I have to wait 2 weeks for – although part of me is concerned as to whether even this is worth doing given my tooth is already hurting…it doesn’t hurt to bite or touch but it’s sensitive to hot/cold liquid and i have a constant dull throbbing pain) in case it just happens to work, but if it doesn’t I don’t know whether to put myself through root canal or go ahead and get the tooth extracted.

I’m also starting to get a much milder but nagging pain in the second molar in my left side and now i’m panicking that i’m going to lose all my teeth, lol. Would be grateful for any advice, pointers, opinions etc

ANSWER

The only person who can help you is an experienced dentist. You haven’t mentioned whether your dentist has taken an x-ray but surely that is the first thing that should be done to start the process of finding out what is actually going on in your mouth. I’m sorry but anything else would just be guesswork.

Dental bridge and root treatment

admin — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 16:35:42 +0000

I have a dental bridge on the upper left of my mouth. It is attached to tooth 4 and 6 to fill the gap left after extraction of number 5. I now have a problem with tooth 6 which requires root treatment. My dentist has given me two choices:

1) Try to do RCT through the crown of tooth 6 leaving my bridge intact apart from drilling, or

2) cut the bridge in front of tooth six, complete RCT and replace the crown leaving me with a crown on a free standing tooth 6 and in effect a cantiliver bridge to replace five which is attached to crown on tooth 4.

I am confused as to what to do because I have no idea what is the best thing. I am concerned that the cantiliver will make tooth 4 crack but want to do the best thing to make sure the RCT is successful.

Any advice?

ANSWER

Cantilever bridge … hmmm. A cantilever bridge is supported/attached at one end only and this puts a lot of stress on the supporting tooth. Rarely used and then limited to areas that don’t have much stress during chewing and eating. It would be a bad day indeed if/when the supporting tooth broke.

Root canal treatment is often performed through bridgework/crowns. But … the main thing is … does your dentist have specialist root canal skills? Although more expensive initially it might cost you a lot less in the long run, and you might save your tooth. Root canal treatment if poorly done will be curtains for the “poorly” tooth.

Unhappy with dental treatment several years ago

admin — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 08:02:47 +0000

QUESTION - Unhappy with dental treatment several years ago

The main reason for my question, is whether there is much can be done about a treatment undertaken in 2007 on NHS in England. I am a 25 year old female, and would have been 21 at time of treatment.

In approx Aug/Sept 2007, I was in intolerable agony from pain in one of my lower-right molars. Tried to get emergency appt in the late afternoon/early evening, but could not so had to unfortunately wait until the next day.
When I finally got my appt, I saw a dentist who after performing checks said she could either undertake root canal treatment (which she said was not guaranteed to solve the problem and may make it worse), or have the tooth removed. Because the pain was so unbearable and I was a bit emotional from taking anti-depressants, I found myself almost begging to have the tooth removed.
Dentist removed tooth using numbing method and some sort of plier instrument, had to use a lot of force due to deep roots. As she pulled up with a mighty yank, she managed to knock the tooth above it. As my mouth was numb, I didn’t feel any pain and therefore didn’t think anything of it.
Unfortunately, once the numbness wore off, I realised the tooth had been cracked and it also started to hurt, a lot. So much so, that I had to take action to get this tooth removed too which resulted in me being left with a gap where an upper and lower molar have been removed, with a tooth either side of this gap.
I was concerned about having a gap in my mouth especially where my “chewing teeth” go, but Dentist assured me that I could “survive just fine” without them. As I was in an emotionally dulled state as a result of taking antidepressants (and t to be honest, relieved to be free of pain), I went away on this advice without further comment. (N.B. I am no longer taking this medication)
As time as passed, I have therefore placed more pressure on the left hand side of my mouth (where one of my molars already had quite a big filling present from childhood). Its filling was replaced in early 2011, where a new dentist (at same practice) saw me and expressed concern at the state of the left molar, and the fact that the teeth on the right hand side appear to be “caving in” from the gap being there. Over past few months, I have come to find it difficult to eat any kind of food using the left hand side, and often find a dull aching pain results from any chewing activity. Because there is mainly gum on the right hand side, this can also cause aggravation. Its become evident to me, that I cannot continue to have this gap in my mouth for all the problems its causing.
My new dentist (at same practice) has expressed concern about the gap in my teeth, and has been trying to encourage me to seek getting dental implants fitted, which she advised could possibly cost circa £3,000 for what I need done (money I just don’t have!). I mentioned to her about how the upper one shouldn’t have even been taken away in the first place if it hadn’t been cracked, she told me the best she could advise would for me to look into their complaints procedure.

My question is, is it viable to put in a complaint for something that happened in 2007? And would it be a poor reflection on myself for not approaching them with it sooner?

ANSWER

A useful webpage for you to read is this one from NHS Choices about Complaints: http://www.nhs.uk/choiceintheNHS/Rightsandpledges/complaints/Pages/NHScomplaints.aspx

The webpage says “If you’re not happy with the care or treatment you’ve received or you’ve been refused treatment for a condition, you have the right to complain, have your complaint investigated, and be given a full and prompt reply.”

However it also has a section ”When should I complain?” And the answer is “As soon as possible. Complaints should normally be made within 12 months of the date of the event that you’re complaining about, or as soon as the matter first came to your attention. The time limit can sometimes be extended (so long as it’s still possible to investigate the complaint). An extension might be possible, such as in situations where it would have been difficult for you to complain earlier, for example, when you were grieving or undergoing trauma.”

Colour of veneers

admin — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 19:18:36 +0000

QUESTION

“I have recently had veneers fitted, but i am unhappy with the colour of them. What do i do? Is it too much to ask the dentist to replace them”

ANSWER

It depends. Presumably your dentist discussed the colour of the veneers with you and you agreed with him what you wanted before the work started.

If you have had veneers fitted to all the front teeth so all you can see are the veneers and none of your natural teeth show then I can’t see that the dentist is under any obligation to change them at cost to himself. If on the other hand you have had just a couple of veneers fitted next to your other front teeth and they don’t match the colour of your natural teeth (there is an obvious mismatch) then I think the dentist should change them.

Have you told your dentist you are unhappy?

What do other people think?

Root Canal Treatment needed

admin — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 19:55:03 +0000

QUESTION

“I needed to get root canal done on a tooth at the lower back of my mouth. I didn’t have someone experienced in root canal treating me so she started the treatment which was painful then stopped midway and told me my tooth is too small to treat. I was referred to the hospital to see if they could do it but once again another person not much experienced in root canal (as they both told me) and said to me it is better to get it removed totally.

I now have a tiny bit of tooth left one year later and afraid to brush that side of the mouth because of pain if I touch it but I just had braces removed and was told I should get it treated quickly. I suppose I should get it removed now. I have one more tooth after that one but it is a tiny tooth so I’m worried if I get the other tooth removed it will make the rest of the teeth wobbly before it.

I am looking for a dentist preferably in East London who I could go to under the NHS (but I’d still have to pay). Someone reliable as my local dentist, people review very negatively and I want to go to someone who does good.”