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2nd Molar

  • Thread starter Thread starter raosulli
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raosulli

Junior member
Joined
Dec 11, 2024
Messages
6
Location
London
Hello,
I have had extreme dental phobia since my divorce 10 years ago. Silly old me seems to have displaced all the trauma onto going to the dentist. The long and short of it is that I now have some work to get done...and I have a choice regarding my 2nd upper molar. The perio says that he can do deep cleaning and pocket reduction but he thinks it's very unlikely to save the tooth long term and IF it does I might have lots of sensitivity. The other option is to have it removed and that would leave me with my wisdom tooth and first molar and a gap where the second was. What is the best thing to do in this scenario and how would it be to have that gap if I had the tooth removed?
 
Difficult to give an opinion without examining you, so a few thoughts:
Sensitivity after the perio treatment should be manageable.
A space there isn't a big issue. The third molar might drift a bit more forwards into the gap if you're lucky but if it doesn't it's no big deal.
 
Thanks for your help. Yes, the perio has been a bit cagey about the possibility of saving that 2nd upper molar. I've been reading about super-eruption. Do I need to worry about that on the bottom or not so much with an upper molar. I'm cautious because I eat a mostly plant based diet and so definitely need to be able to chew fiber. Additionally, I have pretty bad TMJ and I'm concerned about throwing my bite out of alignment....

I'm inclined to let him do the perio treatment and see what happens as it seems better to keep the tooth if at all possible (I've never even had a cavity and none of my teeth are wobbling...so it seems crazy that I am even in the position of having a tooth out), I guess? The perio did say there was a risk that it could feel a whole lot worse after the treatment and that it might not be salvagable...

So...it's difficult.
 
I've been reading about super-eruption. Do I need to worry about that on the bottom or not so much with an upper molar.
It's not common with lower teeth.
Additionally, I have pretty bad TMJ and I'm concerned about throwing my bite out of alignment....
Really not likely to be an issue.

What depth of pocket are we talking about here? I assume you've been told?
 
They didn't tell me, oddly. The doctor did say that he would do a deep cleaning but didn't think it was likely to save the tooth as the bone is degraded. That said, the tooth doesn't move.
 
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