Dentures, a partial, a flipper... now what?

[iamasylum5280]

I never had single cavity until I was 21, but by 27, I had two teeth on the visible side of smile that were severely lose. I never really went to the dentist, but did when I discovered these. He said that I had bone loss and that they had to come out. He never referred me to a periodontist, or discussed WHY these teeth were lose. At the time, I was pretty broke and the most economical option for me would be a flipper. It's now been over 5 years and sure enough, I have other lose teeth. About 6 months ago, I decided to go to a periodontist per the recommendation of the dentist I had been seeing every 6 months for cleanings. The periodontist said I had gum disease and need two deep cleanings at which time he would assess what needed to be done in order to save my existing teeth, (btw, I still have the 5 year old flipper, that needs to be replaced asap). I had the cleaning and when he re-assessed the situation, nothing had changed at all. He recommended another treatment that AFTER decent health insurance would still be $4900 each side of my mouth, almost 10 grand said and done and he made no guarantee of the effectiveness of having this done or how long it would last. This is not a feasible option for me. I can't afford it, and don't want to go more in debt just to have the same result.

I now have 2 teeth lose on the bottom and 1 on the top, including 2 that are visibly missing on top, (these are what my flipper are for), and 2 in the back on the bottom that aren't visible. . My question would be, what should I do and where should I go? I feel like the periodontist doesn't want to see me unless I get the expensive procedure and my regular dentist, (a comfort dental) doesn't really know what to do either. Do I get the lose teeth extracted, or all of them and get dentures? Would I be able to get a partial on the top and the bottom? Do I make an appointment at dentures place? I'm a person with teeth problems, but don't know who can help me since I'm kind of in a 'grey area'.

 

[carole]

Hi to the forum.

I am sorry I am not a dentist and cannot advise you on the best thing to do. The only thing I will say is to get a second and even a third opinion.

There are dentists that come on here and I am sure they will add an opinion if they can on your situation. Good luck

 

[rob wain]

Hi
If you are getting loose teeth and advanced gum disease at such a young age then it suggests that you are very vulnerable to gum disease. This may be due to your genes (which is not your fault) and made worse by infrequent dentist visits especially if you're a smoker.
If you are vulnerable to gum disease then you require specialist help and the treatment will be ongoing for life. The alternative will be dentures or implants but these will present their own problems and costs.
I suggest you need to discuss your lifetime treatment needs and the prognosis (chances of succcess) of the proposed treatment with the gum specialist. Asking him which teeth you will still have in 5 years or ten years will help you get things into perspective.
Difficult decisions lie ahead so get good advice.
Best of luck