Gum Disease Problems

[fizser]

Hi I have been a lurker for a while and have now decided after reading through what lots of you have been through to pluck up the courage and post.

I have always hated the dentist, I feel terrified every time I think about and get so worked up about it, however the last 11 years or so I have been going every 6 months or so. My dentist is lovely and knows I am a big wimp. I go to the hygienist every 3 months as my gums are quite bad and have deep pockets, I usually have a deep clean. I try my best to keep on top but I feel it is a losing battle, they do not seem much better.

I had root canal treatment on a tooth which i chipped as a child ( front ) this was 3 years ago but now the numbness is back and I am sure I will have to have it removed. On my last visit to the hygienist I mentioned this and she thought it was probably just where I had not been able to reach with the toothbrush and was a bit infected, there was no pus noticed.

I have also a gap in my front teeth and also spaces inbetween alot of the tops so I am not happy with the look of them anyway, I have got to the point where I really am depressed about them altogether and had suggested to my hygienist about going private and having them bridged, etc to make them look nice, she says whilst the gums are not sorted it would be a waste of money as they would possibly shift and leave gaps in time. She said see how things are in Feb when I go back to see if the gums better.

I will see what they say in Feb ( hopefully the numbness in front tooth will have gone) just wanted to see if anyone had similar situation and how they got on.

Sorry for the rambling on.

 

[brit]

Hi fitzer


It sounds like you are with a UK NHS dentist there. It is good to hear you are getting 3m cleaning from a hygienist as the NHS no longer covers even a basic clean in Band 1 unless the dentist deems it 'necessary'. If you see no progress (are you flossing daily yourself?) it would be prudent to ask to be referred to a private periodontist(gum specialist) (if no NHS options - usually few and far between for dental specialists apart from oral surgeons) for perio treatment.
If you are not being numbed up for your 3m visits to the hygienist, then it is unlikely you are having a proper deep clean which is what a perio would be expected to try first.

You do need to stabilise the position re your gums before it is worth doing anything else as dental work done on shaky foundations will not last. Unethical dentists will do it though!

Once your gums are better (after perio treatment say) you could maybe look at orthodontics braces) to fix the gaps. That is usually the best solution. Bridges affect the two teeth on either side and so are best avoided.

The root canalled tooth could be re-treated by an endodontist(specialist for root canals) and maybe savable in that way or you could go extraction and implant(again not available on NHS dental).

Best wishes.

 

[fizser]

Thankyou for your reply, the hygienist I have has measured the last 3 visits with the deep cleans. I have an electric toothbrush which I use 3 times ago and I floss twice a day using a mouthwash also.

They say I am doing the right things but unfortunately I have bad gums. I feel so low and down and terrified about what will happen, finding this forum has helped tremendously, reading through other peoples experiences has given me the push I needed to try and get things sorted.

I will re post after my next visit, hopefully feeling more positive .