Help newbie with dental fear and horrible teeth issue

[Ridgeway]

Hi,

I guess I'm a pretty good advert for why you should take of your teeth, in my case I haven't done enough and am now suffering the consequences.... trust me my kids will have good, well cared for teeth.

So probably like many on this forum I developed a dental fear at an early age in the UK in the days when it was common to fill anything that moved in a dental surgery and also to which I believe in the 70's that dentists got well paid for ? Anyway I don't trust people in white coats with power tools to the extent that I often grab the dentists hands and stop the treatment as I just can't tolerate it, this is perhaps exaggerated by the fact that I'm usually there with a tooth ache and hence my mouth is sore and sensitive etc.

Around 15yrs ago I had 8 x root canal treatments and also 2 crowns, this was over a 6 months period and since all has been sort of ok with only the occasional absess however I've just been to the dentist as I clearly have a very painful absess and it seems I have 5 absess, need 4 teeth removing, 8 new root canals and 4 or 5 crowns.....

Now I know I'm going to get a "if they are worth saving then save them" comment but at which point do you decide if they are actually worth saving ???

Another complication is that I would have to have this done under a general rather than local as I'm just not willing to indure that much pain in one hit, so a general for the big part and then some finishing off.

But should I consider to replace the entire upper and lower with dentures ?

FYI: I'm an otherwise heatlthy and active 45yr old man

 

[Torrentula81]

"but at which point do you decide if they are actually worth saving?"

I wish the internet had a chart that somehow accurately gave us an idea of life expectancy for our teeth. I told my dentist if my teeth are likely to fall out in 5 years then lets get this over with and pull them. If not I'll do partials but can't afford to throwing good money into bad. I get it's highly situation from one person to the next but with billions of people getting dental work done isn't there some sort of chart based on statistics laying around? Consumers need a way gauging how far is too far. I had to hope I was lucky enough to have an honest dentist looking out for well being more then their wallet. I felt unequipped to make the right choice and my dentist starts telling me story that revolved around a best case scenario like it was suppose help me out. After hearing the story I said "I'd rather deal with statistics". In the end I'm getting partials and feel good about this choice.

I know this doesn't go into specifics about like root canals and that is because we are approaching from two different angles. I chose to have 2 teeth removed because they needed root canals but that didn't impact the end result of me getting partials vs dentures either way. It feels nearly like a deciding factor in you're case of keeping what you have vs dentures. The reasons of why I chose to not have a root canal are not the whole picture of what you have to consider. So don't take what I say as a suggestion one way or the other, rather just a piece of the puzzle.

What was going on in my mind when thinking about root canals was

Can afford this? What about in the future like replacing crowns? I was concerned with success rates and how long they would last but my dentist had health upkeep in mind which is the right mind set to have. She asked how would oral hygiene be an issue. After thinking a bit I said "honestly, probably but I've brushed and flossed every day since we've started (a month or so)". I had to look at my past and give a realistic guestimate. Thankfully doing good in that area but had I not and got the root canals, well that is a waste of money, time, and health issues like abscesses. Never have had one and didn't care start. I chose to pass on root canals because it felt like the right call for me. I am not posting any of this to suggest you should do the same. Just posting my experience on trying to make the right choice without having the life experience to do so.

 

[Dr. Daniel]

Hi,

Torrentula81 suggestion would have been very nice, but I don't think it is possible. There are so many valuables and considerations in the decision whether it is worth while to save a tooth: financial costs, treatment duration, how the patient cleans his teeth, the dentist's skills...

The patient might find this overflow of information and considerations to be confusing and can't really make a decision with which he/she feels comfortable with. I think there are three elements that can help in these situation:

1) Ask dental questions and try to understand the situation. A cavity is visible on the x rays or in the mouth. The enlist can use images from the web to explain the dental terms. The explanation should be clear to you. If it is too complicated, go and have a second opinion by a dentist that can explain better.

2) Here comes the part about trust and the relationship with your dentist: in terms of uncertainty you rely on the reccomendation of the "expert". If there is not enough trust and confidence, it would be very difficult for you to go through any procedure. For me as a dentist it's the most important one.

3) it is very helpful to clarify what do you want as a patient. What is more important for you: for some people the financial aspect is the most crucial one, for others it is the need for certainty and not taking any risks with future problems. Others would want to do as little as possible (conservative approach) others can't bare the thought of having infections in their mouth.

Hope it makes some sense

 

[Ridgeway]

Thanks for the input on this, it's very much appreciated.

Certainly cost is a factor but it's not the only one as I'm not sure how long I can keep going with 2 x 400mg of Ibuprofen a day.....

Sorry to write this but from my personal experience I have little to no trust in any dentist, not really sure why but I guess I've had too many bad experiences and I must be a bit of a wuss.

I've set a date for the current dentist to explain the work to me but I can already guess it will be around £5-6k and months of visits, fear and dread etc, just can't see me going down that route.

My wife reminded me that last year she had a tooth removed after a route canal treatment failed, so it was extracted after spending approx £750 on it..... can't Imagine I'd get a warranty on my teeth if I spent that much on them.

 

[Dr. Daniel]

Your new dentist will certainly have to work hard to gain your trust.
I do suggest you share with him/her your mistrust. It will only help with establishing a good relationship.