Archives for March 2024

Root Canal Problem

Posted on March 29, 2024 by writeradmin.

I was overseas for a work conference when I broke part of a front tooth. A dentist there did an emergency root canal treatment and put a filling over the area. When I got home, my dentist checked the work out and said that everything looked okay and put a crown on it. For quite some time, everything was fine. A couple of years later, the tooth started to bother me. My dentist did an x-ray, but said he couldn’t see anything wrong with it. His suspicion was that I was putting pressure on the tooth by clenching my teeth. Now it is sensitive to both hot and cold and I’m finding it difficult to concentrate through the pain. Plus, now there is a pimple on the tooth of the gum next to the one that had the root canal. If it were me clenching my teeth, wouldn’t more than one tooth hurt? I’m worried if something isn’t done I may end up losing my tooth. Do you have any suggestions?

Mason

Dear Mason,

I am not sure why your dentist is finding this so hard to diagnose. When you had the root canal treatment, the nerve was removed so there would be no sensitivity to hot or cold unless the root canal treatment failed or was never done. A front tooth doesn’t have any extra canals, so it is highly unlikely it failed. Your dentist at home looked at it and said it looked fine, so that tells me it was done.

You had severe trauma to your teeth, so I would not be surprised if the adjacent tooth did not suffer some damage. Your dentist would not see anything on the x-ray if the pulp of the tooth was inflamed. In fact, there may not be anything noticeable until an infection set in. Having sensitivity to hot and cold along with the abscess you described (the pimple on the gums), that tells me that you now have an infected tooth.

There have been occasions when a traumatized tooth was fine for years and then suddenly acted up. I would go back to your dentist and tell him that you have an infected tooth that needs to be treated. If he won’t fit you in quickly, look for an emergency dentist. These are dentists that leave room in their daily schedule for appointments for people with an urgent dental need.

This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.
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Help with a Failed Dental Implants

Posted on March 23, 2024 by writeradmin.

I broke a tooth and my dentist felt it couldn’t be saved. He extracted the tooth right then. It was a horrible appointment and the pain felt like it passed through my brain. Ever since then, the whole inside of my mouth has been burning. He’s blown that off, but every appointment I have had with him has been excruciating. After my third complaint, he finally said I had thrush and gave me a prescription. That hasn’t helped at all. Three months later, I still had an issue and it was time to place the implant crown. He had the darndest time screwing it on. He had to press pretty hard and ended up giving me a Novacaine shot because I was crying. A couple of months later, while I was on vacation, the dental crown fell off. I saw a dentist and also mentioned the burning. He felt the burning was from burning mouth syndrome. He also said the dental implant was infected and needed to come out. I don’t know that I trust my dentist and I don’t know what to do. Should I sue him and get a new implant or just sue him and get a dental bridge? I’ve spent a fortune on this and have had nothing but agony to show for it.

Elaine

Dear Elaine,

While I can understand you not trusting your dentist after the treatment you received, I would recommend asking for a refund before going for a lawsuit. He may be amenable to refunding your money. If he isn’t, you can threaten to go the dental board or leave a bad review. That may sober him up. If that doesn’t work, you can try for a malpractice suit, but you will need another dentist on your side. You should also be aware that dental malpractice suits are tricky.

While I do not necessarily have confidence in your dentist either, after all he completely blew the thrush diagnosis. I do think your vacationing dentist was correct about the burning mouth syndrome. You had a traumatic dental appointment and that is one of the major connections of burning mouth syndrome.

However, before you have the implant removed, I’d like you to get a second opinion. It could be as simple as having a loose dental crown. While that still does not speak well about your dentist, I would not want to have an unnecessary surgery for it. Your vacationing dentist said that the dental implant was infected, but you did not mention anything about pain or a fever, which makes me question that diagnosis.

See where your dental implant actually stands before doing anything drastic. This may still be salvageable. If it isn’t then I recommend going to a an implant dentist who has more expertise. It is a better tooth replacement option than a dental bridge.

One last thing, while you are looking for a new dentist I recommend you get a sedation dentist. You’ve had several traumatic dental appointments and having some dental sedation will give you a relaxing, pain-free appointment.

This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

Pain During Teeth Whitening

Posted on March 11, 2024 by writeradmin.

I started teeth whitening a couple of weeks ago. Everything was going fine until a couple of days ago when I started having this “zing.” It kind of debilitates me for a couple of seconds. I believe the source as some old dental bonding I had done on that tooth. The bonding is about 9 years old. Does this pain mean that the teeth whitening is dissolving the bonding? If not, does that mean that the dental bonding is ending its lifecycle?

Ginny

Dear Ginny,

Tooth bleaching trays

I am sorry that you have been having pain with your teeth whitening. I do not believe that the bleaching is weakening the bonding agent. There has been no evidence of whitening products damaging any tooth bonding. Plus, if it had, then it would just cause the bonding to fall off instead of zinging you.

This sounds like the type of pain that happens when you have a sensitive part of the tooth. Maybe there is a damaged part of your bonding that his allowing the bleaching to reach it. I am assuming you are under the care of a dentist while you are having your teeth whitening done. I recommend going to see your dentist and letting him know what is going on.

He or she will be able to pinpoint the exact cause of the pain. If my guess is right and it is a sensitive spot, your dentist can place a coating on it that will allow you to whiten your teeth. I would not whiten until you see your dentist because you want to be certain of the exact problem. Plus, I doubt you really want the pain that you have been experiencing.

This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.
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Can a Metal Post Be Removed from a Tooth?

Posted on March 6, 2024 by writeradmin.

My dentist put a stainless steel post in my tooth with a root canal treatment and I really want it out and replaced with a zirconia one. I am not crazy about the idea of metal being in there, especially because I have some metal sensitivities. He said he doesn’t do the zirconia posts and that it is encased and I’m overreacting. I’ll admit that annoyed me. I’m just trying to figure out if it can be replaced before I try to find a new dentist. I currently have the temporary crown and the permanent one is coming in soon. I’d like to exchange this before that.

Caroline

Dear Caroline,

I’m surprised your dentist is still using a stainless steel post. Pre 1980s, the dental post of choice was stainless steel. However, in the 80s, we discovered that the metal ions in the post would leach through the tooth and into the bloodstream. Because stainless steel contains nickel, which many people have sensitivities to, this was concerning. It was around that time dentists switched to using titanium, which is the most biocompatible metal around. It’s been used for decades in prosthetics all over the human body. In the 1990s both carbon fiber and fiberglass were introduced. Now we also have the option of zirconia. Your dentist is decades behind in his treatment procedures so I do not think this is the best dentist for you.

These dental posts can be tricky to remove. It could possibly be removed with an ultrasonic tip, but there are risks that you should be aware of, including perforating the roots. If you believe you are having a reaction to this, then yes, you should exchange it for a different type of post. I would not trust your dentist to do this. He’s so behind in the field that I feel it is too risky to have him do it. I would recommend you see a root canal specialist.

Don’t allow your dentist to place the permanent dental crown. That will make it much more challenging to remove the post. Because of your metal sensitivities, if you do decide to look for a new family dentist, I am going to recommend you see one who has a more holistic approach to dental care. They’ll be more willing to tailor the treatments for your body’s requirements.

This blog is brought to you by Portage Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.