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Anyone needs Dental advice - Please post ur problems

Discussion in 'Health Issues' started by hema_gladston, Jun 18, 2008.

  1. priyapraveendvs

    priyapraveendvs Bronze IL'ite

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    wow!! what a great help you are oding...thanks and my problem is my teeths are in yellow... but i m not gaiing white what to do?
     
  2. Drpreethis

    Drpreethis Gold IL'ite

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    Viv ,

    Yes, Amalgam or Silver Fillings do ooze out mercury and is a health hazard. Few advantages of Amalgam fillings being, Long lasting ( which is so true in your case ) and also bears stress enough to biting forces in large cavities.

    In my practice, I have never used Amalgam fillings simply because of this. Danger to the patients in the long run and mercury toxicity to the Dentist as well. Your doctor has said it right. Please remove the mercury filling and replace it with composite or GIC ( Glass Ionomer cement ) and then go for a cap. Do not leave the Amalgam filling beneath the cap !

    Since you have never had problems with the root canal for 10 years, i assume just replacing a filling before crowning the tooth will not be a concern at all. But make sure you replace the filling and tell the doctor to not disrupt the root canal..

    I shall tell you why I ask you to replace the amalgam filling.. Since you have it for this long.. there could be minor tooth cracks in this particular tooth ( another disadvantage of Amalgam fillings ) which could possibly crack your already weak tooth when the tooth cutting is done before placing the cap. Your root canal will fail then. Instead replace the filling for the time being and after a month you could get the cap done..

    All this, if you are not pregnant already ! During pregnancy it is not wise to trim the silver filling since that could ooze mercury too.

    Take care.. :)
     
  3. Drpreethis

    Drpreethis Gold IL'ite

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    Priya ,

    Unless the yellowish teeth is not due to abrasion ( wrong brushing ) or due to some tabs it can be made white by bleaching. You need to show a Dentist first to check the severity of discolouration.. The Dentist could guide you as to wether a home bleach or proffessional bleach best suits you..

    My personal advice - If the colour of your teeth goes well with the complexion of your face, do not try making it white. All of a sudden your teeth will draw all the undue attention which may not look so good... Instead have a healthy and strong teeth !! :thumbsup
     
  4. vivbass

    vivbass Gold IL'ite

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    oh thank you so much:bowdown:bowdown i never knew this before,now i should tell this to all my relatives & friends.
    Not only in that rootcanal treated tooth is filled with silver,i have 4-5 teeth also filled with silver which are affected by cavities...noone told me this before.(dental DRs). almost 4 DRs i have met..:spin
    so very soon i have to replace all the silver fillings....

    Also one more thing,right from which age we should be more careful to take care of teeth???? almost all my teeth are gone:bonk
    thank you once again...
     
  5. Drpreethis

    Drpreethis Gold IL'ite

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    Viv,

    These are recent studies.. though it was going on for quite sometime.. not all Dentists follow it.. Old practioners still dont.. :)

    Longivity of Amalgam filling is undisputable.. hence the prevelance..

    You must start to take care of your teeth since the first time you spot one in your mouth !! :) That is from childood.. Also, if pregnant ladies could have a vitamin and calcium rich diet from their first trimester by itself will be a great favour for their kids ..
     
  6. amar_priya

    amar_priya Senior IL'ite

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    Hi Dr.Preethis,

    I read your replies on root canal treatment, still have some queries, please help.

    My mother had pain in her pre-molar. We went to dentist today. My mom has medical complications(has undergone 2 operations in kidney). We explained this to doctor. The doctor who operated her earlier is always cautious about the medicine he prescribes for my mom, he insists mild dosage. Not sure if it relevant for root canal treatment. But still told the dentist to be on safer side.

    After checking the teeth, she suggested for root canal treatment. Today she removed the decay, tomorrow she said she will do cleaning, then filling and take measurement for cap. Fixing cap will be done next week. Cap cost is Rs.4000. She said she wont use metal ones for pre-molar.

    I read in your reply filling should be either composite or GIC ( Glass Ionomer cement ). I will check that tomorrow with her. Please let me know if I need to enquire anything specific about cap.

    Also if the other tooth have decay will the same procedure be repeated? (Current procedure is costing around 6000) I have requested dentist to check the other tooth as well tomorrow. In what cases removal of teeth is done?

    What I have been thinking is, if all tooth has to be removed(my mom feels other tooth will have problems too) and replaced, is it really worth spending 6000 now? I think now I have no choice to avoid filling. Can we postpone placing of cap? Please suggest.

    Thanks,
    Priya
     
  7. Drpreethis

    Drpreethis Gold IL'ite

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    Priya ,

    Antibiotics and pain killers are relevant only when there is pain in the tooth . If it is straight away a RCT with no tablets involved you have nothing to worry about your mom's previous medical history.

    They dont use metal cap for a premolar because of esthetic reasons.

    Usually a silver filling is used in a wide cavity.. Sometimes the decay by itself could have been wide and the removal of which would leave a wide cavity obviously OR during the procedure, the removal of decay and for accessibility the Dentist would be required to remove a larger portion of the tooth. This again would result in a wide cavity. ONLY in such cases would an Amalgam / Silver filling be put. Few Dentists also go in for composites.. But all depends on how big or small the cavity is. By cavity I dont mean decay.. it refers to the space / cup created ' after ' removal of decay.

    But practically speaking a composite being an expensive material it is neednt be put under the cap as a post-rc-filling. I used to use something called a ' Miracle Mix ' for wide cavities.. which is a mix of GIC and silver powder.. minus the mercury. This mix is combination of GIC and the powder aspect of an amalgam filling since silver particles help in longivity and strength.. and since we havent used the mercury, it is safe to toxicity.

    A GIC doesnt stand good in wide cavities.. So do not insist on GIC, you could simply ask your Dentist to avoid Amalgam filling or anything to do with mercury ! :)

    If the other teeth has decay, it neednt necesarily require an RCT unless you let it go that far. By this I mean, when a decay is in the intial stages restricting to enamel then a simple filling will do. If the decay has started to give sensitivity it means it has reached the Dentin and needs a protection for the deeper structure ( pulp ) and a filling. If there is pain , then it means the decay has reached deep to the pul ( which has nerves and veins ) and now it needs to go for an RCT.. to protect the tooth to stand uprught and support the rest of the teeth !

    So, depends on where the rest of the decay stands for your mommy.

    Also, if the tooth is beyond repair like
    - lost bone support
    - the gums are flamed up which leads to mobility of tooth
    - all the sides of the crown ( biting portion ) is lost due to decay and with age and health the bone support seems to be low too

    then, a tooth would be removed.

    If your dentist suggests simple fillings to everything and also tells you here gum and bone condition are good enough.. then you could go ahead with the fillings.. :) No worries.

    Postponement of cap is possible for atleast a month ONLY if lotts of extra care can be taken not to spoil the filling. No Dentist would take the risk of failed RCT because of delay in covering it up ! I had a patient who had broken her molar respite me asking her to go for a cap soon after RCT.. she hasd bit on a biscuit which had a stone in it ! The tooth broke into two halves and I had to remove it.. She finaly landed up spending for three teeth ( a bridge ) when she could have finished with one. The thing is, an RCT done tooth is dead and has no strength in it.. Hence fragile.

    Also, even if there is a small crack on the filling food / liquid can seep into the tooth and cause the RCT to fail with secondary decay..

    I know it is expensive.. what I would suggest is, take a call after all the decayed in concern are noted. If they are simple filings then get those done and till then, postpone cap.

    If you could get back on the details of decay and number of teeth involved alongwith the treatment plan your Dentist gives for those teeth.. I could probably help your more on planning the treatment.. :)

    Hope this helps.. Take care..
     
  8. amar_priya

    amar_priya Senior IL'ite

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    Dear Preethi,

    Thanks so much for the details, it really helps. I truly appreciate it. I was expecting your answer before I could meet dentist tomorrow. I will get back to you with all details.

    Thanks a ton,
    Priya
     
  9. Sri2007

    Sri2007 New IL'ite

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    Dear Preethi,

    During my last dental visit, my dentist told that I might have gum diesease (Gingivitis?) and they said I need to do a full checkup. I went for another check and they measured the dictance btwn the root of my teeth and the top to find out where all the disease. They have found that my upper left and lower right parts have this disease .
    Now as a treatment they have suggested a scaling (to clean the pockets) and apply an antibiotic (forgot the name) on each pocket which will last for 3-4 months.
    My dental insurance only covers 80% for scaling. So I have to pay the 20% + deductible. It doesnt cover the antibiotics (which is very expensive -30$ per antibiotics and my dentist says I might need 10?).
    I am not sure whether I should go for scaling & antibiotic treatment.Is this common?
    If I do it now, after sometime do I have to do the same procedure again?? I read somewhere that the scaling has to be done once every 4-6 months.
    Please advise.

    Thanks
    Sri
     
  10. vathsala30

    vathsala30 Platinum IL'ite

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    hi hema

    hats off to your humble service. pl help me out in my problem also. my gums are swelling and 2 teeth are loose. once in a week i do oil pulling with warm sesame oil and brush my teeth 2times a day. every day i use dental floss also. still gums r swelling. any home remedy please. bye


    vathsala
     

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