Over 55, Can I ask about your teeth?

[PersephoneParlormaid]

Since reaching a certain age I’ve needed 3 crowns, having only had my childhood fillings redone in previous years. And now I’m having 3 monthly cleans (at a cost to me) because I’ve got pockets in my gums apparently. I am good with my teeth I think, but I’m wondering what the future holds. Should I expect to have teeth removed in the future, do you have implants these days rather than bridges and false teeth? It’s not something I’ve thought about before.

i dont know what gum pockets are but i’m thinking it’s where the gum and tooth meet where it can start bleeding when the gum starts to dip and recede with menopause like all skin.

If it is that, ive got issues with it but i go told when my gums bleed “brush more”, so i do. And i use the little Y shape flosser things as well as the interdental brush poky things.

my dentist said there is a big difference so it is actually working and the gums aren't as bad. Before i wasn’t using anything, just brushing wirh an electric toothbrush. I could never get the hang of floss and thought it a waste of time but i was wrong and the plastic flossers have been a game changer for me.

There was one tooth that just wouldn’t stop bleeding and the dentist went round it with the metal tool they use for scraping off crap and it never bled again afterwards! so ive come to the conclusion that if i can get a tooth to stop bleeding it’s perhaps because there’s some detritus under the gum thats upsetting it and messing with the seal but i’m missing it with my floss and brush and the dentist needs called in to do that for me.

so now i get my teeth cleaned six monthly even though i need to pay for that (nhs dentist, scotland does still have them, not as difficult to find one up here though it can take a while to find one - ive changed three times in five years as they weren’t as good as my dentist who retired and im not settling for inexperience and problems).

so you can make a difference with flossing. dont lose heart.

three monthly cleans is a lot. but you just need it so it’s up to you to really get in thete and see if you can make it better or if it’s genetic.

i’d expect once you get on top of this that you will be able to go for cleaning maybe four or six monthly.

I’m just surprised at this sudden 3 month thing when, within the last year, he said that I was good at looking after my teeth. Then I had a new X-ray to check the bone in my jaw. It feels like he said one thing but now we’re doing another.
I suppose I sometimes wonder if there’s a financial aspect when I’m paying for the cleaning.

Pretty bad gum disease here. I have pockets too. Teeth are pretty good, only two fillings. Have started flossing now and using mouth wash, something I never used to do. The bathroom sink used to look like a scene out of Psycho but not too bad now.
I think for me it's more poor oral hygiene and a love of sugar than genetics.

I am 59. 15 dental related appointments just this year.

To those with pockets there is hope. I had been on three monthly hygienist visits for years (and had the deep clean at the start). The endodontist suggested a gum expert last year but my hygienist said that was ott, that she would do a deeper clean on the offending tooth and I must use tepe brushes like fury at every opportunity (well, twice a day). I also found tepe gel. To my surprise, three months later all pockets gone, endo didn't say a word, implant dentist happy, now on 6 months hygienist visits.

In the last 2 years I have lost 4 teeth, two of which had been root filled 10+ years ago and one had had an inlay. Also a molar root filling /crown which might last 5 years if I am lucky.
I have gone down the implant route. Three are done, have been in 3 months, don't feel quite like my own teeth, but work fine. One is in progress.

Dentist says my problems are likely genetic as it's the same places on both sides of my mouth affected and whilst my dental hygiene isn't perfect it isn't that bad.
DB (57) bought up with same routine as me had good teeth for years but is now running into the gum issues too.
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I’ve got a head full of fillings (70s dental treatment too) and I am missing teeth at the back. They are passable as they are straight at the front and you can’t see the missing teeth in my smile line but I have been quoted £12000 by two different dentists to sort them out once and for all. It is worrying as they are not going to get better as I get older.

Similar to a lot of people here as was a 70s child which meant over enthusiastic fillings plus treatment was long, scary and painful (going back out to the waiting room to numb up anyone?) leading to a long fear of dentists

the teeth I have are pretty good tbt but my gums have ti be managed with care due to hereditary gum disease. All my dentists in the last 20 years have talked about how the genetic aspect of gum disease is much better understood. I had severe gum disease leading to some extractions & teeth shifting about. I've had them straightened, have partial denture as bone can't withstand implants and have 3 month hygiene appointments and an exciting range of teepee brushes 😆 I hate scaling more than anything I pay extra to be numbed up over 2 appointments

only thing since i started seeing a hygienist since 2022, or so, after the covid break, my teeth so often seem to need the hygeinist, they dont feel shiny

In 60 I was literally becoming long in the tooth! 😆.
I noticed my teeth were yellowing and although a couple at the front had been slightly crooked they had got worse and the front teeth looking longer, thus is to do with gums shrinking as you get older.
I got invaslign done which included teeth whitening. I was specific about the look i was ai.ing fir. I didnt want a Turkey teeth look.

Part of my treatment sounds gory in parts but it didnt hurt one little bit.
I had some teeth shaved down, I had the gum cut to even up the front teeth. The teeth were lightened , but not overdone so they weren't dazzling but looked nicer.

I feel really happy when I smile for a picture and not self conscious.

Before this my teeth were in quite good nick. I have had regu6dentist trips all my life. Ive had a back molar removed years ago because it cracked and despite a few years if repairs it kept cracking again. I was concerned it would give my face a sunken look on one side but it didnt.

Very little work on teeth as an adult although I have a couple of crowns at the back, related to where fillings were put in on my teens........... I'm 65 and a couple of fillings have had to be replaced in the last decade.

My gums need cinstant maintenance and dentists have been less than complimentary for decades. I see the hygienist every 4 months at £75 a pop.

Due to the drugs I take for my osteoporosos, my rheumatologist referred me to the dental unit before starting a second course of infusions. The dentist there told me I had the healthiest teeth, gums and mouth, they'd seen for a very long time.

Don't know what to think really.

The problem with gum disease is it gives no pain or problems and often the first signs there is a problem is on x rays .

Most hygienists have more than enough work without having to “find” it as over 50% of the population have gum disease.

Undiagnosed and untreated gum disease is the number cause of dental litigation in the U.K. , and you are more likely to be sued as a dentist in the U.K. than anywhere else in the world. .

Very glad you had a check before starting a bisphosphonate as all too often dentists see people after they’ve started treatment needing multiple extractions.

The problem with these drugs for bone health is that an extraction whilst on them can cause a nasty complication which stops the bone healing called osteonecrosis .

Many, many people due to start need multiple extractions because any teeth that look even slightly dubious should be got rid of before treatment and many people have not put the time and effort you have into maintaining their oral health. Well done.

Im nearly 50, have never had a filling, and no gum problems either. 🥴

I’m 55. I had 2 teeth filled/capped as a teen, both as a result of sporting accidents. These deteriorated massively when I had hyperemisis when I was pregnant, both tomes, in my 30s. I’ve been through a whole arsenal of root canals, caps and bridges, and now (50s) just have 3 gaps. I have seen one dentiet about implants, but he thinks my jawbone is too small. I’m toying with whether to pursue this with another dentist, but may just go for a plate.

One filling, which has been redone a couple of times, age 56. Routine dental checks all my life twice per year and some orthodontic treatment.

Twice per day brushing, clean at every dental check and hygienist about 3 times in my life.

Ate loads of sweets as a kid.