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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Dentist wants to remove a tooth but I have no toothache

18 replies

karenbennett18 · 13/06/2017 17:55

Hi, I'm just wondering what would other people do. I have been to the dentist today and she took an x-ray and said that my back molar has some decay under the gum! I have no toothache whatsoever and she says she can take it out and the wisdom tooth coming through will take up some of the gap. I don't know if to leave it until I get pain or have it removed sooner rather than later? I am inclined to have the tooth out in a few weeks but ? I've not had a tooth out before but not too bothered about that it's the shock of her wanting to take a tooth out that I thought was ok ? What do you think?

OP posts:
Kokusai · 13/06/2017 17:56

Modern dentists are pretty loath to remove teeth generally if they can be saved.

I'd get a second opinion privately TBH.

Awwlookatmybabyspider · 13/06/2017 18:02

You might not have toothache yet, but. If there's the beginings of decay. I'm afraid toothache is something youve probaly got to look forward to.
If they dont remove or fix the tooth now.
If you don't want abstraction. Talk to the dentist about other options. Hopefully it can be saved.
The dentist might know at thus early stage that the tooth cant be saved.

Ninabean17 · 13/06/2017 18:09

One of my wisdom teeth had to come out (didn't hurt, no rotting etc but was angled so weirdly I couldn't eat without hurting the side of my cheek) anyway I left the appointment without booking another and later that day it CAME OUT when I was eating a snickers bar. Again, no pain. Just came out. Weird.

Lweji · 13/06/2017 18:13

It's a good idea to get a second opinion, but surely it's better to extract before you get an absess.
And if you do have a wisdom tooth ready to replace it, then great. If you leave it longer both could become damaged.
But do talk to a professional about your options.

MissionItsPossible · 13/06/2017 18:19

Get a second opinion. It may sound dramatic but that case recently with all those poor women and that man that were advised by that sick doctor they had breast cancer and had to have operations on them. I'm not saying that's what's happening here and it most likely isn't but I'm just highlighting that if you feel in your gut that you feel fine, then putting your trust 100% in the hands of professionals is not always right.

Original poster
karenbennett18 · 13/06/2017 19:12

Thanks everyone for your comments. I think I will ask for a second opinion just to make sure. Since my old dentist left we keep having replacements and this is only the third time I have seen this dentist. There are other dentists at the practice so I shall ask one of them 😃

OP posts:
peachgreen · 13/06/2017 19:58

If an infection has killed the nerve it won't hurt. But worth getting a second opinion for peace of mind.

WithCheesePlease · 13/06/2017 20:01

I think you can have decay and not feel any pain... I went to the dentist for a check up (had no pain at all), and she said I needed 4 fillings due to bad decay.. 4!? I was baffled as I had no pain, but anyway I figured better safe than sorry and got a second opinion and it was the same

Foxyloxy1plus1 · 13/06/2017 20:57

Surely the x ray would show that there was a problem? I had exactly the same yesterday. I could see the infection on the x ray and although it isn't painful at the moment, who knows when it will be.

robinia · 13/06/2017 23:17

I was told 20 years ago that all my wisdom teeth should come out as some had decay and others were at angles.
They're all still there Grin

glitterglitters · 13/06/2017 23:21

I'd be row concerned about the decay below it becoming abscessed. This would fill the gum and the jaw with fluid and cause a horrendous amount of pain (trust me, I'd rather give birth three times then have a dental abscess again). I would however get a second opinion in the meantime. If it gets abscessed the fluid can destroy the bone as well on extreme cases and can weaken your jaw and even cause sepsis and heart issues!

glitterglitters · 13/06/2017 23:21

*more

DrinkReprehensibly · 13/06/2017 23:23

My dentist (at the time) told me I needed a root canal because severe pain was imminent. I opted not to because I had no pain. That was 2003...no pain yet !

Get a second opinion!

Original poster
karenbennett18 · 14/06/2017 02:18

Thank you so much everyone 😃 I think having a second opinion is definitely the way to go. I'll give them a call tomorrow and see if I can get one of the dentists who has been there a while to take a look at the x-ray and give me his opinion 😬

OP posts:
Funnyface1 · 14/06/2017 07:56

I had a dentist want to take out one of my wisdom teeth over 10 years ago. I had no pain or problems but dentist was adamant I was about to have a world of trouble.

I just didn't trust it and after looking into wisdom tooth extraction and seeing that it's not a small job and some people have a lot of suffering with it, I declined.

It's always been fine and no other dentists have said it needs to go.

Mulledwine1 · 14/06/2017 08:19

Years ago (about 20) I went to a dentist and she asked me if I was a chocaholic. The reason: she said every tooth had decay in it.

I've had one new (very small, surface) filling since then. Any other work has been where teeth have broken up around old fillings, fillings have fallen out, I've chipped teeth etc.

I know decay can right itself, but in every tooth?

I think you are right to get a second opinion.

I once did and got the same response (I had an abscess in a tooth that had previously been filled, root canal was unlikely to work, get the tooth taken out) so I went with it. But at least if it's confirmed you'll know it's not someone who's either trying to get work or is just not very good.

Original poster
karenbennett18 · 18/06/2017 08:39

Thanks again everyone 😘 I think I just needed confirmation that I had done the right thing by not saying yes to the tooth out straight away xx

OP posts:
ARumWithAView · 18/06/2017 09:10

If possible, get a referral to an oral surgeon for your second opinion.

My dentist told me one of my back molars needed to be extracted: on the surface it was fine, but the x-ray suggested the inner part was significantly decayed. He referred me to an oral surgeon at a different practice (NHS).

I had to wait a few months, but when I did go for the extraction, they ended up not doing it at all. The new practice had much better x-ray equipment (the scary kind where you stand very still with your head in a kind of shell and the x-ray whatsit moves around you) and the surgeon was not fully convinced that there was any decay inside the tooth; he saw the original x-rays and recognised what had given my dentist that impression, but his own x-rays just didn't back that up and he was reluctant to extract. So I was glad I hadn't had it pulled at first diagnosis!

That was a few years ago and the tooth is still fine: no pain, no sign of decay on the surface or gum infection. (I know it's going to fall out into my cornflakes now I've typed that.)

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