Cosmetic Dentistry £8k. Should I get a 2nd opinion?

[Goldengoosey]

Hello. I’ve been wanting to improve my smile for a couple of years now, probably since I have had to stare at myself all day on MS Teams! 😁

Crown looking a bit tired, not quite matching my teeth anymore. Couple small chips on two teeth. Would like them whiter. Anyway I went to private dentist today for a consultation. Waited 3 months for appointment. I got an x-ray which he said showed I needed extensive work before any cosmetic work - 3 molar root treatments. Needed to be referred elsewhere for that. He said I had an abcess on one tooth. Some decay under fillings and disease.

I was a bit shocked at this as pre-pandemic I attended dentist routinely and hygienist. Also I have no pain whatsoever. I was really just wanting them to look whiter and better. He said that my teeth actually looked much better than the story the x-ray told.

The treatment will cost is £8000. I know! Includes 6 zirconia crowns on upper front teeth, moulds for teeth bleaching lower and £2500 of this is for the molar root treatments.

I don’t know what to do for the best. I was anticipating it to be expensive and have been saving but not that much. But I wasn’t anticipating the other work required. I thought my teeth were in pretty good nick. I know like everyone I haven’t been to the dentist or hygienist during the pandemic but it seems a lot of problems suddenly for someone who has routinely went to the dentist.

I’m worried that these zirconia crowns won’t look good as I’ve read a bit on them saying not as shiny as real teeth or porcelain crowns. I’m worried that this is a lot of my front teeth getting ground down to wee pointy things. Is that a mistake and something I would regret? I should say my teeth are very straight and nice shape. One about two in from front has a small chip. One front crown which I have had for over 30 years following an accident. In that time the crown has been replaced a few times. I mostly wanted them a bit whiter, my crown replaced and the chipped tooth sorted. I had thought composite veneers as they seem to be a bit less evasive but he said they were not suitable.

So would it be unreasonable to get a second opinion? This will likely take another 3 months as dentists are super busy and obviously I’d have to pay for this again too.

I want to make an informed choice before 1/ I splash a lot of cash and 2/ before I do something so radical to my teeth. I keep thinking of Katie Prices wee pointy teeth!

Should I trust him and go for it. From what I can see from my research. Well established dentist with testimonials. He was v professional and friendly but I’m just not sure. Or do as my mum says - nothing as there is nothing the matter with my teeth. Help! 😁

@Neverreturntoathread thats rubbish. I need to think about this carefully.

this is interesting as I’m having the same and I always had regular appointments seemingly with no problems before

Hello. I was a dentist for nearly 30 years. I now do IV sedation full time for dental procedures. I do sedation for two people who are specialists in root canal. I used to do root canals on my patients. However, when I see the skill that a specialist has in root canal , it blows me away. So I can totally see where the extra money goes in paying for a specialist. A root canal is a very technique sensitive thing . Done poorly or even moderately well, there is a high chance of failure. failure can be 1 year later or 5 or 10 years later. There are some general dentists who are very good at root canal and do some great work , however some are just avarage at it. So if you can afford to pay the extra, its money well spent. Do budget for the fact that any tooth that has had. root canal, will need a crown on it pretty soon after. they are weaker after root canal and can break.
Make sure that you aren't trying to be heroic and save really decayed teeth with root canal and crowns. Sometimes its better to extract if very decayed.
Its perfectly reasonable to request a further chat with your dentist , saying that you wish to have less invasive treatment on your front teeth and would like to discuss. For what its worth, I wouldn't have front teeth fit;ed down for crowns if I wasn't deeply unhappy with appearance. Removal of tooth tissue is permanent and the tooth will be forever weaker.
are you happy with the dentist you saw? Dentists that are good at cosmetic work tend to take pictures of their cases. They are proud of their work. Ask if they have cases they can show you.
Happy to answer any questions! I am a conservative ex dentist

@pooonastick thank you so much for taking the time to explain this to me. The cost is now a secondary issue. I just don’t want to go for 6 crowns and then regret it.

I keep coming back to my expectation that the dentist would have explained a couple of options to me. He didn’t.no photos either apart from a few on his website. Also no advice that the root treated teeth would then have to be crowned. At this rate I could end up with 10 crowns in my mouth. That seems excessive for someone who’s teeth don’t look too bad.

I’m now considering contacting my previous dentist as I did trust her and she did my crown on front tooth I’m guessing about 6-8 years ago. It might be longer. I really can’t remember. It was a great fit and at the time along with bleach of the rest of my teeth it was a great colour match. I saw her regularly up until I moved just before pandemic. It’s a bit of a trek but I’m thinking it might be better to just do an overnight in a hotel and get assessed and treated by her.

im so glad I came on here and shared my concerns. It’s really helping me decide what best to do and that my reservations are well founded.

If you can...get to Kingston park surgery in newcastle....excellent team of husband and wife also teach at dentistry schools...several friends went there...totally honest practice and work.

Op where in Scotland are you? Scottish dentist here. I'd say that's pretty pricey. Absolutely no idea if it's potential over treating as without a proper exam or radiographs no one can tell.
Let me know where you are and I might be able to recommend some practices worth seeking a second opinion from

@holdingonfordearlife that would be much appreciated. I’m in Ayrshire but work in Glasgow and also happy to travel to get the treatment done well.