Wobbly teeth due to severe gum disease

[myteetharemakingmesad]

I've been suffering from gum disease for around 10 years (in my 50's) I've had a few deep cleaning sessions but not made any long term improvement. I have several teeth that are now loose and moving around. In some cases this is where I've had teeth removed and they are moving into the gap.

Over the last 5 years I've had 5 teeth removed and not had any replacement dentures or anything put in as you can't see the gaps but I've now got 2 wobbly teeth near the front of my mouth. My dentist wants to remove them as she says this may prevent the gum disease spreading . So far I've declined this as I hate the idea of plastic denture in my mouth, the idea of them even fitting this makes me want to scream.

Is there any other way I can possibly save my teeth? I clean twice per day, electric toothbrush, little brushes, floss, swill with salt water and with corsodil . Everything I can think of. Oh and my gums sometimes have pus in (so gross) but the dentist won't prescribe antibiotics as she says it won't help.

Is there any dentist with advice or anyone whose experienced this? Can anyone reassure me?

Have you been to see a gum specialist? There aren’t many of them around but I would seek one out and go and get their advice.

I've been to dental hospital to the restorative work department- that's where they did the deep cleaning but it didn't improve so they recommended extraction and referred me back to my dentist. I'm guessing a gum specialist is private? I'll have a look.

If I were you I'd look for a specialist periodontist and have a consultation with them. You can ask your dentist for recommendations. If you really won't be able to stand dentures you may want to look into implants for when those teeth go.

Yes the specialist will be private. Generally it will be a long term on going treatment not just a few appointments, but every few months for the foreseeable future (Or as long as you want to keep the teeth!) Hope you find someone good!

You must see a specialist in this field or they won't get better.

How often do you see the hygeinist, my friend with gum disease goes every 3 months minimum and her teeth are so much better and are firming up.

Madcatlady I have been under dental hospital for deep cleaning so had been going every few weeks but was discharged as no improvement. I think there's either no hope or possible a private specialist may be able to help.

Dental hospital is the NHS referral version of a private specialist periodontist.

Unfortunately once the bone is gone it is gone, you can't ever replace that bone loss...you can sometimes have the teeth splinted to other teeth to stabilise them but it's temporary. Not sure what your finances are like but chrome dentures are lighter and easier to wear than full acrylic dentures.
I know it's awful the thought of losing teeth and having dentures but if your quality of life is shit with wobbly teeth and gum infections then you may find relief just getting the teeth out and getting it sorted once and for all!
Also so many people have dentures now you wouldn't even know they are so realistic.

you need to see the gp for a discussion about bone health. possibly referral for bone density scan.
what's your diet like? do you take vit d3 supplements?
good luck.

There are ways to replace bone. One way is using something called Bio-oss. You need to see a periodontist ASAP, don't know why the hospital didn't do more?

Oh just seen you were referred to the restorative department. You either need to get your dentist to send you to the perio department or see someone privately. Where do you live?

Some dental hospitals don’t have a separate perio department though and call it Restorative which it is- perio is a branch of restorative.

How is your general health ? Do you have diabetes or another chronic health condition? Have you discussed this with your GP?

I'm mid 40's and literally had my first fitting for my new dentures today (I have three missing back teeth on one side due to chronic bruxism) and I was really surprised at how light the denture was and how comfortable it felt. It's a metal and plastic denture. It might be worth considering dentures?

No advice, but I really sympathise, OP. I have very slight mobility in my two upper front teeth due to bruxism. I don’t have any gum disease, and the movement isn’t in one of the “grades” of mobility. I am too scared to bite with them, and actually asked my dentist to extract them and fit a denture, but she insists I should chomp away, and that she would refer me if she was the least bit concerned. I trust her 100%, and the bruxism is being managed, but the idea my teeth are moving is just horrible.

Are you a smoker OP?

Exh had years of this and ££££ under a periodontist. No improvement. He now has dentures.

Get a definitive prognosis. There are treatments but it can depend on the state of your gums. If you’re a smoker it’s a different matter.

Would implants be a possibility?

Do you smoke OP?
Do you have diabetes?
Are you definitely doing interdental cleaning 2x a day? Has the dentist/dental hospital done plaque scores and if so what are they? Have you considered using disclosing tablets at home to check your plaque removal? It might be worth using disclosing tabs a couple of times a week prior to cleaning your teeth, then you know you are definitely removing all the plaque

If you have poorly controlled perio disease I wouldn't have thought that implants would be suitable. It needs to be stable before considering implants.

I would visit a specialist, the dental hospital should have been a specialist but I would visit a private one if you can afford it. There are things you can do to regrow bone in one or two pockets, like bio-oss however I wouldn't think you can do a whole mouth. I'm not a perio specialist I am purely going on what I have learnt through courses and papers

Antibiotics can occasionally help if you have no risk factors, excellent oral hygiene but normally don't address the problem. Again it's more likely to be a specialist who will prescribe them.

Go see a specialist first port of call even if just for a consultation

Thanks for the replies. No, I don't smoke (although I did in my 20's) and I don't have diabetes but the lady I saw at dental hospital gave me a leaflet about peridental disease and I seemed to have a lot of the risk factors.

I think historically I have always felt my tooth problems were unfair as I had cleaned my teeth at least twice per day without fail and used mouthwash, yet I had problems and other people I knew didn't even clean teeth before they went to bed and never went to dentist yet their teeth were fine and when I was younger I resented the extra work I was asked to do on cleaning them so probably didn't do as much as I probably should have.

At the time I saw the dental hospital I certainly did my best to use the interdental brushes as instructed but I admitted to them it was more around 5/7 days as I was going through difficult time as family carer and didn't always prioritise my own health. I'm doing it faithfully now but I think it may be a case of too little too late. No I haven't used disclosing tablets.

I do think my diet may be a bit of an issue as I snack a lot and generally have a sweet tooth. Additionally when I was a lot younger, i.e. In my 20's I permanently sucked minty sweets so that probably didn't help either. Am currently looking at anti- inflammation diet.

I think I do have bone loss - but i didn't realise there was anything you could do to reverse this, will look into this.

Another couple of things are that historically I have probably damaged my gums by scrubbing too hard when cleaning and I grind my teeth in my sleep .

Have you been tested for diabetes? If you are keeping good care of your teeth and your perio disease isn't getting better I would always recommend my patients get tested for diabetes. Not saying you do but it would e something I would want to check

I honestly would try disclosing tablets, try ID cleaning 2x a day as well and dip them in corsodyl. That way you know your teeth are completely clean.

I think a specialist is definitely your next step if you want to save your teeth. There are definitely things that can be done but they are probably beyond the scope of a general dentist.

Poor nutrition and stress can be a cause as well, so if your diet isn't great or hasn't been in the past it could be a cause, sadly not always much you can do about stress!

If you do end up losing these teeth dentures really aren't the end of the world. You can get some excellent ones. As above if you do end up needing them I would look at cobalt chrome as opposed to acrylic. They are less plaque retentive (so good if any gum disease) and often better fitting and less bulky than plastic ones. The teeth are of course plastic but the frame is metal.

Yes I was wondering if you are insulin resistant. Snacking often and eating lots of sweets or carbs is bad for your general health as well as your teeth.

Most people who eat LCHF find it reduces inflammation, so why don’t you try it? Its just more veg and good fats with some protein and less carbs and sugar. If you’ve been battling this problem for 10 years, surely it’s worth a try? In additional to getting an expert opinion of course, not instead of.

Interesting what you say about diabetes as, yes, I have been tested in the past and the tests have been negative but I do have certain tendencies like diabetes e.g. Being thirsty, needing toilet frequently, and getting shaky if I go a few hours without food (although that may be just blood sugar going down following a sugary snack) . Improving my diet is something I definitely can do.,

I'm not too bad now regarding stress but over last few years I've had an awful lot of stress around my elderly parents, and also cancelling my own health appointments to sort theirs out.

It is good to know that there are different types of denture available as ultimately i guess it will come to that even if I'm able to delay for a bit.

Looks like an expensive time then - I also need new glasses (varifocal) ☹️