Teeth...

[HeraInTheHereAndNow]

I’m nearly 60. I hate the dentist. All dentists. Lovely people but as a child, I grew up in the 60’s when dentists got paid for the treatments they did and I had a mouth full of fillings. I’ve never needed one since, in nearly 50 yrs, which says much.

Due to kidney problems as a child and young adult (3 lots of surgery) I was given a lot of tetracyclines and consequently my teeth were soft, moving around my mouth each time braces were removed and at age 20, my then dentist told me I ought to have crowns. I remember going home and telling my mum and bursting into tears... “I’ve got to have false teeth!”

Anyway, in went 6 crowns and they were painful but, lovely.

Skip forward 40yrs. I’ve really looked after them. All, but one have been replaced/updated after falling off or breaking. But... now, they’re all sensitive. Horribly. I cannot drink fluids unless tepid. Unless my milk is warmed, I can’t eat cereal, have to take tablets with water warmed a bit in the microwave. Even outside air hurts. It’s gradually gotten worse but I first went to my dentist 2 yrs ago with the problem. She told me to “up my flossing”. I see the dentist twice yearly and the hygienist every three months. I went away, feeling a bit insulted but did as asked. My dental hygiene has always been good which is why my crowns have lasted so long and I’ve not needed any fillings/extractions since I was a child.

A year ago, just before lockdown, the dentist put a “band” of filling on top of the crowns but literally, within three days, they’d come off. I was back to painful sensitive teeth. I carried in with the Corsodyl, Pro-enamel toothpastes, interdent sticks, floss, brushes etc.

Skip forward to five weeks ago. Now, I have very painful teeth. One has cracked and she’s told me to be very gentle with it and she’ll see me in May.

I think, it’s time for new crowns. The dentist has said that this isn’t possible as it’s only “cosmetic” work. I told her one of them is “an original” and is 40yrs old which proves I’ve done as much as possible from my side, in caring for my teeth. She’s told me I can have them done at a cost of £4,000. I’m in Denplan so, it might be slightly less. If I don’t pay, I’ll need to wait till my crowns either crack, decay or drop off.

What should I do. This dentist is new at the practice, in the past couple of years. She’s absolutely lovely but my old dentist told me before leaving how well I’d looked after my teeth but... they will need replacing “soon”.

I’m at a loss.

Anyone?

Wow!

Just come back to this and my screen page is ALL dental ads.

Big Brother is watching ...

So are you a private dental patient at this practice? I would try to find an NHS dentist if you can as the cost would be far, far lower (£282.80 total maximum for as many crowns as you need). It is very difficult in some areas, mine being one of them, but I managed to find NHS places for OH and I in a few hours of ringing every dentist I could feasibly travel to and asking a few years ago. I started with the closer dentists and worked my way out and managed to find a lovely one about 30 mins away. It's a great relief to have access to affordable dental treatment.

Your current dentist sounds awful so even if you can't find a new NHS one I would move anyway. You've told her you're in severe pain and she's making you wait until May! Ridiculous! And you're private so you're paying through the nose! To contrast this, I rang my NHS dentist with mild sensitivity in some demineralised teeth which we'd spoken about and she saw me within a week and it was completely free because it was less than 2 months since I'd had some other (unrelated) treatment! Sadly some dentists (especially private ones) just see patients as cash cows not people, it would be better for everyone if dentistry were incorporated into the NHS fully and properly funded.

NHS Dentistry does not cover cosmetic work so if a crown is cracked it will be replaced but if the gum above them has receded, the shade no longer matches etc these are deemed a cosmetic replacement and would be only done privately.
Your Denplan may cover the dentist costs but not the lab bills depending on the scheme.

@MillyMollyMardy... that’s interesting. So, I might just need to pay lab costs as they’re so painful. I mean, it’s not like I just want new teeth. They’ve been there since 1994. One of them is an original from 1981! I’ve read on here that crowns can last up to 30yrs so, that’s pretty good going, I think.

Also, if it were purely cosmetic, I get that. But now, when I rub my Sensodyne along my gum line or do my Corsodyl mouthwash the pain comes with what feels like the toothpaste/wash getting inside the crown. This was why she out a filling on my gum margins but they fell out.

It’s a nightmare.

@hamsterchump... I thought I was NHS but... I am in Denplan. So, costs are a bit confusing.

Oh, sorry. Forgot to say, finding another dentist right now would be a trauma. What I may do is seek a second opinion.

Teething is evil. Our chap has gotten an ear infection during every bout of teething.

Hi Op, I am sorry to hear you are in so much pain, has the dentist actually gone through with you options for what is causing this issue? From what your describing the issue is with the teeth underneath the crown's, has the dentist discussed With you how stable they are? because just replacing the crown's may not solve the issues you are having, were they root treated prior to the crown's being placed? (I know it was a long time ago) It sounds like you have very good oral hygiene so this should not really be a factor, you say you are seeing the hygenist regularly so they will have been monitoring this and have discussed with you if you need to improve any areas, I am also confused at why it's cosmetic as you say you are in pain, as much as you may hate this I would maybe look at different practices for a second opinion (try to look for one that specialises in protheses) all good practices will have a section on their website about how they treat nervous patients so look for this, if you are anywhere near a dental school contact them and ask if you could potentially come into be assessed I hope this helps a little xx

So the fillings even though they didn't last stopped the pain? Is there wear above the crown edges? Is it every tooth? Does the sensitive toothpaste control the pain after it's rubbed on?

You can change Denplan dentists but the fee band is set by the practice based on what condition your mouth is in and if you have crowns that are starting to fail this may affect it.
To start I would go back to your dentist and say how much trouble you are in. If you don't get an answer that you are comfortable with, is there another dentist in the practice you could get a second opinion with?
Goose33 is correct that changing the crown's might not solve the problems if it's not due to the crowns but related to the teeth themselves and this needs diagnosis and management before changing the crowns.

@Goose33... thanks. I’m panicking a bit because I’m aware, with age, that our teeth often begin to go and that it’s become unbearable whilst my dentist waits for them to crack/drop out of my head.

Have discussed with sister as we have a small amount of money from our mum coming to us. She died before Covid and we’ve had no chance to sort/sell her place. I may just go to the dentist and say, if possible, replace these 27yr old (and one is 40 yrs old) crowns out. Don’t care how much it costs. If it’s left to deteriorate any further there may be nothing to “re-crown” and I’ll have big gaps.

@MillyMollyMardy... once the initial “ouch” has subsided, there’s a brief feeling of relief but say, if ten mins later, I have a cuppa, I have some cold water in it, as well as the milk, to cool it down.

The “margin” fillings help but, they came out so quickly. Really embarrassing. I just feel that the longer the issue continues and the longer I wait, the worse it is. She gave me antibiotics which did help but it was only a 5 day course and now, it’s back to square one.

I’m going this Friday. They’re fitting me in.

@PatrickSmithUS 😂😂😂 Im not teething. I’m 58!

@HeraInTheHereAndNow please make sure that you are happy with proposed treatment especially as you are using your mum's money for this. I know if it's an environment which you don't feel comfortable, you can be reluctant to ask questions but ensure you are fully aware of what is Potentially causing the problem, how the proposed treatment will help and what will happen if it doesn't and get a second opinion if you are not happy X

Thanks @Goose33.

I don’t do it lightly. I’m very very anxious but despite the deafness caused by anxiety (🥺) I’ll do my best to listen and not sign up to anything I’m unsure of.

One tooth may need removing totally so, that scares the bejeesus out of me before I end get there.

I wish, all those years ago, I’d understood the pain, fear of pain, need for replacement twice in my lifetime (potentially). But I was young and trusted my them dentist when he said you really do need this treatment. “Cosmetic” dentistry wasn’t a thing for working class people in 1981 but I was told to go ahead, and did. Tetracycline is NEVER given to toddlers and young children now but I was always on and off antibiotics whilst awaiting surgery. No choice.

HeraInTheHereAndNow antibiotics and possibly needing to lose a tooth sounds like more than crowns that need replacing.
I'm glad to hear you've got an appointment soon. Get them to explain what they think is going on, don't jump into any decisions, you can always come back onto Mumsnet with questions there are several dentists on here.

[quote HeraInTheHereAndNow]@PatrickSmithUS 😂😂😂 Im not teething. I’m 58![/quote]
:) :) :) :) :) :) I should have coffee before posting.