All things Corona Virus

[Ban Hammer 13,358]

5 hours ago, Neonred said:

Get them taken out?  If you have room for them AND you can keep them clean, then probably no.  Most common reason adults have to have wisdom teeth removed is that they get badly decayed.

 

Root canal teeth get brittle over time.  They have not only lost the nerve, but also the blood supply (yes, there is a blood vessel in there too).  Tooth was probably weakened from a large cavity prior to the root canal and crown.  Could have just decayed under that crown too.  Probably had to have a post and some build up after it broke off prior to making a new crown.  Many times it is broken down too badly to support a new crown, or it fractures down into the root making it non-restorable.  Then it's time for an extraction and perhaps an implant.

which is what happened to me - had a tooth in the front need a root canal as the nerve was dying off - then about 2 years later it broke in half.  a bridge was put in place.  fast forward 20 years and

said bridge came out and now am going with an implant, which isn't cheap nor fast.  seems about 1.5 years will be the time from start to actual implant installed.

[yuna628 9,677]

15 hours ago, Neonred said:

Wow,  can't be several thousand for just a root canal.  Must have included any build up and a crown.  Either that or I am charging WAY too low.  Even the specialist in my area don't charge like that.

That's what he charges and that does include the crown. Yes he is pricey, he's even charging a COVID fee. But honestly? I've been to dentists in this town that terrify me - the one I saw during the shutdown charged me hardly anything, was very rough, the office was filthy, never even filed a claim with the insurance, and i'm still having problems. My dentist might be expensive but he's a good guy, very clean, and careful with what he does.

[yuna628 9,677]

6 hours ago, Neonred said:

Get them taken out?  If you have room for them AND you can keep them clean, then probably no.  Most common reason adults have to have wisdom teeth removed is that they get badly decayed.

 

Root canal teeth get brittle over time.  They have not only lost the nerve, but also the blood supply (yes, there is a blood vessel in there too).  Tooth was probably weakened from a large cavity prior to the root canal and crown.  Could have just decayed under that crown too.  Probably had to have a post and some build up after it broke off prior to making a new crown.  Many times it is broken down too badly to support a new crown, or it fractures down into the root making it non-restorable.  Then it's time for an extraction and perhaps an implant.

That's what happened to mom. Of course her root canals were done in the 90s (the only time I briefly remember my parents affording the dentist for about a year), but of course they couldn't afford crowns. Not sure how they thought those teeth would last like that. Teeth just kept breaking and rotting away (post came out and stabbed her tongue.. I know I know.. why don't people take care of their teeth?). She's refused to get implants, but my dentist did give her apicoectomy after finding a massive infection. That was an expensive one.

[Ban Hammer 13,358]

1 hour ago, yuna628 said:

That's what he charges and that does include the crown. Yes he is pricey, he's even charging a COVID fee. But honestly? I've been to dentists in this town that terrify me - the one I saw during the shutdown charged me hardly anything, was very rough, the office was filthy, never even filed a claim with the insurance, and i'm still having problems. My dentist might be expensive but he's a good guy, very clean, and careful with what he does.

that is why it seemed so pricey to the rest of us - it included the crown.  a root canal for me is about 750 out of pocket and another 1100 for the crown, so you're in the ballpark.

[Burnt Reynolds 5,058]

3 hours ago, Ban Hammer said:

which is what happened to me - had a tooth in the front need a root canal as the nerve was dying off - then about 2 years later it broke in half.  a bridge was put in place.  fast forward 20 years and

said bridge came out and now am going with an implant, which isn't cheap nor fast.  seems about 1.5 years will be the time from start to actual implant installed.

My first crown came from a chip (in one of my back molars) that happened from sinking my teeth into a massive chunk of tritip. No regrets, it was awesome tritip!

 

To @Neonred, for the implants you mentioned, I have some elderly family who had implants but the damage to their jaw is evident in their face (shape) as well as in their speech.. is this something that can be mitigated with getting the implant at the same time as extraction/root canal/whatever? 

Edited June 12, 2020 by Burnt Reynolds

[Ban Hammer 13,358]

[Neonred 3,571]

1 hour ago, Burnt Reynolds said:

My first crown came from a chip (in one of my back molars) that happened from sinking my teeth into a massive chunk of tritip. No regrets, it was awesome tritip!

 

To @Neonred, for the implants you mentioned, I have some elderly family who had implants but the damage to their jaw is evident in their face (shape) as well as in their speech.. is this something that can be mitigated with getting the implant at the same time as extraction/root canal/whatever? 

You must have adequate bone for a successful implant.  The longer a tooth is missing, the more the remaining bone shrinks.  If the tooth has been missing for a long while it often requires a graft, and sometimes even that won't be enough.  Certainly the ideal is placing the implant at the time of the extraction IF there are solid walls of bone on all sides.  Many times a graft is placed and the area allowed to heal for months prior to placing the implant.  I have done both, and I was so worried about placing directly into the extraction site, but the results have been great.  I do, however, only place implants in locations and in situations that I feel should be easy.  Difficult cases, especially sinus lifts, I refer to the specialists.

[Steeleballz 7,550]

20 hours ago, laylalex said:

So I should get them taken out? Hm.

 

Of course he had a crown on there before with the root canal, but something broke off, I guess. You're the dentist!  I just know that there was a tooth and then...... there wasn't. What would have happened to cause the crown that was on there to detach or dislodge? Could what was left have just rotted away enough that there was nothing to support the crown? Forgive my ignorance, I'm lucky enough to have had nothing but check ups and cleanings my entire life.

 

   My dentist told me if it's elective, they recommend doing it before age 40. He said their are risks the older you get and at some point removing them has more risks than leaving them in. He said they do recommend removal sometimes to people before age 40 if they are having issues, because the last thing you want is to need to have wisdom teeth extracted when you are in your 60's and 70's.  

[Dashinka 24,527]

6 hours ago, yuna628 said:

That's what he charges and that does include the crown. Yes he is pricey, he's even charging a COVID fee. But honestly? I've been to dentists in this town that terrify me - the one I saw during the shutdown charged me hardly anything, was very rough, the office was filthy, never even filed a claim with the insurance, and i'm still having problems. My dentist might be expensive but he's a good guy, very clean, and careful with what he does.

I have a buddy that goes to UofM dental school for all of his work.  Quite reasonably priced, and well supervised.

[Dashinka 24,527]

1 hour ago, Steeleballz said:

 

   My dentist told me if it's elective, they recommend doing it before age 40. He said their are risks the older you get and at some point removing them has more risks than leaving them in. He said they do recommend removal sometimes to people before age 40 if they are having issues, because the last thing you want is to need to have wisdom teeth extracted when you are in your 60's and 70's.  

I kept mine due to a an open bite, nothing more fun than getting a crown on a wisdom tooth.  My jaw hurt for a month.

[Neonred 3,571]

3 hours ago, Dashinka said:

I kept mine due to a an open bite, nothing more fun than getting a crown on a wisdom tooth.  My jaw hurt for a month.

And I'll bet it was a lot of fun for the dentist too.  LOL

[TBoneTX 45,364]

My only root canal was in 1993.  The dentist diagnosed the need, and, when performing the deed, muttered to himself, "[name] does it right, or [name] doesn't do it at all."  He later had his dental license, uh, extracted because of erratic behavior and shoddy work.  However, every subsequent dentist who saw my crown/post marveled at it and said, "That's magnificent/wonderful/beautiful work."  Obviously, I lucked out.

[TBoneTX 45,364]

On 6/11/2020 at 9:40 PM, Ban Hammer said:

i think we just got tboned.

[T-B. perks up ears at the encouragement]

 

How do we know that the toothbrush was invented in Arkansas?

Had it been invented elsewhere, it would be called a teethbrush.

[Ban Hammer 13,358]

7 hours ago, TBoneTX said:

[T-B. perks up ears at the encouragement]

 

How do we know that the toothbrush was invented in Arkansas?

Had it been invented elsewhere, it would be called a teethbrush.

and what fearsome monster has 48 arms, 48 legs, and 176 teeth?
the university of arkansas cheerleading squad.

[Nature Boy 2.0 8,375]

On 6/12/2020 at 10:01 AM, Ban Hammer said:

which is what happened to me - had a tooth in the front need a root canal as the nerve was dying off - then about 2 years later it broke in half.  a bridge was put in place.  fast forward 20 years and

said bridge came out and now am going with an implant, which isn't cheap nor fast.  seems about 1.5 years will be the time from start to actual implant installed.

1.5 years  do what.  5-6 months tops