This the thread where we talk about my teeth

Message Bookmarked

Bookmark Removed

I have a cavity at on my left, bottom molar, right at the back. It's not exposed to the surface - it's developed in some bit where the teeth are squashed together and I can't get at with my toothbrush. Something is going to have to be done.
Two options:

1. Pull the wisdom tooth behind it in order to gain access, then have root canal surgery done. Difficult to assess chances of success - tooth may be so far gone that this may work for a while then collapse one day causing enormous pain and the removal of the tooth after all and I'll be left with two teeth missing rather than one. Will cost about £160 on the NHS, depending on whether I need a crown or not.

2. Just pull the infected tooth. Even though it's kind of hidden from normal view I quite like having a full arch of teeth. If I get older and lose more teeth, I might curse not keeping the ones that I could. Would be a lot less of an ordeal and only cost about £40.

What should I do?

― N. (nickdastoor), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 12:01 (twenty-three years ago)

Ask the advice of a qualified dentist rather than the advice of a bunch of interweb mentalists.

― Emma, Tuesday, 17 September 2002 12:14 (twenty-three years ago)

I would go for option 2.

I have a big hole in one of my teeth where the filling came out. I must go and see the dentist.

― jel -- (jel), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 12:16 (twenty-three years ago)

i was gonna say what emma said, but wasn't sure if you had already

― Alan (Alan), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 12:16 (twenty-three years ago)

I have asked the dentist. She gave me all the information and then in an admirable attempt at empowering the patient, left me to decide what I was going to do. I think she favours option 2, but says when she was a younger dentist and keen on saving the world she would have gone for 1. She doesn't know how vain I am though.

― N. (nickdastoor), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 12:18 (twenty-three years ago)

for me it would all depend on pain. I'd rather have ugly teeth, than suffer pain.

― jel -- (jel), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 12:20 (twenty-three years ago)

The qualified dentist will almost certainly recommend the most expensive option, because he is a bastard. I'd just pull the fucker and have done with it. I was recently charged almost 200 pounds for a temporary filling, so I'm entitled to sound bitter.

OK, so it's a she, but she's just trying to lull you into a false sense of security.

― PJ Miller (PJ Miller), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 12:22 (twenty-three years ago)

But the pain would last what? A day or two maximum. Ugliness lasts A LIFETIME.

― Emma, Tuesday, 17 September 2002 12:22 (twenty-three years ago)

interweb mentalist advice: 2, and then get diamonds stuck on your remaining teeth to distract from the missing one.

― angela (angela), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 12:23 (twenty-three years ago)

yeah, oh well. I'm not rational. There aren't that many people who look at the back of my mouth on an average day! :)

― jel -- (jel), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 12:24 (twenty-three years ago)

I recently had a tooth taken out which had been root filled twice.

― Tim (Tim), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 12:27 (twenty-three years ago)

Well yeah, I guess the question is, *is* is ugly to have a tooth missing from right at the back of your mouth. I mean, lots of people have teeth pulled just to make room, don't they? The wisdom tooth behind it is kind of diddy and just pokes out a little at a funny angle.

Tim - did it keep falling apart and was it painful?

― N. (nickdastoor), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 12:28 (twenty-three years ago)

In our eyes you'll always be beautiful.

― Graham (graham), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 12:34 (twenty-three years ago)

N: no once you've had it root filled once the nerve3 is dead and it won't be painful again until it begins to fall apart and a great big abcess grows which has to be treated with antibiotics.

― Tim (Tim), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 12:36 (twenty-three years ago)

Yeah - that's what I meant - how painful is it when it falls apart? How long did yours last before you gave up on it? Do they ever last forever?

― N. (nickdastoor), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 12:39 (twenty-three years ago)

It's not painful when it falls apart and - I think - if it's done properly in the first place it need not fall apart. (Having said that, as with all medical business, 'properly' is inexact at best).

First root fill - 93, second - '96, extraction - '02.

― Tim (Tim), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 12:48 (twenty-three years ago)

PULL IT! you don't need it. nobody can see it. if you miss the joy of having the full compliment of pearly whites, get a single-tooth denture.

from what i can see, that root-canal bizness rarely lasts.

― nickie (nickie), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 12:56 (twenty-three years ago)

Haha I'm also getting a gold crown on one of my molars next week! Blingy! Even if it's not really gold! But a cheapo NHS alloy! (Note: near the back of my mouth and only available for viewing by request and prior appointment).

I'm heartily sick of all this dental work, by the way. It's my least favourite thing. Even an up-the-nose bronchoscopy was more fun, and that was *nasty*.

― Tim (Tim), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 13:06 (twenty-three years ago)

Nickie you are obsessed with ugliness and gore and not to be trusted.

What is a single tooth denture anyway and how does it work?

― N. (nickdastoor), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 13:07 (twenty-three years ago)

pff! oh ye of little faith! i am right, as always, dastoor. you know very well that i have a fine set of choppers and that is because i have DENTAL KNOWHOW.

i am fairly sure that i don't only know about the single tooth denture because i made it up in my head. it probably clips onto your gum or summat.

― nickie (nickie), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 13:17 (twenty-three years ago)

I should have known better than to take anything you said seriously.

― N. (nickdastoor), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 13:18 (twenty-three years ago)

It may well be that such dental innovations haven't yet reached sleepy South East London but I might add that my dentist didn't mention any such thing as a single tooth denture (though he did say I could have a bridge at some point in the future (I'd have sung "...take me to the bridge now..." if my mouth hadn't been anaesthetised, swollen and bleeding)).

At that point in time if he'd mentioned clipping something to my exposed gum I'd have run screaming from the place.

― Tim (Tim), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 13:24 (twenty-three years ago)

i bit into my morning bagel today and i saw blood, yes from the simple act of eating i bleed. fuck my teeth are in poor poor shape

― anthony easton (anthony), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 13:26 (twenty-three years ago)

Single tooth dentures do exist- my stepfather has one. It's one of his top teeth that's missing though.

― Richard Jones (scarne), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 13:27 (twenty-three years ago)

I may be a bit silly here but does it actually hurt? If it don't hurt - leave it (I was told by dentist about cavities which needed filling 15 years ago which still haven't started hurting). Not been back since.

― Pete (Pete), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 13:32 (twenty-three years ago)

Well it hurts less than it did last week. Yes, you can wait for the whole tooth to die off but I don't think that's much of a long term option. Also, you'd get some rotten breath in the interim.

― N. (nickdastoor), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 13:35 (twenty-three years ago)

Nick don't wait because the abcess option is immensely painful.

― Tim (Tim), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 13:37 (twenty-three years ago)

*Do* take me seriously. Even if the single tooth denture isn't an option, big expensive dental surgery rarely seems to last any decent length of time. i'd just get it out, if t'were me.

― nickie (nickie), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 13:39 (twenty-three years ago)

Don't worry Tim - I am ignoring Ptee's radical approach to dentistry (although I hadn't been to the dentist for 10 years).

I'm waiting for some Americans to contribute before I make my final decision - they know about teeth.

― N. (nickdastoor), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 13:39 (twenty-three years ago)

I love teeth.

Isn't the root canal supposed to save the root of the tooth so it's a placeholder? They siphon out the dead nerve and put a crown over it to seal it up. Once the root canal is done the tooth won't have a nerve so it can't hurt you later. If done properly (I don't know if this = NHS) it should last a lifetime. Spending a few hundred on that is a much better investment than buying a fine watch. #1!

― felicity (felicity), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 13:49 (twenty-three years ago)

The NHS isn't the issue - this just means the government is paying for most of it. It's the same dentist and work whether I go private or NHS. I think I trust the dentist to be good. It's just that it's hard for her to tell whether the remaining good part of the tooth will hold up or not. It may shatter in a few years time, as with Tim.

Thanks felicity - I like to hear some pro-surgery advice to balance out the PULL IT OUT barbarians.

― N. (nickdastoor), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 13:57 (twenty-three years ago)

i'm not a fan of american dentists having had trouble whilst on holiday over there:

went to dental surgery (open plan dental surgery no less, sat in front of a window that looked out onto the street). 'there's nothing we can do, antibiotics won't help, go see this specialist. 50 dollars please'.

went to specialist, kept waiting 30 minutes. 'oh, you have infection inside the tooth. i can sort it out for you for 800 dollars(!). ok then, take these antibiotics. 85 dollars please'.

so i was out 135 dollars, 85 of which was pointless. got home and had it done on the nhs for 70 quid or so.

haven't seen dentist since moving to london 3 years ago but am not proud of this. often wonder how much it would take to get them all replaced with painfree, everlasting alternatives.

andy

― koogs, Tuesday, 17 September 2002 13:58 (twenty-three years ago)

nick

the thing you get by going private is largely the time to do a decent job rather than a rushed nhs appointment. (and i recall reading somwhere that you pay pretty much 80% of the fees anyway, the nhs pays the remaining 20%, something like that)

and, in some cases, better materials (not really applicable for an extraction)

― koogs, Tuesday, 17 September 2002 14:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I don't think that applies with my dentist, andy. I live in Glasgow now and it's great.

― N. (nickdastoor), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 14:01 (twenty-three years ago)

When talking about my forthcoming crown (Who wears the crown?) my dentist gave me the choice of NHS (£80 and gold coloured) through cheap privalte (£!50 and tooth coloured though likely not a perfect match for colour) to expensive private (a few hundred quid but - and I quote - "a lovely piece of colour-matched porcelain". )

― Tim (Tim), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 14:07 (twenty-three years ago)

you fancy her, admit it.

andy

― koogs, Tuesday, 17 September 2002 14:15 (twenty-three years ago)

I had root canal treatment, but the tooth didn't survive, so they took it out. (it had already fallen out and been put back you see)

― jel -- (jel), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 16:46 (twenty-three years ago)

(Do you like Glasgow Nick? I would suggest a pint, but that would end in tears? How about tea?)

― david h (david h), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 16:50 (twenty-three years ago)

OK - email me. Tears?

― N. (nickdastoor), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 17:07 (twenty-three years ago)

Umm Koogs that's sort of how it works when you don't have nationalized health care.

Nick, I'm sort of with Felicity here. I wouldn't worry too much about missing teeth in the back of your mouth, either, as this leaves with you in the enviable position of being able to install a diamond-studded gold number that won't be visible during job interviews. (You can just smile crooked to show it off on garage nights.)

― nabisco (nabisco), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 17:08 (twenty-three years ago)

Haha, yeh, tears, in that I am real dumb and clumsy and quiet in real life and on the internet, so it would end in mine or your tears in mine or your pint. No, not really. This whole post has been a lie. You e-mail me.

― David H(owie) (David H(owie)), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 17:13 (twenty-three years ago)

But nabsico - Felicty was pro-root canal filling, not gappiness.

David - oh OK. Will email you.

― N. (nickdastoor), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 17:16 (twenty-three years ago)

Have that one out, Nick. And while you're at it, you could consider having the wisdom teeth all out - it might give you even better cheekbones!

― Martin Skidmore (Martin Skidmore), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 19:40 (twenty-three years ago)

Please don't talk about teeth. I've had a brace for over a year now and I was looking forward to getting it removed on the 30th of this month. Now I need to wait until the 30th of October. Personaly I wouldn't want to have a space if it was visible, but if not then I'd go for option 2. If you can see the space then no, I wouldn't get rid of the tooth. But you said you wouldn't see it, so yeah, go for the second option. Sorry. Maybe a sign of vanity.

― Shaz, Tuesday, 17 September 2002 19:49 (twenty-three years ago)

Nick I know a good dentist in Glasgow who might cut you a deal. No this is not the set-up for a joke.

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 19:50 (twenty-three years ago)

Lady dentists are nice. Anaesthetic is OK for eliminating the pain of drilling, etc. but when mine rests her breast on my head as she works it helps give me something to take my mind of the noise & stuff.

― David Moore (Mooro), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 20:52 (twenty-three years ago)

Gulp. I read this thread with increasing fear and trepidation - I haven't been to a dentist for 14 years. At first it was, 'I can't afford it.' By the time I could afford a check up, I decided that I could no longer afford the remedial work which, inevitably, would have been required in addition to a check up. My assumption has been that the rate of acceleration in the cost of the requisite remedial dentistry is greater than the rate of acceleration in my pay packet. All that realisation proves is that I should have bit the bullet 14 years ago, for soon I will not be able to bite anything.

― debaser (debaser), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 21:25 (twenty-three years ago)

Nick, one of your hesitations about the first option seemed to be that if the surgery couldn't save the tooth, you'd wind up missing two instead of just the one. I was just saying not to worry too much about missing teeth at all, as modern science can put anything from faux to bling to miniature reproductions of the Mona Lisa in their place.

― nabisco (nabisco), Tuesday, 17 September 2002 21:43 (twenty-three years ago)

My back left molar is now concaved-in. Due to the swash of suger-saliva! And now I phear the dentistry of my dentist will be wrought upon me and to top it all off N. didn't mail me (? actually, I've not checked hotmail yet, so maybe just maybe...)

― david h (david h), Wednesday, 18 September 2002 16:27 (twenty-three years ago)

No, I haven't. I am a v.v. busy and v.v. important man. And I am v.v. bad with emailing people so hush your mouth. I'm away this weekend anyway. Teeth situation still unresolved. Dentist's husband is unsure how the wisdom tooth CAN be pulled.

― N. (nickdastoor), Wednesday, 18 September 2002 16:32 (twenty-three years ago)

I wasn't hassling, sorry if you felt that way. I know all about that v.v. business. You probly don't want to now that I'm a ploffjawed bigot! teehee

― David H(owie) (David H(owie)), Wednesday, 18 September 2002 16:48 (twenty-three years ago)

I don't want you to anyway, I hate your gums! So nur!

― David H(owie) (David H(owie)), Wednesday, 18 September 2002 16:50 (twenty-three years ago)

Can they fill the side of a tooth? I have a gape, the size of the WHOLE tooth, which is musty brown, and allows a lot of tongue, can they fill this? It doesn't hurt. I'm leaving it three weeks. Will it then? Can I get DIY (ie home) temporary filling stuff from Boots (the chemist) or something?

― David H(owie) (David H(owie)), Wednesday, 18 September 2002 16:53 (twenty-three years ago)

GET IT SEEN TO. IT'S DISGUSTING.

Can I get DIY (ie home) temporary filling stuff from Boots (the chemist) or something?

No.

― N. (nickdastoor), Wednesday, 18 September 2002 16:55 (twenty-three years ago)

Re:e-mail:(Nick, don't worry, obv. Take care.)

It ain't disgusting, it's my tooth!

― David H(owie) (David H(owie)), Wednesday, 18 September 2002 16:58 (twenty-three years ago)

Ha - I just tried to email you and it got bounced. Your mailbox is over limit. As is mine these days if I leave it for more than a few days. Hotmail is rub, obv.

― N. (nickdastoor), Wednesday, 18 September 2002 17:04 (twenty-three years ago)

Jesus, you people: please flouridate your water tout suite.

― nabisco (nabisco), Wednesday, 18 September 2002 17:09 (twenty-three years ago)

It is.

― N. (nickdastoor), Wednesday, 18 September 2002 17:10 (twenty-three years ago)

(it's just our sweets are tastier than yours)

― N. (nickdastoor), Wednesday, 18 September 2002 17:21 (twenty-three years ago)

I tried to respond to this thread already but it DIDNT WORK. So, here I am again. ANYHOW -- Nick, you said you wanted some Americans to respond since we supposedly know about teeth. Sadly enough, although I am American, I know very little about dentistry. I just got my first cavity filled about two months ago. Of course, I did have to suffer through four years of orthodontics in my teenage years, and because of this I have somewhat of an obsession over brushing and flossing (if someone with a braceface does not brush and floss like crazy, then that someone will suffer from food rotting in their mouths for as long as they have their braces.. I remember my orthodontist telling me horror stories about removing kid's braces and them having rotting meat stuck in their bands.. ew.). ANYWAY, NICK, I say you pull that sucker out-- it'll be cheaper and less painful, and who cares if you have a tooth missing. If it's far in the back, I bet no one would notice anyway.

― Mandee, Wednesday, 18 September 2002 17:26 (twenty-three years ago)

I care if N. has a tooth missing. This is no time to be cheap.

― felicity (felicity), Wednesday, 18 September 2002 18:08 (twenty-three years ago)

The thing is, it's more visible than I first thought. I mean, no - you can't see it if I'm just talking normally but if I open my mouth wide to sing or something..

But I'm thinking it might have to go. The wisdom tooth is looking like a bugger to pull and I don't want the pain my sister suffered when they failed to get it out, cracked it down to the nerve, and then had to leave it for a week till she could have it done under sedation.

― N. (nickdastoor), Wednesday, 18 September 2002 18:11 (twenty-three years ago)

Nick - send mail through Graham's EXCELLENT webmail feature and it should get through to my non-spamaroo address (ie 0006335h@IMABIGWANKERstudent.gla.ac.uk without the IMABIGWANKER obv, well maybe not, obv.)

― David H(owie) (David H(owie)), Wednesday, 18 September 2002 21:56 (twenty-three years ago)

You must be logged in to post. Please either login here, or if you are not registered, you may register here.