Root canal reprieve
I spent part of the morning at the office of the endodontist. A few months ago, a tooth in my mouth had decided to give me trouble. It hurt when I chewed on it or pressed on it. It hurt when it was cold and it hurt when I ate something hot. It hurt when I walked fast. And sometimes it seemed to hurt just for the fun of it.
After a few weeks of that, it started to hurt less. And then less and less. That was good, but I knew that it was also potentially bad, because I once had a tooth that did that and it was a sign that it was dying.
They tried to save that tooth with a root canal. After ten years the root canal failed, and I ended up with a dental implant there. That dental implant is now having some troubles and I have a dental surgery to fix it scheduled in about ten days.
Dentists tend to love me. I am a gold mine.
But today the news was good. Whatever’s been going on with my tooth, it doesn’t need a root canal. And fortunately, since it (knock wood) barely hurts at all anymore, it may avoid one forever.
Gee, Nancy is beginning to talk like……Trump! What an inadvertent compliment!
Good news! What happened to your implant? I thought they were supposed to last forever.
Implants can fail, it can even happen in the early stages of inserting, if underlying bone rejects it. Exactly what would happen to an older implant previously was fine then gets rejected.
I have Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. Which means my very own immune system is rejecting my own thyroid gland & sending white blood cells to do the job
. Another form of auto rejection. Hillary suffers from this, glad she was not elected because this has all kinds of effects on many body systems, telling the electorate that she was fine with medication was a huge joke, thyroiditis impacts a person a great deal.
Good news!
I’m not a gold mine. But I’ve paid more than a king’s ransom to dentists! (And, regrettably, will still be doing so for yrs. to come)
@mollyNH: Oh, please don’t say that! I’m about to start a yr. of surgeries to have my entire uppers replaced by implants, and need multiple bone grafts first to make that possible. Then they’ll decide when I have to start bottom.
@c Simon the first they will do one you is the initial procedure where they put it in place to see if your bone is receptive, if your bone doesn’t reject first input they will proceed with the rest. You should be OK if it is accepted at the start. I d look online line about supplements you can take for bone health. Something like what they advise menopausal women to take. If your bones have good nutrition it will put them in a more accepting mood, so to speak . Best of luck!
CSimon621: I went through almost exactly the same thing last year — replacement of uppers, though in my case 2 lonely little teeth were spared. It was much easier than I’d dared hope. Except for some periods on a soft diet, my life was pretty much unchanged, and there wasn’t much pain. Nine months later, the implants are absolutely solid, function perfectly and look great.
Now, like you, I’m waiting to go through the same thing with the lowers. Anyway, good luck!
I’m so sorry now that I retired early – is 68 too early ya think?
a couple of thoughts from an old (and I do mean old! ) warhorse:
1: vertical micro-fractures in teeth aren’t all that uncommon – more commonly seen in those who grind their teeth (bruxism) constantly – watch the face (jaw muscles in the cheeks) of any Type A personality in times of mild stress. “Micro-” as in almost impossible to detect, even under a microscope. Root canal therapy will be done on such teeth and will fail over a period of time – constant leakage.
1. a. Bruxism may also lead to a widening of the socket, thereby loosening the teeth (mostly posterior) – usually seen (and misconstrued) as periodontal disease.
2. There have been a number of reports that borderline diabetics may have more difficulties with implants – some have said that this may be due to problems with the bone’s attachment to the metal of the implant. So, if there’s failure of the implant, the patient should check, not just fasting blood sugar, but 2 hours after meals as well; a discussion with one’s physician wouldn’t come amiss. either.
Some people have the luck with teeth, others not. My father died at a ripe old age with never having had his wisdom teeth be a problem. My son had to have his out at sixteen.
I’m not so much a gold mine — but an annuity.
No blasting required… I eat gold.