NWR: Bad News from my dentist *tears*

To make matters worse, because the tooth hadn’t been properly stabilized in the first place – it’s possible that there might not be enough tooth left to replace a crown. *Oh, God*

She tells me it may be better for me to just have the tooth pulled and have an implant or bridge put in. My regular dentist will have to pull the tooth - but the bridge will require me to put crowns on TWO teeth that don’t need them in order to fill the middle space (the pulled tooth). The implant will cost roughly $2500!! AND will take almost 6 months to be complete!!

I get married in 4 months! Oh, God – I started crying in the chair, I called fh and cried on the phone while driving to work. He got mad because I was crying and told me that we’ll just get the implant but I’m just so sad. I’m worried about how I’ll feel the day of. I’m worried about how my face will look. I’m worried about how my pictures will look.

This dentist does a horrible job and I’ve been paying the price for her for horrible work for years. And major dental work cost PAIN. I hate pain.

Geez thanks. Great to hear since I'm getting my wisdom teeth pulled in 1 hour! lol

I am so sorry. That is just awful. I know people who have had implants put in and it isn't that bad. But everything you've had to go through is so unecessary! Wow.

I'm sorry Potters... I don't want to make you nervous...

I'm so sorry. That really sucks and it's especially awful that it's all the result of bad work in the first place. Can you file any complaints with the medical board in your state?

I was actually going to say the same thing as Cabell regarding the medical board. Are they still in practice?

So sorry you're going through this! :::HUGS:::

OMG i"m so sorry! I hope everything works out! If it helps, my swelling was gone within a week. Is there anything that can be done about the old dentist? Report her to the licencing board?

Thanks, yall

I don't know what I can do about the old dentist. I complained to my ins company at the time about her work - but I had no idea it was this bad.

I think I still have a letter from my (current) dentist that describes the issues from the lack of stablity...

I'm gonna have to check to see if she's still in practice. I SURELY don't want her to do this to someone else. It's like having a time bomb in my mouth. There is no way anyone could have know what a bad job she did unless they went in or I got an infection. And I did.

If you get it done ASAP you should look fine in 4 months, no? Does your insurance not cover most of the $2500?

You should definitely be able to file a complaint with the medical board directly with this documentation from your current dentist. Insurance companies don't really handle this stuff.

It looks like you're in Virginia--if so, here's the page with info for filing a complaint: http://www.dhp.state.va.us/enforcement/complaints.htm

The medical board does cover dentistry, so that's the appropriate place to do it.

All of the licencing borad stuff is now online, by state. I think there are instructions on there about what to do in cases like this. It may just be the Cali girl in me (you know we are sue happy here) but I would definately want to at least get my $ back, or make her pay for the repairs, and make sure this doesn't happen to someone else! Craziness! (The insurance co won't help you here).

Oh, and I would also actually recommend posting a review on Yelp about this. I use Yelp a fair amount, and actually the review I've posted that has gotten rated "useful" by the most other users is a review of a TERRIBLE doctor I saw a couple of times when I was trying to find a primary care doc. That's a really fast way to at least get the word out to people who might otherwise be victimized.

Okay, take a deep breath and release slowly. Is the tooth that needs to be pulled the same as the one with the original root canal? If so, that was a molar, correct? An implant - if done soon - shouldn't really be bothersome by the time of your wedding. Both my mother and FH are in the process of getting dental implants, both in the front, and that can be rather unpleasant with temp crowns. But, with molars, you won't need a temp crown, no one will see it, and it shouldn't cause any misshapen of your face. However, if you leave this until a month before your wedding, you might not feel so good.

The only concern is that not all insurances cover implants, and a lot dentists want payment up front. Still, I would try to get this in motion as soon as possible. You'll be fine, once the implant is started. It's a molar, it's cool. Just be thankful it's not a front upper! THEN I'd say start bawling!

Yeah, I'm going to go through my paperwork when i get home to see what info I still have on her. I can't even remember the woman's name. I made an appt to see my regular dentist for Monday - so then I'll see what other dental horrors are in store for me:-( if its really bad he'll be great about writing me a new letter.

@Michele - Yes, the tooth that needs to be pulled is the same with the origial root canal and is a molar. I was told today that the entire process to put in an implant would take up to 6 months or more. That it has to heal or something before you can attach the implant. But I have to admit I was kinda teary by then...

i really am VERY concerned about the cost of the implant, but fh's dental ins would cover it - I just need to get on his plan for dental. If not I would still suck it up and find a way to pay for it. FH says (and I agree) there is no real reason to do all that extra work if i don't have to.

I am in the process of gentting a dental implant. I went to a Periodontist and he is the one who pulled the tooth. Sometimes, if the tooth comes out okay, they are able to implant immediately. With me, I had to get bone grafting, and then waited 2 or 3 months for the area to heal and then went in to get the implant and then you would wait another 2 or 3 months for this procedure to heal and then you would get your crown. It is kinda painful, but the swelling and pain go away pretty quickly.

The great thing with implants is that they last forever as opposed to a bridge. I am very happy with the result of my implant, and I will be getting my new crown in the next couple weeks, very exciting.

I'm not sure exactly how close to your wedding you will be having this dental work, but the swelling and discomfort should be gone no more than a week after getting the implant. Don't let yourself get so worked up about it. You'll still be beautiful for your wedding day and I'm sure, unless you tell them, nobody will even notice the difference.