Another one for the dentists
Discussion
So I have a tooth that is completely broken. Only the root is left, no pain, or infection or discomfort but I have been to 2 dentists to discuss my options.
It's the 4th tooth so in quiet plain view and as I'm only 24 I don't really want a gap for the rest of my life.
Dentist number 1 has said to pull the root out and have a 3 piece bridge put in.
Dentist 2 has said it would be possible to make single denture reasonably cheap. Or a floating bridge would work, which only fixes onto one neighbouring tooth instead of both as in the 3 piece bridge. He thinks the 3 piece bridge could cause problems later on as there is no room for movement between the pieces. He advised ultimately having an implant though as the supporting bone will withdraw leaving a depression in my face which will become obvious.
Now costs aside as obviously they are quite high but I'd like to consider the most effective option, does what dentist 2 say about the retracting bone sound plausible, as it's not something dentist number 1 mentioned at all.
Both were private dentists
It's the 4th tooth so in quiet plain view and as I'm only 24 I don't really want a gap for the rest of my life.
Dentist number 1 has said to pull the root out and have a 3 piece bridge put in.
Dentist 2 has said it would be possible to make single denture reasonably cheap. Or a floating bridge would work, which only fixes onto one neighbouring tooth instead of both as in the 3 piece bridge. He thinks the 3 piece bridge could cause problems later on as there is no room for movement between the pieces. He advised ultimately having an implant though as the supporting bone will withdraw leaving a depression in my face which will become obvious.
Now costs aside as obviously they are quite high but I'd like to consider the most effective option, does what dentist 2 say about the retracting bone sound plausible, as it's not something dentist number 1 mentioned at all.
Both were private dentists
K87 said:
So I have a tooth that is completely broken. Only the root is left, no pain, or infection or discomfort but I have been to 2 dentists to discuss my options.
It's the 4th tooth so in quiet plain view and as I'm only 24 I don't really want a gap for the rest of my life.
Dentist number 1 has said to pull the root out and have a 3 piece bridge put in.
Dentist 2 has said it would be possible to make single denture reasonably cheap. Or a floating bridge would work, which only fixes onto one neighbouring tooth instead of both as in the 3 piece bridge. He thinks the 3 piece bridge could cause problems later on as there is no room for movement between the pieces. He advised ultimately having an implant though as the supporting bone will withdraw leaving a depression in my face which will become obvious.
Now costs aside as obviously they are quite high but I'd like to consider the most effective option, does what dentist 2 say about the retracting bone sound plausible, as it's not something dentist number 1 mentioned at all.
Both were private dentists
The 4th tooth is the first premolar so as you say is quite visible.It's the 4th tooth so in quiet plain view and as I'm only 24 I don't really want a gap for the rest of my life.
Dentist number 1 has said to pull the root out and have a 3 piece bridge put in.
Dentist 2 has said it would be possible to make single denture reasonably cheap. Or a floating bridge would work, which only fixes onto one neighbouring tooth instead of both as in the 3 piece bridge. He thinks the 3 piece bridge could cause problems later on as there is no room for movement between the pieces. He advised ultimately having an implant though as the supporting bone will withdraw leaving a depression in my face which will become obvious.
Now costs aside as obviously they are quite high but I'd like to consider the most effective option, does what dentist 2 say about the retracting bone sound plausible, as it's not something dentist number 1 mentioned at all.
Both were private dentists
Firstly if only the root is left then you should have this out to avoid it getting infected.
So what are you going to do with the space?
These are all the options you have:
1) Do nothing and have a space.
2) Have a fixed three unit bridge canine-firstpremolar-secondpremolar.
3) Have a fixed two unit cantilever bridge on the second premolar with a cantilevered false tooth replacing the lost one.
4) Have partial removable denture.
5) Have a stick on resin retained bridge.
6) Have an implant.
For the first option you've said you don't want a space so that's out. The three unit bridge is reliable and works well BUT will need the teeth either side of the space to be ground down and for the canine especially this would be a great shame. I certainly would not do that.
The cantilever bridge is not a bad option but again the second premolar needs to be ground down. If it is already damaged in some way (big filling, crown) this is not a problem) but if it is a virgin tooth I would once again be against this option. Also, you'd want to be a bit careful biting down hard on that side as the bridge is only supported on one side.
The removable denture would just irritate you, you'd have difficulty eating with it and you'd probably wear it once and then leave it in a drawer or the bin.
The resin retained bridge can be done without having to grind down your teeth too much which is an advantage but they can have a tendancy to come unstuck which is very annoying and their longevity is much less than that of a conventional bridge or implant. As with with the cantilever, you have to be careful with them.
The implant is by far the best option. It's fixed and dooesn't need any work done to adjacent teeth. There is evidence that bridges can cause decay in the support teeth and implants don't have this problem as you can clean all around them. An implant will indeed preserve the bone where the tooth was lost. You must not be a heavy smoker though or have certain heart problems to name a couple of contra-indications.
HTH!
Edited by Driller on Sunday 1st January 12:18
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