Re: Suddenly I need 6 Crowns?

No one can tell you anything about your teeth from the internet. We can
tell you generalities and explain terms to you. In general, if you just
broke one tooth, you *could* quite likely have 2-3 others ready to break as
well. My experience is that this usually occurs in patients who clench with
great force while sleeping. Very few of these patients are aware they are
doing this until we show them all the signs of it. If the margins on the
other fillings are beginning to chip, it may be wise to replace the others
as well.

I can make some guesses here: As far as crown vs. filling. If you had the
crown done on that tooth in 1968, it would (in most cases) still be fine.
You would have avoided the three (counting now) subsequent re-treatments of
this tooth. You now have 30 years of inflation to pay for, you have already
paid two other times to re-fill it, you will need to pay for it to be
re-filled prior to getting a crown now (unless you choose to get an onlay),
and you still have to pay for the crown. Each time the tooth was retreated,
more tooth was removed. It would have been much cheaper to get the crown
back in 1968. Possibly the filling was not big enough in 1968 to need a
crown, but I bet it was large enough in 1970 or 1975.

Who knows specifically about your teeth? Get another opinion if you like.
Ten different dentists will come up with ten different treatment plans, so
be prepared for differing opinions. When do we say a tooth should have a
crown or an onlay done to protect it? That is a judgment call which is
based on years of training and experience. Depends on lots of different
factors.

I assume we are NOT talking about a PPO or HMO/DMO type insurance scheme
which forces dental offices to upgrade treatment offerings to cover their
cost of doing business.

--
~+--~+--~+--~+--~+--
Stephen Mancuso, D.D.S.
Troy, Michigan, USA
.....................................................

This posting is intended for informational or conversational purposes only.
Always seek the opinion of a licensed dental professional before acting on
the advice or opinion expressed here. Only a dentist who has examined you
in person can diagnose your problems and make decisions which will affect
your health.
.......................
"Rich" <rgsrx@xxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:XTZ6e.45995$lz2.29843@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Recently I relocated from NJ to Arizona. I had been going to my dentist in
> NJ for 10 years & he never tried to "sell" me anything. A very large
> filling(25 years old) fell out of one of my molars & took half the tooth
> with it. So off I go to a new dentist in Arizona. I assumed this broken
> tooth would need a crown but she proceeded to tell me that 5 other teeth
> needed crown. Three of the teeth needed crowns because of excessive
> fillings & two of the teeth had root canals. All these fillings & root
> canals go back at least 20 years. According to this new dentist, these 5
> teeth need crowns to protect them from breaking. I understand that root
> canaled & heavily-filled teeth do not last forever but would it be
> imprudent to crown these teeth as they fail? The tooth that just broke was
> originally filled in 1968. That filling was subsequently replaced in 1970
> & 1975 due to decay beneath the filling and an additional filling was
> placed on the lingual surface at a later date. Based on this life
> expectancy I am not inclined to suddenly $3000 to "rescue" these 5 teeth.
> Your opinions are greatly appreciated.
> Thanks,
> Rich


.

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