January 2021 - Dr. Rick Lane

I had an accident and pretty much landed on my face. One of my front teeth that I had to get dental bonding on years ago, ended up breaking nearly all the way off this time. I went to see a dentist who wants to pull the remainder of that broken tooth and also pull other front teeth so I can get a partial denture. I am in my thirties and my gut tells me that there has to be other options. A removable partial denture for my front teeth sounds mortifying. There has to be another option. I am willing to pay whatever it takes. Do I need to see a cosmetic dentist for other options? The dentist wouldn’t listen to me when I said I do not want my teeth pulled! Am I right in thinking that my other teeth that don’t have other problems shouldn’t be pulled out? Please tell me you have another option for me!

-Rebecca in Indiana

Rebecca,

Dentists vary on their experience and philosophies when it comes to saving teeth. This does not sound like the right approach or the right dentist for you. There are other options. But, it would not be in your best interest to try and convince this dentist of another treatment plan. He sounds pretty convinced that you need a partial denture. It’s time to get a second opinion because there are other ways to treat a situation like this one. Some dentists are happy to pull a tooth, since providing another treatment plans requires a higher skill level and in some case it means added risk. In other words, it’s time to move on.

It is difficult to give you specific recommendations without having seen your case in person. A partial denture is an inexpensive solution and since you mentioned you are willing to pay for the right treatment plan, you definitely need to explore your options. An expert cosmetic dentist may be able to put a porcelain crown over the broken tooth. But, depending on the complexity or severity of the tooth in question, a dental implant may be the best choice.

A dental implant is a permanent solution to replace a missing tooth. So, if it turns out that the tooth indeed does need to be extracted, an implant will look, feel and function just like a natural tooth. Also, it will not impact any of the surrounding healthy teeth. So, here’s what you should do. Get multiple opinions from reputable implant dentists in your area. Many will provide a free consultation for something like this. So, get at least a couple different opinions to determine if the tooth is salvageable or not. Then, you’ll be able to compare treatment plans and find a dentist that you can trust.

A broken front tooth isn’t an easy fix, but you don’t need to feel like you don’t have any options. You can rest assured that you have options. Don’t settle for substandard care or feel pushed into any kind of treatment.

This post is sponsored by Petaluma dentist Dr. Rick Lane.

I took my husband to a dentist because we know he needs to have a lot of work done. The dentist told us he should probably get his teeth replaced with dental implants. We don’t have a big budget and it seems like he is pushing for all-on-4 dental implants because that would be best in his situation.

We are wondering if a different dentist may give us other options. I want him to have the best quality of life, but it is so expensive.

We are even exploring dental care outside of the United States. It seems that all-on-4 implants are much more reasonable elsewhere. Is the final product the same?

He is miserable so if you know of other affordable options or if going out of the country will work, please let me know asap.

Thank you for your help.

-Carolyn in Idaho

Carolyn,

Thank you for your reaching out. It is difficult to understand if you have other options when a dentist is adamant about a particular treatment plan. It is always good to get a second opinion, especially with such an invasive treatment plan. The All-on-Four dental implants treatment is considered to be somewhat controversial. If this is the only option that the dentist provided you, then it would be wise to keep looking.

That said, it wouldn’t be in your best interest to go to another country for dental care. Even though it sounds like budget is a determining factor for your husband’s care, it’s not always the best to price shop with dentistry. Other countries do not have the regulations in place like we do here. The reason many other countries are so low priced is due to cutting corners or in using substandard materials. Many people jump at the opportunity because they think it is an equal product and end up with all sorts of problems. Then, in the long run it ends up costing more money and heartache than if the treatment was done here in the first place.

It is of course difficult to give you specific recommendations without having seen your husband in person. However, there are some other lower-cost tooth replacement alternatives that are worth looking into. For example, a snap-on denture or an implant overdenture that is supported by dental implants are very economical. These treatment plans only require the use of two dental implants. Think of it this way, the more dental implants your husband has, the more secure the denture would be. However, with each dental implant there will be an increase in the cost. But, using dental implants will provide him with a better quality of life than the problems he will deal with from a completely removable denture.

The all-on-4 technique has a high risk failure. If there is one takeaway from this it would be to get a second opinion or several more opinions from reputable implant dentists in your area. And also not to price shop when it comes to implant dentistry.

Thank you for reaching out. Best of luck to you both.

This post is sponsored by Petaluma dentist Dr. Rick Lane.

Broken front tooth and now they want to pull more.

Do I have to get all-on-4 dental implants?

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