i have had many fillings on my tooth would an implant be better

Q. Hi doctor, I have had a five year ongoing saga with one tooth (lower jaw third from back). I had a gold filing for over ten years untill it needed replacing. It was replaced with a white filing which sensitized the tooth. A root filing was done but some of the root was left in which resulted in numerous visits to dentist and dental hospital till discovered and removed. A white inlay was applied which was too high, when removed the tooth had fractured. All that is now left is the front wall of the tooth. A new white inlay was fitted , which has come out twice this year. I feel unable to eat normally on this side. I finally came to terms with having the tooth out but when I discussed this with my dentist he suggests just filing it! This has been a lenthly and expensive time. I am now considering my options and wondered about an implant as my other teeth are in good condition. I would very much appreciate an experts opinion.

A. Some teeth would be suitable for salvage even at this stage. You would need a  exam to find out. It would not be unreasonable to seek a second opinion from another dentist. I agree that spending more money on a tooth that has shown poor return is not appealing, but I wouldnt know what to suggest unless I had personally seen tooth

Implants are one of the options if teeth cannot be saved. You need a good volume healthy bone and from your description of the site I would recommend a 3D / CT scan prior to implant surgery as there are some important nerves/ vessels in this area that you need to avoid and affect available space

Our practice offers a free initial assesment with a dentist from which we could make more specific comments

Dr Rob Tennet
www.e-dentalpractice.co.uk
stjohns.dental@btconnect.com
0121 643 0610

dr rob tennet

Dr Rob Tennet
St Johns Dental Practice
www.e-dentalpractice.co.uk
Tel: 0121 643 0610
18 Bennett’s Hill
Birmingham B2 5QJ

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This post was published on Tuesday, July 22nd, 2008 at 1:25 amand is filed under Dr Tennet's Answers, Experts Answers, Q. Broken teeth, Q. Dental Implants, Q. Missing teeth. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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