I had to get a tooth pulled. The dentist gave me shots for the procedure but I’m telling you it felt like the shot went through a nerve or something. I had trouble getting numb and he was not very compassionate about it. Ever since then, my mouth has had a burning feeling. My dentist said that was normal for a bit. We went ahead with the dental implant procedure. Each time I was in his chair I mentioned the burning mouth. Eventually, he said that I had thrush and gave me a prescription for it. That never helped at all. Then, a few months later it was time for the dental implant crown. I got the kind you screwed on and it hurt so bad that he had to stop and give me several pain shots. Now, about two months later, the crown just fell off. I wasn’t sure I trusted this dentist any longer so I went to a different dentist. That dentist told me the implant was infected and that is why the crown fell off. He wants to me to come back and have it completely removed and then get a dental bridge. What should I do?
Brienna
Dear Brienna,
I am so sorry that this happened to you. The dental implant industry is not very regulated. In fact, it is not even a recognized specialty. That means it is up to the dentist how much training they receive after dental school to do this very advanced procedure.
I’ll be honest that I do not think you are with the best dentist. He completely lacks compassion for one. That is never a characteristic you want in your dentist. Second, he didn’t recognize that your dental anxiety was making it difficult to get you numb. At that point giving you some dental sedation would have relaxed you enough to have a much easier appointment. Third, he misdiagnosed the burning that you are feeling. He should have realized that as well when the medication he prescribed for you did nothing.
Unfortunately, I do not have much confidence in the second dentist you went to see either. If the dental implant were infected, you would have noticed it being at least a little loose. You seemed totally taken by surprise with the dental crown falling off, so I have a hard time believing that the implant was loose.
I would like you to get an opinion by yet another dentist. This time look for someone with advanced dental implant training. For instance, if they did some post-doctoral training at some place like the Dawson Academy or LVI. Both of those institutions have great dental implant training.
Hopefully, your implant can be saved. However, even if it can’t, that does not mean that you have to get a dental bridge. You could have some bone grafting done to build back up the bone and then try again with another implant. If you don’t feel like going through all that, then a dental bridge will be a perfectly acceptable alternative.
This blog is brought to you by Auburn, AL Dentists Drs. Murphree and Yount.