Your leading source for cosmetic dentistry
information and referrals.

I can’t stop gagging wearing my upper denture

Posted on by .

Dr. Hall
I got an upper denture but can’t stop gagging. What can I do?
– Teri from Peoria, IL

(See Dr. Hall’s answer below.)


We thank our advertisers who help fund this site.




Teri,
That can be a tough problem, but let me suggest a couple of possible solutions.

drawing of an upper jaw with four implants embedded in the jawbone, and replacement teeth positioned ready to be fastened to themThe best and easiest solution would be to have an implant-supported denture. A removable denture, to get appropriate suction (because that is what holds it in), has to cover your entire hard palate. An implant-supported denture only needs to cover the gum tissue. So there would be no triggering of the gag reflex.

But, if that is beyond your budget, it may be possible to solve the gagging problem without going to implant support.

A photo of two dentures on plaster casts, one extended to the vibrating line and one cut to be short of that line

Screenshot

Ideally, the base of your denture should extend to the limits of your hard palate, to what we call the “vibrating line,” which is where your soft palate begins. If that makes you gag, it may be possible to get adequate suction without going back that far. A prosthodontist in Lancashire, England, Dr. Finlay Sutton, has published his technique for providing upper dentures to patients with an extreme gagging problem. On the left is his photo of two dentures on plaster casts. The upper shows the denture extended all the way to the vibrating line. The lower photo shows a denture trimmed to be short of that to accommodate patients with a severe gagging problem. It has to be trimmed expertly, because if it is trimmed too much or in the wrong places, it will weaken the suction too much to the point where the denture won’t stay in.

It is also possible that your dentist has made your denture to extend onto your soft palate, which is wrong for any patient. If you suspect that is the case (because you normally don’t have a gagging problem), I would get a second opinion.

– Dr. Hall

Do you have a comment or anything else to add? We’d love to hear from you. Enter your comment below. Or click here to ask Dr. Hall a question.

About David A. Hall

Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.

My crowns are making my gums bleed

Posted on by .

Dr. Hall,
So I had 8 crowns on top put on in 2021. They took them off last year, 2023, because they were causing my gums to swell and bleed.
So they took them back off and re-did them last July. I just got the second set taken back off a week ago because the same thing was happening. So I saw a periodontist and he said to keep my temps on for at least 3 months but the temps are just like the original ones. So I’m not sure if that’s going to help the gums heal?
I asked another doctor and he said they look too bulky and over-contoured up in the gums and aren’t fitting correctly on my real tooth. Do you think that is what’s causing it? I did a deep clean as well and the lady said she had to scrape some cement off up on the gum line.
I’m going to go get them re-done in Mexico here soon and showed them my x-rays so they have an idea. If they re-do them and they do them correctly will that help the gums de-swell do you think? Thanks!
– Ryan from Colorado

(See Dr. Hall’s answer below.)


We thank our advertisers who help fund this site.




Ryan,
Not seeing this for myself, I can’t tell you if your crowns are over-contoured, but that sounds like a reasonable explanation. Yes, if the crowns are over-contoured, that will usually cause gum inflammation—swelling, redness, and bleeding. Your teeth have natural contours that provide for optimum health, and a crown should replicate those natural contours.
line drawings showing two crowns. The overcontoured crown promotes food collecting.Here’s a drawing showing a normal contour of the crown on the left, and overcontouring of the crown on the right. The drawing doesn’t show a normal gumline—usually the margin of the crown will be under the gumline. Overcontouring of the crown causes two problems. First, it puts pressure on the gum. Second, it creates a trap for food particles under the bulge of the crown. Both of these contribute to irritation of the gums, causing gum disease which results in redness, swelling, and bleeding of the gums.
But that’s not the only problem. You said that the hygienist scraped off excess cement. The dentist who cemented the crown is supposed to clean off all excess cement before dismissing you. Not doing that is a major flub. To me, that level of sloppiness is unacceptable for dental care.
But I am puzzled by your going to Mexico to have this fixed. Really?! I would think that after getting burned by low-quality dental care, you would be averse to seeking bargain-basement dental care in Mexico. From stories I have received about Mexican dental care, I would not expect that you would get this properly fixed there.

Do you have a comment or anything else to add? We’d love to hear from you. Enter your comment below. Or click here to ask Dr. Hall a question.

About David A. Hall

Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.

Advice on how to drink soda

Posted on by .

Dr. Hall,
I have extensive damage to my teeth from years of drinking energy drinks, and now my gums are bleeding when I brush or floss. I think I might need dentures.
– Michelle from Florida

(See Dr. Hall’s answer below.)


We thank our advertisers who help fund this site.




Michelle,
Not being able to see you, I don’t know how much damage you’re talking about and whether or not you need dentures, but I’ll try to say some helpful things about your situation.

First, on decay from drinking sodas or anything sweet. I remember a study that was referenced when I was in dental school. There is some island in the South Seas where the people consumed high levels of sugar but had very little tooth decay, and investigators wanted to find out why. When they investigated, they found out that their sugar was from sweet drinks and it was consumed almost entirely at mealtimes. What they learned was that if the sugary drink was cleared quickly from your mouth it really didn’t contribute significantly to decay.

Where some people get in trouble with sugary drinks is when they let it sit in their mouth before swallowing it. I saw this in my practice. Decay would form around the necks of the back teeth, particularly on the insides of the lower molars. This is accentuated if you take little sips throughout the day and don’t swallow right away. And then when the dentist fills these decayed spots, if you continue this habit, you will keep getting new decay around the edges of the fillings.

You can drink the same drinks, but if you take bigger gulps and then just swallow rather than hold it in your mouth, it will greatly reduce the negative effect on your teeth, and you may not get any cavities in these spots. Think what you are doing when you drink a sugary drink—you are feeding the bacteria. The longer it sits there, the longer they have to feed.

And then about the bleeding gums. Bleeding gums are a symptom of gingivitis—the early stage of periodontal disease. Periodontal disease is also caused by bacteria. Change how you are feeding the bacteria, and keep your teeth clean with brushing and flossing and have them professionally cleaned regularly, and it should go away. Some people have a tendency, when their gums bleed, to stay away from the gums when they brush, but that is the exact opposite of what they need to do. You need to brush away the bacteria that are on your teeth right at the gumline in order for the gums to heal.

– Dr. Hall

Do you have a comment or anything else to add? We’d love to hear from you. Enter your comment below. Or click here to ask Dr. Hall a question.

About David A. Hall

Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.

My dentist says my crown is a mess

Posted on by .

I had a root canal done and then a permanent crown placed in the Schaumburg, IL, area, around 2013.

Now my dentist here in Dallas evaluated that the crown was a mess, I ended up replacing the crown now. Upon reaching out the office in Schaumburg the office told me there is no was even a single penny will be refunded for something that was done in 2013. I told them it is based upon a dentist review not my opinion.

– Meredith from Texas

(See Dr. Hall’s answer below.)


We thank our advertisers who help fund this site.




Meredith,
I agree that expecting a refund on an 11-year-old crown is a little much. You got 11 years of service out of the crown, so I think it was worth it. But let me add a couple of additional comments related to your question.

The way you put the opinion of your Dallas dentist, that the “crown was a mess,” raised a red flag with me. If that is the terminology that your dentist used, I’m suspicious. There’s a sense of professional courtesy in the dental profession to be gentle with our criticism of another dentist’s work. Yes, there is an obligation to the patient to be honest about work that needs to be re-done. But there are gentle ways and harsh ways to criticize. Some dentists, however, purposely exaggerate problems with previous work as a way to persuade you to re-do their work. Fortunately, it’s a small minority of dentists who do that, but there are some. And then, if it truly was “a mess,” why did it take 11 years for it to give you any trouble? A poorly done crown will either hurt, or fall off, or will leak new decay within a couple of years or so. Now, I’m not saying that your crown was fine, I’m just saying that maybe it was or maybe it wasn’t.

I’d also like to address the question of longevity of dental work. How long should you expect a crown to last? Dental insurance companies have established a standard. They expect a crown to last at least five years, and if it doesn’t they won’t pay benefits to replace it. If a crown doesn’t last that long, it would be reasonable to expect some concession from the dentist that placed it, maybe even free replacement. But a well-done crown in the mouth of a patient who takes good care of their teeth could last much longer than that. I have several crowns in my mouth that are over thirty years old, and I expect them to last for many years yet. But I had one crown that lasted only about five years, and I didn’t even mention it to the dentist that did it.

There are too many variables to expect a dentist to place a warranty on dental work. An important factor is how well a patient takes care of the work. If they are a frequent snacker, even quality work can develop recurrent decay around the edges.

– Dr. Hall

Do you have a comment or anything else to add? We’d love to hear from you. Enter your comment below. Or click here to ask Dr. Hall a question.

About David A. Hall

Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.

The dentist wants to extract all my teeth

Posted on by .

I’m a 41-year-old female with periodontitis and severe bone loss. I went years without dental insurance and checkups. I recently started seeing a dentist who performed two scaling and root planing appointments. The hygienist saw improvement, with pink gums and my deepest pocket was 9mm. She recommended I see a periodontist for follow-up and maintenance cleanings, which I did three weeks later.

However, the periodontist made me feel terrible about myself. She measured pocket depths up to 12mm and noted blood and pus between my gums and teeth on nearly all my teeth. How could the pocket depths change so drastically in just three weeks? She said my teeth wouldn’t withstand laser treatment and recommended extracting all of them, stating that even with implants, I could still get gum disease.

I feel that as a dentist, her role is to help save as many teeth as possible. Shouldn’t I have been prescribed antibiotics for the pus and blood? Shouldn’t she have offered treatments like perio trays to address the pockets? I feel defeated and devastated at the thought of losing my smile, which has always been my best attribute.

I’m desperate for advice and would appreciate any guidance. Thank you.

– Jessica from Colorado Springs

(See Dr. Hall’s answer below.)


We thank our advertisers who help fund this site.




Jessica,
I doubt that your pocket increased from 9 mm to 12 mm in three weeks. There are a couple of reasons for discrepancies in the measurement of pockets. When you have periodontal disease, there will be deposits of tartar on the roots of the teeth, and a dentist or hygienist can hit one of those with the periodontal probe and think they have reached the bottom of the pocket. Also, when the tissue is badly inflamed, it can be easy to poke through it and think that the pocket is deeper than it actually is.

While I’m not going to be able to tell you who is more accurate in assessing your condition, there are a couple of things about your experience with the periodontist that bother me.

First is the blanket recommendation that all your teeth should be extracted. Advanced periodontitis is serious, but to go from having all your teeth to saying all of them are hopeless is a diagnosis that I find hard to believe. A tooth that is hopeless is going to be loose. It doesn’t sound to me like all your teeth are loose.

Second is the eagerness to give up without giving your teeth time to respond to therapy. If you had been faithful and regular with dental care and still had advanced periodontal disease, I would be more receptive to a hopeless diagnosis. But you admit that you went years without professional care. It’s not all that surprising that the condition of your gums is poor. Why not give you the best care we can, see how you do with your home care, and see what we can save?

Dentists vary a lot in their commitment to saving teeth. Some will do everything they can to save a tooth. For others, extracting a tooth is the easy way out. A periodontist is supposed to be a specialist in saving teeth, so it is surprising to me that your periodontist is so willing to give up on all of them. The way your periodontist made you feel telegraphs to me a lack of caring.

Now, maybe your periodontist is right and the condition of your teeth is that bad. But I would recommend getting another opinion. You’re in Colorado Springs where there are a number of periodontists. I would look them up and read some of their online reviews, and see if you can find one who cares deeply about their patients and seems to be committed to helping them save their teeth. You seem to be very willing to do what you can to save your teeth and I would think an excellent periodontist would very much enjoy working with you to try to accomplish that.

– Dr. Hall

Do you have a comment or anything else to add? We’d love to hear from you. Enter your comment below. Or click here to ask Dr. Hall a question.

About David A. Hall

Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.

Am I allergic to my partial denture?

Posted on by .

Dr. Hall,
I had a plastic partial plate on my lower, to replace two missing teeth. Since getting it, I have had burning on my tongue, below my tongue, and an extremely bad taste. My lip also burns. The dentist told me I was allergic to the plate. I ask if there was a different material he could use and he said no and said I need over $4000 for a bridge.

I can not afford that. I am hurting so bad. I need help. Is there an alternative product to use? Food taste horrible. He gave me a liquid compound with Lidocaine, Viscous (Lidocaine Hydrochloride Oral Topical Solution USP). It numbs my mouth and lasts for approximately 15 minutes.

– Lynda from Tulsa, OK

(See Dr. Hall’s answer below.)


We thank our advertisers who help fund this site.




Lynda,
I’m not getting a good feeling about your dentist. While it looks like he is right that you are having an allergic reaction, I have two problems with what he is telling you.

First, there are several different materials that can be used to make a partial plate. Yes, you could have a fixed bridge to replace your teeth, and that would solve your problem. But to try to push you into that when you can’t afford it and there are other options available, I have a problem with that approach.

Second, to prescribe a lidocaine rinse for your allergy seems really strange. As you said, it gives you relief for about 15 minutes. Does he expect you to rinse 50 times a day? I don’t understand that. If you’re allergic to your partial you should leave it out until you can find a material that doesn’t cause an allergic reaction.

I would tell your dentist that I told you there are other materials that can be used for your partial. If he is willing to work with you, I would go to an allergist for tests to find a material that won’t cause an allergic reaction. Your medical insurance should cover that, so hopefully that will be affordable for you. If your dentist won’t work with you on that, I’d find another dentist.

Your Allergy to Your Partial

About your allergy. First, your symptoms are classic symptoms of allergy. This type of allergy is called contact dermatitis. The burning feeling in your tongue and your lips are classic symptoms.

But what is the material? There are a couple of common materials that could be used in a plastic partial. The one more likely to give you an allergic reaction would be acrylic. This is the cheapest material for a partial and the easiest to make.

photograph of a removable partial denture replacing three back teeth on each side of the mouth, made entirely of plastic

A Valplast Partial

Most plastic partials, however, would be made out of a thermoplastic resin such as Valplast. These resins are stronger and more flexible than acrylic, so they are better suited for making partials. I can’t find a report of any allergy to Valplast. The material is a very inert material made from a nylon resin. But I would hesitate to tell you that it is impossible for you to be allergic to Valplast. I have seen some very unusual allergies. But, from your description of your reaction, my guess is that your partial is acrylic.

If there is any metal in your partial, that could also be a source of allergy. If the metal has nickel in it, that is a common allergy. Other dental metals have been known to cause an allergy.

I hope this is helpful.
– Dr. Hall

Do you have a comment or anything else to add? We’d love to hear from you. Enter your comment below. Or click here to ask Dr. Hall a question.

About David A. Hall

Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.

Death from a tooth infection – a sad story

Posted on by .

After repeated questions from people who were tempted to just nurse along a dental infection and not get it fully treated, I decided to research to find out about people who have died from dental infections. A study published in the Journal of Endodontics about ten years ago reported 66 deaths from tooth infections during 2000-2008. That works out to about five to ten deaths per year in the United States from dental infections.

Then I also found a story from 2017 that is particularly instructive of the danger of just taking antibiotics to tamp down the infection without getting the needed treatment of a root canal or an extraction. I’ll share that below.


We thank our advertisers who help fund this site.




This story was reported by the Sacramento Bee, and then also by Fox News and some others.

Vadim Kondratyuk Anatoliyevich, age 26, was a father of two little girls and a long haul truck driver from Antelope, California. He took off for New York with a hauling job in the middle of January, 2017. His wife said his tooth was hurting when he left. It got worse, so he stopped in Oklahoma and saw a dentist. The dentist prescribed antibiotics and sent him on his way. The pain got better but then got worse, and the side of his face swelled up. He made his delivery, but it got so bad that he couldn’t make the drive home. So his brother flew to New York to drive him home. On the way, Vadim’s condition worsened. His breathing became labored and he grew pale, so his brother took him to a hospital in Utah where he was placed on oxygen and then flown to a larger facility in Salt Lake City.

His condition was life-threatening because the infection had spread to his blood and lungs. Doctors in Salt Lake City prescribed stronger antibiotics and put him on dialysis. But they soon determined that they wouldn’t be able to save him. They notified his wife that he kept getting worse and nothing they did was working. She was able to fly in and say goodbye before he died.

My Comments:

The important point I want to get across here is that it is dangerous to treat a tooth infection by just giving antibiotics. The source of the infection is dead tissue inside the tooth. Since there is no blood circulation there, there is no way for antibiotics to get in and eradicate the infection. Therefore, you end up helping to breed antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Vadim, while he was otherwise healthy, was diabetic, which made him more vulnerable to infections. It’s hard to be too critical of the dentist in Oklahoma, because he was dealing with a transient who wouldn’t be around to complete the treatment, and some family practice dentists don’t do any root canals. But what he should have done, in retrospect, was at least begin root canal treatment and maybe sealed a disinfectant inside the tooth.

And what Vadim should have done was address his toothache when he first felt it.

Anyway, here is a listing of some of my earlier blog posts that warn about trying to treat a tooth infection with just antibiotics:

– Dr. Hall

Do you have a comment or anything else to add? We’d love to hear from you. Enter your comment below. Or click here to ask Dr. Hall a question.

About David A. Hall

Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.

An infected tooth, and no money

Posted on by .

Hello Dr. Hall
My face is swollen on my right side and the teeth inside have cavities. It’s been swollen about a month. I ate something yesterday that made it hurt and it has swollen a lot more and hurts now. I understand I need a dentist but I can’t afford one as I just got laid off my job. Any advice for me on how to care for this issue at home? I live in Orangeburg, South Carolina and I have no car or no help to a dentist but I’ve heard from friends none of the dentists around my city will work with payment. So what do I do?? My credit ain’t worth a crap either so I’m screwed but I feel something is really wrong. Really worried. Please help me somehow. Thanks. I clean for a living. I can clean anything from top to bottom. Any advice please help.
– April from Orangeburg, SC

(see Dr. Hall’s answer below)


We thank our advertisers who help fund this site.




April,
I get questions like this from time to time and I’ve told people to call around and ask dental offices where their local charity dental clinic is. But, from the lack of response I get, I’m thinking people, maybe for shyness, don’t want to do that, or maybe they just don’t believe me. I decided to take this a step further with you and do the research to find such a clinic, because I’m worried about you. A dental infection that is starting to cause facial swelling is nothing to sit back and just watch. Five to ten people each year die from dental infections. Some people think that they can just take antibiotics. While that works for most infections, the source of a dental infection like this is

photo of the building entrance to Family Health Centers

Family Health Centers in Orangeburg, SC

usually a tooth where the pulp tissue has died. Since your blood can’t reach the inside of a dead tooth, what you do with just antibiotics is cultivate an antibiotic-resistant infection, and it will most certainly come back and then be much more dangerous.

Orangeburg has a population of only about 14,000 and it is the county seat of Orangeburg county which has about 84,000 people. But still I found a clinic that does charity dental work. It’s a non-profit called Family Health Centers, and they provide a variety of health-related services, including dentistry.

Dentists tend to be people who wanted a profession where they could help people, and many dentists will volunteer time at these clinics. In larger cities where they have a dental school, dental students will volunteer there to get more experience. They won’t do elaborate treatments like root canals or crowns, but they will place temporary fillings, maybe even some permanent fillings, and do extractions. Getting treatment for an infection like this that is starting to invade your body could save your life.

Here’s a post I wrote about a tragic death from an incompletely treated tooth infection.

– Dr. Hall

Do you have a comment or anything else to add? We’d love to hear from you. Enter your comment below. Or click here to ask Dr. Hall a question.

Photo of the Family Health Centers bus that serves as their mobile dental clinic

They even provide a mobile dental clinic, which I imagine will travel throughout the county.

About David A. Hall

Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.

Does this root canal need to be re-done?

Posted on by .

Hello Dr. Hall,
I had a root canal on my upper right canine. The temporary filling came out and an abscess developed on my gum. I returned to my dentist’s office. He said I needed a second root canal to address the abscess. The abscess is not painful unless I press on the affected area. Is the abscess “toxic” and would antibiotics work or just the 2nd root canal?

Thank you for your attention,
-Mark Mesi

(See Dr. Hall’s answer below.)


We thank our advertisers who help fund this site.




Mark,
Yes, you absolutely need to have this root canal treatment re-done.

Let me start by explaining what I believe happened. I’m going to read between the lines here since you didn’t give me all the details. You said the temporary filling came out. I want to explain why this causes a problem.

When a dentist does a root canal treatment on an infected tooth, the infection is cleaned out of the inside of the tooth and the root is then sealed with a filling material and cement. The seal needs to be protected or bacteria will get back into the tooth and the infection will return. To protect the tooth, a temporary filling will be placed at the end of your root canal appointment. If the root canal filling isn’t protected from saliva, it won’t take long for the saliva to seep into the filling and break the seal. So the temporary filling is placed and you should then be scheduled for final restoration of the tooth—usually a crown, or sometimes just a filling may do.

So it looks like someone didn’t follow through here and the temporary filling, being just temporary, came out. These temporary fillings are purposely made so that they are very easy to take out. Now your root canal treatment was exposed to saliva. Over a period of several days, the saliva will break down the seal of the root canal and the infection will return.

About the Antibiotics

You asked if you could just treat this with antibiotics and avoid re-treatment. Here’s why that won’t work. When you take antibiotics, they get into your bloodstream to fight the infection. However, there is no blood circulation inside your tooth, so antibiotics cannot get there to remove the infection. They can temporarily eliminate the abscess in your gum and bone, but as soon as you stop taking them the abscess will return. To complicate things, by taking the antibiotics you will be helping breed antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which is a very risky thing.

Since this doesn’t hurt, can you just leave it alone? Infections in your jawbone, particularly in the upper jaw, are risky in that they can spread to your eye or your brain. I wouldn’t mess with that. There is a famous story of a boy in Maryland who died from a tooth infection about 15 years ago.

Furthermore, with oral bacteria having an undisturbed existence inside your tooth, decay will begin to grow there from the inside out and, in time, your tooth will be unrestorable.

Just get it fixed.

– Dr. Hall

Do you have a comment or anything else to add? We’d love to hear from you. Enter your comment below. Or click here to ask Dr. Hall a question.

About David A. Hall

Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.

I can’t afford implants. Can someone help me?

Posted on by .

Dr. Hall,
Like so many other people, I need but can’t afford implants. My only option is dentures and I’m just not ready for that. If I was older I wouldn’t care but I’m 33, look better than ever (aside from my teeth) and have more confidence than I’ve ever had. Until I smile. The depression is unreal. I’ve trained myself to be less happy, to laugh less, just to avoid showing my teeth. I’ve been searching for some kind of miracle online in the form of assistance in the cost but I’ve found nothing. I see videos of people getting implants and I just wonder if they had to pay for them because they use the video for advertising. And if that is something that would be free if I signed a contract that allows for it to be used in advertising for the company because I would do it in a heartbeat. I can’t even go get a consultation without crying my eyes out so I’m at the point I just want to give up. Is there any way to apply for something like that? To receive assistance or have it covered if I allow it all to be used for media and advertising? Is there any way to get that help without just luck of the draw? I can’t take this depression much longer. My son deserves to see his mom smile.
– Mika from Oklahoma

(See Dr. Hall’s answer below.)


We thank our advertisers who help fund this site.


Mika,
I wish I had a better answer for you, but the reality is that to get dental implants you’re going to have to pay for them. I’ll explain why. But I also have some suggestions for making them more affordable.

On the idea of getting the implants in exchange for being an advertising subject, the reason that doesn’t happen is that good dentists have no trouble getting endorsements from their paying patients.

But here are some ideas for making this treatment be more affordable:

  • You could be a teaching subject for a dental implants course. Dental schools that teach implant dentistry need patients to be subjects, and they will offer a discounted fee in return for your being willing to put up with the inconvenience of being treated by students.
  • There are a couple of affordable implant options, such as a snap-on denture that uses only two implants, or the use of mini implants that are much easier to place.
  • You could get the removable denture now and begin saving up to later have it supported by implants. Spacing it out like that could maybe help you fit the treatment into your budget.

There is a lot of charity dentistry that goes on. Many cities have charity clinics that cater to people who can’t afford regular dental care. However, if you have no teeth, they will want to give you a removable denture and won’t get into any dental implants treatment. The thinking is that up until about 30 years ago removable dentures were the standard of care and that should be good enough.

I wish I had better answers for you. See if any of these options make it easier for you.
– Dr. Hall

Do you have a comment or anything else to add? We’d love to hear from you. Enter your comment below. Or click here to ask Dr. Hall a question.

About David A. Hall

Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.

Categories

Follow this blog

Get every new post delivered right to your inbox.