HELP!!!! my teeth are falling out

[homealone]

i have been taken high doses of liquid morphine due to a severe back problem lasting 5 yrs, over last 18 months i am constantly in dentist having fillings done or crowns or root fillings. 3 months ago it felt like one of my bottom front teeth was falling luckily that day had an appointment anyway to finsih fitting a crown. when dentist looked and scrapped about a bit it turned out that there was still little bit of tooth left at bottom. after several weeks and visits she placed a badly matching crown, she said she wanted to see how it went before either sending it back for a better colour or it may need a false tooth or implant. reason being had similar problem at top row back and even after root filling etc i was still in pain so she removed it. was no big loss at time as was at back and could not be seen. well this one was not feeling right and still hurts when i touch it with my tongue. that was 6 weeks ago and although i knew i needed to back and decide what to do i was just enjoying a few weeks without visiting dentist. THEN this evening ran tongue across back of top front tooth and it felt like something stuck when i looked properly i could see and feel tooth really loose and falling out from the back of tooth which i can slide back in place but i know if i was to bite on something it would come out as it barely hanging on, what can i do?? dont know if i will be able to see dentist tomorrow but even if i can what can she do besides pull it out, cant exactly be stuck back in. now i am sat here crying my eyes out invisioni 2 false teeth both at front. teeth yellowed since illness and am so upset what will i do implants cost £1500 each and at rate i am losing them it seems a waste of money as will end up with all falsies before i know it. also what do i do till i get to dentist just push it back in place till i am seen???

[Toothsmith]

Can't answer this precisely, as I don't know what's gone on.

Get back to your dentist ASAP.

How often do you take the morphine? What times of day?

If this is a sugary medicine, and you're taking it just before bed - it could well explain all your dental problems. Ask your dr if there is a sugar free version.

[homealone]

Can't answer this precisely, as I don't know what's gone on.

Get back to your dentist ASAP.

How often do you take the morphine? What times of day?

If this is a sugary medicine, and you're taking it just before bed - it could well explain all your dental problems. Ask your dr if there is a sugar free version.


went to dentist the following day and tooth slipped down and looked almost hollow all that was lef in gum was a chalky substance which i later found out was tooth. to save me looking even worse she glued it back in and i have an appointment thursday for her to start root canal treatment where she is hoping to then attach a crown. it is 2nd tooth in 3 months and she said if i lived rough my teeth would not deteriate this quick. she hopes it will work but thinks i may end up with needing 2 false teeth. i was taking liquid morphine which did taste a bit sugary for about 18 months that was about 4 years ago. i now take it in tablet form and have morphine patches on. she x-rays them at least every 6 weeks but nothing shows up at time. doctors have denied its the medication but my dentist does not believe it. i do smoke 30 a day now which i know makes it worse and my mouth is also extremely dry due to the morpine and i should suck pastilles to produce saliva which until recently i was not doing very often and i now try chewing sugar free gum orbit alot to try and increase the saliva, thanks for your input

[Toothsmith]

Having 6 weekly x-rays isn't doing you much good. But then, compared to 30 a day - it's hardly a problem.

Fags will also dry your mouth, and cause your teeth to fall out anyway.

What's in the pastilles?

Personally, with a medical history like this, your teeth are going to be a perpetual source of problems, and I'd be seriously suggesting we planned our way towards full dentures.

It's time to stop smoking. No excuses.

[homealone]

Having 6 weekly x-rays isn't doing you much good. But then, compared to 30 a day - it's hardly a problem.

Fags will also dry your mouth, and cause your teeth to fall out anyway.

What's in the pastilles?

Personally, with a medical history like this, your teeth are going to be a perpetual source of problems, and I'd be seriously suggesting we planned our way towards full dentures.

It's time to stop smoking. No excuses.

the pastilles are called salivix and contain gum arabic, lycasin, calcium, lactose. sodium phosphare, xylitol, malic acid, flavouring, colour E106c and are sugar free. i was smoking 20 a day before i had my accident and had no problems with my teeth, do they really make that much difference. dentist has also suggested i use durophat toothpaste. have appointment tomorrow so will post how it goes. i did myself say about whole set of false teeth but she said bit drastic at this stage still have lots of healthy teeth apparently. but am not so sure myself

[Toothsmith]

Right - those pastilles are fine.

We do need to find out whether the morphine is sugar free or not though. That's still my favourite for the cause of the decay.

Smoking does adversly affect your teeth. More particularly the gums. It will contribute to the dry mouth, which is robbing you of your decay protection, but it will be badly affecting the way the teeth are supported. So even if you get on top of the decay, and the damage it's caused, your teeth will still be at risk.

I'm sorry to hear it's an accident that got you into this state, but smoking will only be hindering any attempt your body is trying to make at healing itself.

You MUST stop.

[homealone]

Right - those pastilles are fine.

We do need to find out whether the morphine is sugar free or not though. That's still my favourite for the cause of the decay.

Smoking does adversly affect your teeth. More particularly the gums. It will contribute to the dry mouth, which is robbing you of your decay protection, but it will be badly affecting the way the teeth are supported. So even if you get on top of the decay, and the damage it's caused, your teeth will still be at risk.

I'm sorry to hear it's an accident that got you into this state, but smoking will only be hindering any attempt your body is trying to make at healing itself.

You MUST stop.

will need to stop soon anyway as i am having a gastric bypass so heres hoping it will make a difference

[Toothsmith]

Good grief - you are going through it!!!

I suppose you get the feling that having a fag "is your only pleasure". I always remember a medical student I used to share a house with when we were training.

He'd come home from the pulmonary ward where there was a 55 yr old who looked 85, sat in a chair connected to an oxygen bottle. Blue as a very blue thing, hardly able to move unaided, and asking a nurse to wheel him outside for a cigarrette. "It's my only pleasure" he said.

[Teerah]

We do need to find out whether the morphine is sugar free or not though. That's still my favourite for the cause of the decay.



I vote for the dry mouth +/- contributing dietary factors.

Definitely get on the duraphat toothpaste homealone and I echo TS sentiments regarding the smoking.

[homealone]

i went to dentist two weeks ago and she started treatment on me and cemented a false tooth in place while a crown? is being done and last night whilst eating scrambled something in back of my mouth felt strange then very sharp and now i find my bottom left tooth on the very end has cracked in half. i would have scramed but back was hurting too much. am trying now to put up with sharpness until next appointment on 21st november god knows how many more i will lose?????????

[Steph998]

Fags will also dry your mouth, and cause your teeth to fall out anyway.
You MUST stop.


Fags cause your teeth to fall out? I know smoking effects blood flow and circulation, therefore affecting healing.....and one should never smoke after extraction (infection, dry socket) but my parents are both in their eighties, with full sets of, admittedly yellow - but healthy teeth ....and both have smoked since they were teenagers.

Genetic luck, perhaps?

[Toothsmith]

Just making it to their 80s puts them outside the usual averages for smokers.

Just because a couple of people buck a trend, doesn't mean there isn't a trend.

I make a lot of dentures for smokers.

[donteatthat]

Me too. Smoking wrecks mouths.

[homealone]

if at the moment i cant give up smoking it there anything i can do that may slow down the process?

[Toothsmith]

Excellent toothbrushing and seeing a good hygienist could put off the inevitable for a year or two.

The problem is, the longer you hang on to teeth with active gum disease going on, the more bone you loose, so ultimatly the less successful the dentures that replace your teeth will be.

If giving up really is a problem, then it's probably better to get rid of the teeth whilst you stll have some bone to support the denture.

[homealone]

well i am trying to brush them when i have anything sweet but guess i will just have to take extra care

[coldstreamalways]

I think the salivix may have a fair erosive potential. I can't remember if it's one of the ones better used in edentulous patients.

Anyway homealone, you need to persevere with your dental treatment, I bet your dentist's heart sinks every time you break something, just as you do! Try to be ultra careful with your teeth whilst you are undergoing treatment as they will be at their weakest with temporary restorations in.

Also don't be too aghast at the thought of full dentures, they can be a whole lot more comfortable (not to mention cheaper) than what you are undergoing at present.

Steph998, every dentist on here (I don't know how many of us there are) will tell you that smokers mouths are pretty bad no matter how many teeth they have got (not to mention smelly). Smoking ruins your body. Full stop.

Homealone- you will get there in the end!

[Toothsmith]

well i am trying to brush them when i have anything sweet but guess i will just have to take extra care

Brushing after something sweet won't help, and might make matters worse.

When you have something sweet, the bugs in your mouth produce acid (It's the waste product of them digesting the sugar as well).

This acid dissolves away a tiny surface layer from your teeth, leaving a softer surface layer.

Given a bit of time, the calcium and phosphate ions in your saliva can harden this layer up again.

BUT.

If you attack that softened layer with a toothbrush, you'll rub it away, and give the saliva nothing to repair.

I would wait a good 45 min after eating before brushing your teeth.

[Steph998]

Just wanted to add I was not excusing smoking. Tobacco IMO is one of the most stupid and harmful 'pleasures' ever discovered. Yes, I suppose there must always exceptions to the rule. I am sure my parents are glad of that as they bite into their apples of a morning. Not to mention as they exchange their smelly kisses :)