Dentist conversation - reasonable?

boots_babe

Hi,

First to say, I am not asking for or expecting medical advice here. What I'm seeking is views on whether the conversation I've had today with my dentist is normal/reasonable, as I really wasn't sure. If the consensus is yes then I'll leave be, but if not then I will consider seeing another dentist (which would have to be privately as there are no other NHS ones here).

A few weeks ago I noticed a corner of my wisdom tooth had broken away, where I previously had quite a large filling. Today I had an appointment to get it dealt with. It's a new dentist so I don't know them yet.

She said to just leave it as is, and 'hopefully will be ok'. Fair enough. I asked her whether leaving it would put the longer term viability of the filling at risk. She shrugged, laughed, then said ' who knows?' with a big smile on her face. This threw me somewhat! Not really the professional opinion I was after.

I tried again, saying that I was keen to get her advice, as I wanted to do what I could to preserve the filling as best as possible. She said 'oh well if you have any problems, we'll just extract it for you'.

It's a wisdom tooth, and I know quite a few people who have had all sorts of issues after an extraction of one, so it's something I'm particularly keen to avoid if I can. I said to her that I thought wisdom tooth extractions could be more challenging than normal teeth and so would like to do what I can do preserve it, she just laughed again and said that no, they were simple to do.

I think it's not so much what she said, but her manner, that has thrown me here. She didn't seem to take things seriously, didn't give me any confidence with her laughing/'whatever' approach.

Had my old dentist said this, I think I'd take him at his word, as I trust him, and he would have given me confidence in his advice, as he would have spoken to me professionally. I don't know this new person, and I guess am just after some reassurance that the advice she gave me was potentially sensible. I know nobody can comment fully without seeing my teeth! But just after a sense of whether for example, saying that wisdom teeth extractions are simple, is something you'd expect a trustworthy dentist to say.

Sorry for rambling on, struggling to articulate my uneasiness, she just didn't come across as professional which is making me feel that I shouldn't take her advice. Many thanks.

Soot2006

Definitely sounds like your new dentist's bedside manner could be better, but do you have any reason to doubt her expertise? Online reviews, etc!

For what it's worth, I've had my two top wisdom teeth out without any problems at all. In my case, it was elective as they were impacted and causing crowding but no pain (yet); my dentist at the time removed them there and then and there was no complications at all. So, they definitely CAN be simple, even if some of your friends have had other experiences.

boots_babe

Thanks for replying. Good to know someone has had a trouble free wisdom tooth extraction! Don't get me wrong, if that's what I need, I'll have it done. It's just that it felt more like she was chatting about what colour nail varnish to use, than a medical question about the longevity of my teeth! In my mind extraction should be a last resort, but the message I got was that there was no point fixing the filling, because if any problems arose it was easy to remove the tooth.

You make a good point about looking her up for reviews. I don't actually know her name as when I booked I was sent an email and SMS appointment confirmation, but no name details. So I will need to call up to ask for her name.

I don't want to be that unreasonable person that stalks straight off for a second opinion, that's why I posted on here. But she did seem quite blase about removing my tooth.

Toothsmith

It doesn't sound like anything she's told you is wrong. She could probably have put it a bit better though!

Upper wisdom teeth tend to be very badly placed for both cleaning effectively and access for getting fillings into! They also often contribute very little to your chewing. However they also tend to have quite dumpy little roots, and can come out pretty easily. It's very often much easier, and better, to take one out than it is to fill it. 

With wisdom tooth extractions, you tend to hear a lot more about the bad ones than the good ones, as people like sharing their stories of bad wisdom teeth extractions than the ones when they just pop out easily! So they do get a bit of a bad press!

boots_babe

Thanks Toothsmith. That is somewhat reassuring.

Emily_Joy

Is the tooth still alive, i.e. have you had root canal treatment for it? If it is still alive, then your dentist is probably right. If it is dead, than the dentist should have recommended a crown.

boots_babe

No root canal treatment, it is just a standard filling.

ammiLy

Hi Boots_babe.

Having spoken to a few dentists about it, my understanding of how wisdom teeth are treated is same as what Toothsmith has said. Wisdom teeth cause problems as people often are unable to clean them properly, they crowd out other teeth and most often it makes more sense to remove rather than repair.

In terms of the attitude of the dentist in question, was she trying to come across as friendly and approachable? I find more professionals do this nowadays as historically they were seen as very stiff and patients would not share essential information, ask important questions or just went to alternative "doctors" who are perceived as much better listeners. I would give her time and see if I can get used to her approach. Especially if your teeth are generally in good order and you don't need frequent or ongoing treatment.

boots_babe

Hi ammiLy, thanks for your reply. In terms of whether the dentist was trying to be friendly, I really don't know, but she very much didn't come across that way. The impression she gave me was that she didn't want to engage in any discussion, or give advice, and was just waving away my question. Whether that's because she didn't know or couldn't be bothered I'm not sure, but either way, not good.  

Given the feedback on this thread I decided to take the advice given and not seek a second opinion. But I must admit, I'm really not looking forward to my next check up if it's with the same dentist, as she just didn't give me the impression she was knowledgeable or could be trusted.

Undervalued

boots_babe said:

Hi ammiLy, thanks for your reply. In terms of whether the dentist was trying to be friendly, I really don't know, but she very much didn't come across that way. The impression she gave me was that she didn't want to engage in any discussion, or give advice, and was just waving away my question. Whether that's because she didn't know or couldn't be bothered I'm not sure, but either way, not good.  

Given the feedback on this thread I decided to take the advice given and not seek a second opinion. But I must admit, I'm really not looking forward to my next check up if it's with the same dentist, as she just didn't give me the impression she was knowledgeable or could be trusted.

Many years ago my late mother, who had many long term medical problems, was visited at home at least weekly by a "wonderful" GP. You couldn't have met a nicer doctor and my mother thought the world of them. However, her various conditions got progressively worse.

The regular GP was on holiday and she was instead visited by an older, frankly abrasive, individual. He quickly and  correctly diagnosed the latest serious issue, which had totally eluded the doctor with the "wonderful" bedside manner!

Grumpy_chap

It sounds as though the new Dentist could have a better bedside manner but hopefully you will both grow to understand each other.

I have only joined the thread to say that I had all four wisdom teeth extracted and it was absolutely painless with no issues or concerns at all.
I had been filled with tales of woe ahead of time and was frankly full of dread when going in, so I understand how the OP feels. 
I suppose it is like anything; a vast majority of easy cases but a small number of cases where there is pain or discomfort are the ones we hear about.  Possibly.  Unless @Soot2006 and I are the only two people ever in the whole wide world to have our wisdom teeth extracted without complication...