Why won't my dentist help?

Question

My daughter (21 months old) chipped her two front teeth about a year ago - infact not long after they came out. I know exactly where and when it happened. They are quite sharp so took her to the dentist to ask if anything could be done and he told me that they are "decaying" because she has a bottle at night and the only thing that can be done is to take them out (NHS). Tonight while I was brushing her teeth I noticed they are going black and I am absolutely gutted. I am prepared to pay to have them fixed - why won't my dentist help me. Also if they come out now won't she have problems in 3/4 years time when her big teeth come out. Am I making too big a deal out of this??

Answer 1

Your dentist is the expert. He knows what's right. That's why he went to school. If you aren't sure about his diagnosis then see a pediatric dentist.

Answer 2

My daughter did the same thing when she was 2, she slipped and fell and one of her front teeth went right up inside the gum, they said there was nothing they could do, eventually the tooth grew down slightly crooked and was grey in colour and I was concerned it would fall out or would have to be taken out. But she is now almost 7 and last year her new tooth came through and it is fine, our dentist checked it out and there seems to be no problem with her big tooth! I would give the teeth time to come down and then see what can be done without worrying too much about it right now especially if it's just happened a year ago, give it some more time. Providing they are not rotten or giving her any pain I would just leave them for now, see what happens.

Answer 3

Hi, The teeth are black because the nerves have died, the only treatment for such a problem would be a Root Canal Treatment however your daughters age gets in the way as there is no way she will co-operate to the length of time its takes to perform an RCT and a general anaesthetic is also risky because of the length of time. Deciduous teeth are made up differently to adult teeth and so the roots will already have started to resorb simply due to the trauma the teeth have been through which rules out RCT. The best option is to follow the advice of your Dentist, if you go ahead with the extractions your daughter should have no problems in future other then a small increased risk of crowding when the adult teeth come through, do not leave the teeth as they are otherwise you will have problems! Good luck!

Answer 4

Youre not making a big deal out of this at all. I would advise a second opinion from another dentist. The one good thing is that the baby teeth dont have roots and so cant do that much damage if they are decaying.. ie they wont be attacking the jaw bone. Also, no nerve in the centre of the tooth means that she wont be in much pain at all.

But speak to another dentist, maybe private and see if they can come up with any ideas.

They may remove them and wait for the permanent teeth to come through but during that time you have to be extremely careful of her diet, no sweets unfortunately because the plaque acids produced will get into the sockets and decay the tooth that will be forming underneath which then means that no tooth is there to come through and she wont have front teeth ever, unless she gets implants.
Pretty drastic. So first port of call is another dentist i would suggest.


And by the way, the 'future DDS' up there doesnt quite realise we're british and our dentist are a BDS, a bachelor of dental surgery.

Answer 5

OK what i would do if i would be you is . Take the bottle of her . Because it is causing her teeth to decay . And no you are not making a big deal .

Does she still have (milky teeth still ) ???? . If so talk to your dentist about taking her teeth out . Only the ones which are decaying . And if you are still not happy about his work you should just more to a different dentist . And try to fine a dentist which has not only a bachelor of dental surgeon but also one with a Masters in Science . The should know also about this . I hope this helps you

Answer 6

The teeth need to go. Bottles get bad press but my son had a bottle way longer than that and had no dental problems related to it. They're not good but so long as she's not constantly sucking on it and you brush her teeth well I'd say that the fall (?) that chipped them likely did the damage. It sucks but she'll manage fine. Friend's son lost both his front teeth around the same age after an accident knocked them out and he's fine. Upset mother more than him. Don't put her through greater stress with dental work on milk teeth she's gonna lose anyway. Could put her off dentists for life.

Answer 7

I chipped my top front teeth on the bath when I was a baby. The dentist said they may go black but that there would be no problems as I got older.

He was right.

I know they won't look very pretty but is your daughter really bothered? If she is bothered as she gets a bit older sho could have veneers fitted just for cosmetic purposes.

On the practical side, if your dentist was prepared to do something how would you keep a 21 month old still for impressions to be made?

Answer 8

My little boy knocked out his one of his front teeth when he was 2 or 3 and my dentist just did an xray to make sure no "fragments" were left behind to cause an infection. I wanted it capped or something and they said they don't fix front baby teeth on kids because it won't mess with spacing or anything when the permanent teeth grow in. But my son knocked his tooth completely out. I would check with a pediatric dentist, they may need to sedate her to work on her mouth. I wouldn't use a general dentist. Make sure it's a PEDIATRIC DENTIST, they are schooled @ treating little kids SAFELY AND AS PAINLESSLY AS POSSIBLE. It sounds like her teeth need to be filed down or capped at the very least. It's going to be some time before her permanent teeth come in. I wouldn't waste anymore time with your current dentist. Go with your gut. Sometimes mom knows best.

Answer 9

This exact thing happed to my cousin, he had drank a bottle as a baby all the time and when he got a little older he had to get 11 of his teeth pulled, god help him ! but he got used to it after a couple of week and is absoluetly fine now.

A fall and chip on the teeth wouldn't cause decay it would probably just mis-align them.. if you do not get the teeth taken out, the decay will spread and cause gum disease and may aid to decay on other teeth.
If your not happy with your dentist just get a second opinion, but remember a dentist would not extract a tooth, if he could do something else with it.


Good Luck :)

Answer 10

Dentist are taught to use preventative care in an effort to save teeth. Teeth are of important value for your childs nutritional development and for developing speech therefore extractions are usually a last resort. Your dentist knows the value of teeth and therefore if he suggests that removing them is best then it probably is. Often times a childs primary teeth can be saved by placing metal caps on them.You may want to ask your Doctor about this option. But if a tooth is dead meaning there is no blood or nerve supply then I believe your dentist is correct and it must be removed. She shouldn't have problems with her permanent teeth when they begin to erupt. By now she should have all of her primary teeth except her 2nd molars so please take care of them best as possible and avoid sugary foods especially at night. And by the way there is no such thing as a bachelor of Dental Surgeon. Dentist go to undergraduate school and get a bachelors degree then return to a 4 year dental program to earn a D.D.S. (Doctor of Dental Surgery) or D.M.D (Doctor of Dental Medicine)....Good Luck with your daughter!

Answer 11

Most likely they will not fix them because they are not her permanant teeth. This will not however affect those that come in as permanants. I have a feeling that the root died in the accident and that is why they are turning black.

I think that the dentist was probably looking out for your best monetary interest in not fixing them as they are soon going to fall out anyway to make room for the adult teeth to come in