Hah, made you look! No, not that kind, the ones that go into you mouth.
Thursday, I spent two hours at the oral surgeon getting two implants put into my bottom jaw so I can replace two teeth that had to be removed. I was a bit apprehensive as the dentist is my least favorite type of doctor, but with a family history of weak teeth, I decided that implants were the best way to replace the teeth and to prepare for the possibility that, like both of my parents and my oldest brother, I may one day need to have all my teeth removed and will need a full plate.
Several years ago, my mother had to have her bottom jaw rebuilt because years of wearing dentures with no teeth in the jaw to support bone retention, had caused her bottom jaw to whither to less than a quarter of an inch. Needless to say, the surgery was quite extensive and during it, she had several implants put in to support her new bottom plate. Thank God, her surgery was very successful and she is now able to eat with out concern for a broken jaw (the ultimate deciding factor in whether to have the surgery was when the surgeon told her that she could shatter her jaw eating something as soft as an egg salad sandwich, at which point her jaw would not be able to be fixed and she would be on a liquid for the rest of her life!)
Two weeks ago, my father had two implants put in too. He had finally (at 85) lost his last two natural teeth and decided that he was not interested in struggling with a loose bottom plate that might keep him from enjoying things like corn on the cob and ribs, so he opted for implants and will have a bottom plate made that will support his bottom plate.
I am hoping that my son (who had his first filling in his permanent teeth just recently) will be spared the problems that I have and will continue to have strong teeth.
By the way, the procedure was not nearly as bad as I thought and I am recovering nicely with no discomfort, only an annoyance at the stitches that keep tickling my mouth - a small price to pay for dental health.
2 comments:
Really? It was not that bad? I have a missing top tooth & an implant has been suggested, and I resist like crazy....I am petrified of dentists. Bad enough that I have 2 more fillings to go.
My DH has to either get an implant for a molar or a bridge. Because he has good teeth along side the one molar that broke, the dentist strongly suggested the implant. Problem is our insurance will not cover it as it is considered cosmetic. That one tooth will cost us $5000.00!
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