Hi Jane,
Well from your statements about your visit today with the oral surgeon.... I think I like him
He sounds very caring, confident, concerned about the fit of your denture and likes to have his ducks in a row before proceeding .... all of which is very, very good!
I appreciate his offering the generic implants as he is trying to make it more affordable for you. However, since he is not experienced with using them and since your mandibular nerve may pose some complications with the placement of the implants.... I would seriously consider going with the regular implants that he is most experienced working with.
It is good that you have a nice ridge formation as this means that your denture will have something to hold onto rather than the bone being flat. Dental implants can be put in at an angle.... however this can be a little tricky when fabricating the denture.
I have to tell you, it is not typical for an oral surgeon to be so concerned about the fit of the denture as they generally focus on the surgery and leave the restoration portion up to the other dentist. However, he may be concerned because of the lousy fit of this first denture and how she chopped it up in adjusting it. Implant dentures are more complicated... perhaps he is concerned about the fit of that one too but may not want to step on her toes and tell you his concerns.
Did your dentist refer you to this oral surgeon for the extractions? Have you expressed your concerns to him about your thoughts on her making the implant denture? He may be inclined to refer you to someone else if you express those concerns to him. Just a thought......
Glad the numbness is getting better. You will get through this okay.... you really will
Bryanna
Quote:
Originally Posted by KSMacy
Appointment went well. Oral Surgeon said I'm healing very well and had a nice ridge formation (have no idea what that is, but he seemed pleased). He said he was glad the dentist was making a new denture and requested I wear it for a few days and let him see it before I made any adjustments. I said I would. He said I had good bone and thought I would be ready in July for implants. He explained different options, but I got confused and he said he'd go over everything in detail in July. My impression was that he thought I could work with two implants on the bottom and seeing if I could live with the upper without implants.
He knows money is a problem for me and also explained that they now have generic implants which cost about 1/4 of the price of regular implants. He did stress that he has not used them and cannot assure me about how well they work. He compared them to generic drugs which work well in general. But he did not have experience with them.
My numbness is almost gone. He was pleased to hear and said the laser treatments might have speeded up the healing. He was sure it would have gone away on its own without the laser. He showed me, on my x-ray how my nerve runs in my bottom jaw. He said he would have to work around it if I got implants. The nerve is close to where the implant would go. He explained about placing implants at an angle to avoid damaging the nerve. He said he'd take new x-rays in July to reassess where to place the implants.
All in all, the visit went well. I always feel good when I see him, he seems very confident and helps me relax. My regular dentist is another story and I want to change dentist but she's making me a new denture at her cost (which she keeps reminding me). Part of the problems I've had with the denture is that when it was first put in, it was too loose and kept falling out. It also was too long and I would get an ear-ache each time I opened my mouth. It hit on the nerve by the hinge of my jaw. So, she cut the dentures but cut them too short. So theres no suction and they keep falling out. I haven't been able to chew anything. I do not want to work with her after getting the new denture. If she has to fix it to take the implants, I don't trust she knows how to do it. She seems unsure of herself which doesn't help me feel better. We'll see what happens.
Thank you for your support, it helps so much. I don't know if I can save up enough money for the implants but I hope I can do something.
Jane
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