Hi Bryanna,

We took your advice and looked up a dentist who belongs to IAOMT. We found one nearby and my wife went to see him just two days ago. He listened to everything we had to tell him about the history of my wife's condition (I was along for moral support of course.) We brought along a panoramic x-ray from the TMJ's office that was taken back in March. The dentist said the quality of the scan was poor, but from what he could make out, it seems that all of my wife's upper left molars have roots that extend into her sinus cavity. They took two more x-rays and said the molar with the root canal most likely needs a new crown at the very least, and the tooth in front of it has decay underneath the filling. The dentist and his assistant also mentioned the same thing as you did, which is the possibility of something going on between the teeth and the sinuses.

In regards to her jaw being out of alignment, I think he suspects there was some trauma caused during the wisdom tooth extraction back in March 2009 that caused this. Before he does any sort of dental work he wants her to see an oral surgeon to have her jaw checked out. We have an appointment to see the surgeon in Mid-November and then we'll go back to see the dentist a week after that.

Our new dentist has assured us that he plans to see the issue through to the end, so we're quite excited that we may finally be on the right track. I'll be sure to post updates as we get them.

Craig

Hi Craig,

Firstly, I'm very glad that you sought the advice of another dentist. One thing that I want to tell you is that anytime the diagnostic quality of a radiograph is poor, it is in the patients best interest to take a new radiograph. It is never wise to guess what's on a radiograph because it's too easy to either misdiagnose or miss something altogether. What commonly happens when someone goes to a new dentist with a crappy radiograph from their previous dentist..... the new dentist is hesitant to suggest taking a new one because it makes the previous dentist look incompetent and/or can make the patient wonder why does this new guy want to do this again. I think it's wise to take a new panorex.

With regard to the root canaled tooth.... what did the dentist mean by "this tooth needs a new crown at the very least"? Did he mention anything about the possibility of that tooth being infected and/or fractured? Sometimes, the new dentist is careful about being too forward with information at the initial consultation unless there is an imminent problem. Once they get to know the patient a little better, then they divulge a bit more because they feel the patient has become more comfortable with them. It is best to question the health of that tooth because it shows him that you guys are truly concern about being informed about all of your options.

I am glad that he wants your wife to have further evaluation with regard to her TMJ.

Thanks so much for getting back to us. Please do keep us posted!

Bryanna