I had all my teeth extracted one month ago. I had written a post here looking for information prior to the surgery and appreciate the help I received from Bryanna. It was very assuring to me as I was using dentists and oral surgeon who I did not know. We had recently moved to this area and didn't know anyone to ask for a referral.

The surgery went very well, better than I anticipated. The OS did bone grafting at the same time and I had stitches on my upper and lower gums which were removed after 2 weeks. I had minimal pain and no infection nor bleeding.

The surgeon wanted me to take antibiotics the day prior to surgery and to continue for 2 weeks after. He also prescribed steroid and pain meds. I did not take any of the meds except for the steroids but only took that for 3 days.

I felt I healed quickly and didn't like the side affects of the antibiotic. The temporary dentures were my biggest problem and still are but that is not the reason for this post.

I have had numbness of my lip and the right side of my chin. Only the right side is affected. My lip has some tingling sensation but my right chin is fairly numb. I also notice some slight drooping of my lip on that side.

I mentioned it to the Oral Surgeon during my follow-up. He had me close my eyes and asked me to point to the direction of his touching my chin with a stick. I did and he said he saw some 'muteness' of the nerve and wanted me to come back in 3 weeks to recheck. He didn't say he was concerned or not so I will see him next week for recheck. I'm worried that I caused this problem by not taking all the medications he prescribed. I didn't tell him but he didn't ask.

The dentist I am using for the dentures said it is very common. She gave me some laser treatments on my chin and said it has been shown to be effective.

Anyway, I'm hoping Byranna reads this and gives me her opinion. I'm sorry for the length of this post. I tried to add the link to my previous post but the website wouldn't allow it.

Thank you,
Jane

Hi Jane,

Congratulations on going through with this all of this... it is a huge undertaking and you did it!!!!

Regarding the medication issue.... I personally would have taken the full prescription of the antibiotic due to the extent of the surgery and the grafting..... and not taken the pain meds (unless absolutely necessary) and definitely not the steroids. There is a possibility that you have some bacterial issue going on but it may be hard to determine that at this point. It is fairly common for patients to have some temporary numbness after extensive oral surgery. It usually goes away completely but the time frame varies from case to case. The laser therapy may be very helpful as it stimulates the blood flow and encourages the immune system to send healing cells. Please mention this therapy to the oral surgeon so he can make note of it in your chart.

I would definitely tell the surgeon about the medication issue so he is aware of it and so he can make note of it in your chart. He may or may not want you to take the antibiotic now. To be honest with you..... when dental patients do not follow through with the prescribed post op protocol we feel like they didn't do their homework and we are then unsure of the outcome. Perhaps more dentists and assistants should emphasize to their patients that the outcome of the best performed surgery depends on the skill of the surgeon, the sterilization practices and the at home follow up care

So please inform the oral surgeon about the meds as this may alter his treatment protocol for you which would only benefit you in the long run.

Keep us posted!!
Bryanna

Bryanna, may I ask why you would refrain from the pain meds? Do they slow healing?

Hi Jimbo,

Most medications slow down the healing response from the immune system. But usually if the meds are taken for a short term, the response is not to be concerned about.

I do not respond well to pain meds therefore I avoid them. I use homeopathy and nutritional supplements in place of pain meds and usually that works well for me.

Don't be scared to take pain meds for a short time if you need them ...so long as you have never had an reverse reaction to them!!

Now go have your tooth out.... ~

Bryanna


[QUOTEJimbo;980386]Bryanna, may I ask why you would refrain from the pain meds? Do they slow healing?[/QUOTE]

Goodbye root-canaled molar!

My oral surgeon made me a little nervous when we talked about the periodontal ligament, he said he doesn't believe it can cause a problem when left, but he would honor my request to remove. When the procedure was over I asked if it was out and he said "I removed the ligaments as best I could"

I shouldn't be worried about that statement, right?
I hope it is all out of there. He did work on me at least 20 minutes, and has been doing this work for many years.

He did say he saw "thickening" of the ligament, prior to the procedure.

Had to cut the tooth in two to remove, and he said it actually looked pretty good, but as I had throbbing pain that came and went for months, and there was some root remaining, I have no second thoughts about trying to save it. And all the arguments made here against dead teeth in the mouth ring true; never again will I go down the root-canal road.

I am surprised how little it hurts so far

Thank you and I'm sure you are right about the antibiotics. I don't do well with most medications, and rarely take anything. Here is what was prescribed:
Clindamycin 150MG - take one 5x a day
MethylPrednisolone 4MG Start day after surgery (7 days of this)
Ibuprofen 600MG Take as needed
Hydrocodon-Acetaminoph 7.5-500 - Take 1 tablet every 4-6 hrs

The Clindamycin upset my stomach. I looked it up online and was disturbed by what I read and the side affects. I took it for 3 days and stopped.
I took the Prednisone for 3 days also and stopped.
Never took any pain pills as I managed okay. The worse was the second day but it started getting better by day 3.
I did take Probiotics for 2 weeks as directed by the OS and others.

I had no bleeding or other problems except for the denture which didn't fit correctly and caused much discomfort. I had many visits to the dentist but it never got better. She finally agreed to make me a new set which should be ready next week. I can't wait as I'm having problems eating and lost quite a bit of weight (which I don't need to lose).

I will tell the OS about the antibiotics at my next appointment next week. I just hate taking these things and I have problems with most medications so stay away from them but I will follow up with him. I was very impressed with the work the OS did. I was so nervous and anticipated having a really tough time after. I was asleep for the whole procedure - 3hrs - and recovered quickly. I had some very infected teeth which concerned me and I'm very thankful for finding such a good doctor (I hope).

I just hope my sensation comes back. I can't really purse my lips and have some trouble drinking out of a cup (runs down my face on that side). It seems to have improved with the laser treatment so I will continue it as long as the dentist is willing. She is not charging me for this.

Thank you again for listening and helping me navigate this new chapter in my life,
Jane

Hi Jimbo,

Woo Hoo!! Good for you!!!!

Try not to be concerned about the ligament issue.... although it is imperative that it all be removed let's hope the OS did what he said he was going to do.
And try to ignore his remarks.... they were stupid :/

Cutting the tooth in half is actually recommended for the extraction of posterior teeth. I know a lot of dentists do not practice that way but they are suppose to. It allows the dentist to coax the tooth out of the bone with less trauma to the bone. When a posterior tooth is removed forcefully (as in one piece) the bone often splinters from the force. This splintering can occur with any extraction but most often it is due to too much force. When a tooth is periodontally involved and it's just hanging in there by gum tissue, then it can usually be removed in one piece without too much force.

I am glad you have no remorse over the loss of this tooth and that you feel good today!!

Bryanna

Hi Jane,

Yea, the clindamycin can cause havoc on your digestive system. However, when those symptoms happen within the first few days of taking this antibiotic.... it indicates that you may not have enough good bacteria in your gut to begin with. The probiotic called Culturelle is an excellent source of Lactobacillus GG which is an essential good bacteria that everyone needs to have an abundance of in their intestinal tract. It is also a bacteria that protects the intestinal wall and can help to prevent you from getting those dreaded symptoms. The best way to build up a healthy supply of this bacteria is to "take this probiotic on a daily basis every day of your life". This way when the time comes to take an antibiotic, you'll be more likely to do so without the other problem. Just throwing that suggestion out there to you

The other thing with oral antibiotics... they take "minimum" of 24-36 hours to get into the system. So when you stop these meds after a few days.... it has not done anything other than upset the bacterial flora in your gut to the point where the good bacteria has been destroyed.

Glad to hear the laser therapy seems to be helping with the numbness. Yes, if you can continue with that ....that would be great!

Bryanna










QUOTE=KSMacy;980523]Thank you and I'm sure you are right about the antibiotics. I don't do well with most medications, and rarely take anything. Here is what was prescribed:
Clindamycin 150MG - take one 5x a day
MethylPrednisolone 4MG Start day after surgery (7 days of this)
Ibuprofen 600MG Take as needed
Hydrocodon-Acetaminoph 7.5-500 - Take 1 tablet every 4-6 hrs

The Clindamycin upset my stomach. I looked it up online and was disturbed by what I read and the side affects. I took it for 3 days and stopped.
I took the Prednisone for 3 days also and stopped.
Never took any pain pills as I managed okay. The worse was the second day but it started getting better by day 3.
I did take Probiotics for 2 weeks as directed by the OS and others.

I had no bleeding or other problems except for the denture which didn't fit correctly and caused much discomfort. I had many visits to the dentist but it never got better. She finally agreed to make me a new set which should be ready next week. I can't wait as I'm having problems eating and lost quite a bit of weight (which I don't need to lose).

I will tell the OS about the antibiotics at my next appointment next week. I just hate taking these things and I have problems with most medications so stay away from them but I will follow up with him. I was very impressed with the work the OS did. I was so nervous and anticipated having a really tough time after. I was asleep for the whole procedure - 3hrs - and recovered quickly. I had some very infected teeth which concerned me and I'm very thankful for finding such a good doctor (I hope).

I just hope my sensation comes back. I can't really purse my lips and have some trouble drinking out of a cup (runs down my face on that side). It seems to have improved with the laser treatment so I will continue it as long as the dentist is willing. She is not charging me for this.

Thank you again for listening and helping me navigate this new chapter in my life,
Jane[/QUOTE]

The fact that you have some tingling is a reassuring symptom. Typically numbness occurs on the lower when either a injection or or the removing of the wt injured the nerve that runs threw your lower jaw. If its severed you will never get feeling back. If it was compressed or grazed during surgery you have a great shot in it repairing the nerve connections. That's the tingling feeling your getting. Did he take a CAT scan? Not a pano a real cat scan in his office prior to extracting your wt?

Flkeylargo,

What does "wt" mean?

Why would a dentist do a cat scan for the removal of a tooth or two? That is an over kill of radiation, don't you think? Is that common practice where you work?

Bryanna