Hi, I'm new here & came mainly to find answers to the possibility of long-term use of opioid pain medications leading to tooth loss. That's how I found this forum. I have had implants on top for several years now as well as a few on the bottom. However, on the bottom teeth weren't placed, but the implants were to assist in holding a partial denture in place.

Now I have lost the rest of my bottom teeth and had more implants to have teeth placed on the bottom as well. Until now my dentist has done all the work on the dentures and implant teeth/bridges, while an oral surgeon has done the extractions and placed the implants. I lost faith in my dentist. Finally. It's not that I don't like her. In fact, it's because I like her so much that I continued going even though bad things kept happening.

Now I've finally consulted with a prosthedontist to get the teeth placed on the bottom implants. I simply am not happy with the top teeth and cannot trust my dentist to do it any longer. It upset the oral surgeon to find this out, because he has taken my dentist under his wing, so to speak, and if really defensive of her. But, enough is enough. The bottom denture she made never did fit right. I never was able to chew with it well, and that was a denture held on with implants and several teeth still in place.

Has anyone else here had experience with implants? I understand there are 2 varieties for the bottom: 1 that is made of basically the same material as a denture and another (twice as expensive) made of ceramic, but still with fake "gums". Until now I had thought the bottom teeth would be like the top ones ~ just like real teeth with bridges.

It's not that we have so much money we can afford all this implant baloney, believe me. We've had to scrimp and save, but I've been so miserable with that denture, we decided we had to find a way to do the implants. I am also hoping that somehow my workers' comp will pitch in, if it's true that the opioid use caused the tooth loss. They literally rotted from the inside out.

Thanks to anyone with info, or I'd love to share experiences with anyone else going through the same thing.

Hi, I personally never had an implant and for me, can't go there financially or the thought of it all. A dear person in my life lost so many of her once beautiful teeth due to opiate "addiction" and after all was said and done and rehab was over, this person opted for full dentures. She just didn't want to deal with it all again. She is doing good with her dentures. Thinking back to my life, I never knew my mom without dentures, she lived to 91 and ate everything in her life. Best to you. C

Thank you for telling me about your friend, Caroline. I understand about the finances. It was a difficult decision, and we have to go without some other things for sure, for a long time to come. In fact, I've been looking around for what I can begin selling on Ebay. I was just so unhappy with that denture. It was probably just how it was made. My parents both had denture from a young age, as did my grandparents, and they seemed to do OK, too. Anyway, thanks for the info about her and the opioids. I've been told that what I'll need is a comprehensive narrative from a physician as well as a dentist or oral surgeon which absolutely links the long-term opioid use to the tooth loss if I expect to get workers' comp to pay a dime. Blessings.