Hi Bryanna, and hi everyone :-)
I have posted on here before and am an active reader of this forum, and would love your valuable input on my most current situation:
I just went to see a new dentist (who lives closer to me than my regular one) and explained to her that I am experiencing a very sore gum around tooth Nr 4 (next to an extraction side, but it is painful on both sides of the tooth, not just next to the extraction area). Basically, I have had issues with soreness of the gum off and on for a good year or more now, but it would always clear up after a week or so. Now, I can feel the soreness all the time. It feels as if one had a popcorn skin or something stuck between both sides of that tooth and the adjacent gum, and it feels very irritated and sore :-(. I don't eat popcorn and even the dentist said, nothing stuck there. It just feels like it.
Anyways, the new dentist is convinced I need to get the filling on that tooth re-done (the filling is on the side of where Nr 5 would be).
I decided to drive the extra hour to my long-time regular dentist to get a second opinion. She said, she could not see anything wrong with the filling at all! Also poked around my gums in the area, which was painful, but she said no visible swelling, infection, and no blood, so she is not sure why I would experience this pain! I am oil pulling, putting Neem oil on it, do salt-water rinses, take very good supplements every day, don't smoke, drink or eat processed foods... I am at a loss and would appreciate if you could take a look and tell me if you can see anything on the X-rays. Also, I should add that there is some material still stuck to that Nr4 as I had a Carlson Bridge for a few months which then got taken out as it was too tight and caused pain. So, you may see some extra material on the x-ray that is from the bonding or something.
Thank you so much, I really appreciate any input as I am not sure what to do next! Just replace the filling as per the first dentist? But would that make my gum on BOTH sides of my tooth feel better, I wonder - second dentist says, no, it would not most likely. ??? What now ???
Meera

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... I just wanted to add that, when I press (not too hard, of course ) with my finger around the area, it really only feels sore around the triangle between tooth 4 and 3, maybe a bit sore on the triangle between 4 and the extraction site but really mainly between 4 and 3, but the rest of the gum around tooth 4 feels normal. Pressing onto the triangle between 4 and 3 gives me relief, actually. It really feels like stuck popcorn but I know there is no food in there - just the feeling of constant irritation, soreness, kind of tight...

Hi Meera Dasi,

Did either dentist take a periapical xray? That would give a picture of the tooth in it's entirety as the problem could be at the apex which is not seen on the bitewings. The bitewing xrays only show in between the teeth and how the teeth relate to those they are chewing against.

In the first xray it shows a widening of the periodontal ligament on #4 on the mesial side, closest to #5 space. This can indicate inflammation which may be the result of how this tooth is being used for chewing. Only the distal portion of this tooth is hitting against the lower tooth #30 putting unnatural pressure on tooth #4. This affects the ligament on the mesial side as the tooth is shifting from it's original position in the bone. It affects the distal side, closest to #5, as it's being over used for chewing. So both sides would tend to be sore on and off.

In the second xray, it is questionable as to if the filling on the mesial side of #4 is open or there is decay at the top of the filling towards the gum line. It is also apparent in this xray that #4 has elevated gum tissue exposing some of the root surface which could cause temperature sensitivity and/or soreness at the gum line.

I do see something that looks like material or something present in the gum tissue in the #5 space closest to #4. It is more evident in the second xray as it appears as a white shadowy spot shaped like a horseshoe. If this is something embedded in the tissue, that could be causing or contributing to your symptoms which sound to be inflammation related.

So what is your plan to replace #5 since you had the carlson bridge removed?

Bryanna

Hi Bryanna,

Thank you so much for the detailed reply, that does indeed help a lot and give an idea as to what to do next!

Well, the first dentist's plan was, to re-do the filling. That sounds like it might be a good idea from what your findings according to the x ray are as well, or am I mistaken here? If I do get it replaced, I was wondering as to if composite would be the best choice or if there is anything more durable out there (not amalgam, obviously - which my dentist won't use, since he is holistic). What about porcelain, etc? Any more durable options apart from composite?I don't like how they seem to have to be replaced every few years, and then, in the end, you loose the tooth if, like me, you don't want root canals in your mouth :-(.

Also, I wonder what the horse shoe shaped material could be... and, what to do about it? It's not like they can just dig it out, or can they? Could it be related to the extraction, like a bone spur or something?

As to replacing my missing teeth (I have 4 missing, one on each side, two were root canals, two cracked possibly due to my jaw being out of place for a very long time and me grinding my teeth - I have a temporary gel cushion now for nighttime and will get a custom guard once replacement teeth are in). I am thinking about implants, or removable partial denture. I have an appt. with my oral surgeon tomorrow to determine how extraction sites looked. I had bone grafts done in all of them, and only one of them (which was an old root canal) had some infection. I know of the possible risks of implants... on the other hand, I know that jaw bone will reabsorb and if I do need to get rid of more teeth in the future, I don't know what would happen if I lost more and more jaw bone... hence, I am really thinking about implants as well. Bridge, I do not want anymore. Did not like mine at all, and it just does not seem very durable (I would only ever want a Carlson bridge).

Let me quickly add: I just called my oral surgeon's office, whom I will be seeing tomorrow anyways for post-op check-up, and the receptionist was super helpful and told me to forward them my x-rays and the surgeon would have a look in regards to the horse-shoe shaped object/material.
I wanted to ask you if it would be okay for me to copy-paste your first response to me to them (without your name, of course), as the receptionist did say it would be helpful to include any findings of other specialists and you are the only one who has really commented on that issue, or even seen it in the first place (which I am so grateful for, by the way, as I just KNEW something must be there, otherwise, why would I be in so much discomfort?). Would that be okay? Also, I just spoke to my dentist's receptionist, who was super nice as well and asked if I could send her an email with what your findings/ suggestions are, as well (obviously, I don't mention your name to anyone, I just talk about "another specialist of the dental profession"). She said she thinks it is a good idea to have my dentist look at the x-rays again, combined with reading your response to me as well.

I also retrieved one more x-ray from my dentist, which shows the roots... not sure if it is clear enough though for you to see the root at Nr4. BTW, the left side (left when you look at it on your computer screen) is my right side jaw, so Nr 4 is located on the left side of the picture, not right :-).

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Hi I'm not sure how to send a direct message but I'm wondering what happened in the end with the tooth that always felt irritated? I also recently (5 weeks ago) had a really deep filling on a tooth around that area and have been feeling the same sensitivity and gum discomfort and was wondering how it turned out... My dentist suggested that if I could tolerate it - I just wait it out as they dont (3 dentists) see any problem with it on xray. They also suggested I could take out the filling and put in a medicated one and then redo the filling after 1 month..... I'm not sure what to do