OK folks! I am at research wit's end...
 

Not that researchers ever seem to have much in the way of wits about them!

Today, I just finished a 'round' or 'bout' with the dentist...again. 3 cavities and a crown, added to the 6 cavities last month. Last 5 years I've averaged 3 cavities per year. Less before that. Can anyone clue me in? Is it the meds for the PN or the IVIG or the cancer meds I started a few months ago? There were 4 cavities of the #s above 'hatching' at cancer diagnosis time last year so it isn't exclusively the cancer meds....The dentist [I've been going to for ages] flat out stated: I refuse to look for any more rite now...I'm afraid of what I mite find!

Really, can anti-epliptic meds do THIS much damage? It's seeming to me, that the dental field, neuro field, and med manufacturing field aren't talking to each other...Almost sounds like a '60's 'evil, subversive, plot' for profit.

Yep, guess you could say I'm a bit testy rite now? Thanks! - j

From what I have read either the medicine or the PN could be reducing the amount of saliva in your mouth. Saliva protects the teeth. There are substitutes to saliva, or aides to saliva out there, but I dont know any names. One problem or treatment can often snowball into other problems, which is something we need like a hole in the head.

Can I be testy with ya? Misery loves company.

I just finished replacing my crowns two years ago--all but 4 in my mouth. Eight root canals...yippee....

The meds I'm on dry out my mouth. It's not Sicca Complex. My teeth are decaying under my crowns. I lost a crown three weeks ago while at Mayo-- adding insult to injury...

Enter one dental surgery appointment with all of the Mayo appointments, but schedule it far enough away from the ESI so the anesthesia and steroids don't offset, oh, and the Lazer won't affect either one......

Yupper, guess you could say I'm a bit testy right now too.....

Ain't life grand?
Jan

To Dalek
 

The meds are very drying. I suffer from this anyway and medicine is adding insult to injury. There are saliva substitutes in various brands. The one I use after trying everything to keep from choking at night is Biotene. I use the Biotene Gel at night. I use about a 1/2 an inch of the gel and rub it all over top and bottom teeth with my tongue. Then I swallow a similar amount to moisturize my throat. It works for me. If I have to get up, I repeat. I've got severe Sjogrens and by doing this, I've been cavity free, dental problem free for three years. There are other brands available, I'm just giving you my opinion. Burning is a problem for me and other brands may be fine for you.

Billye

My laser dentist told me to use Trident White, helps with my dry mouth and cavities that it causes. Two years and no new cavitites for me and I carry a water bottle everywhere I go.

I know that Endep [ Amitriptline ] dries out my mouth, i just use sugarless chewing gum to compensate during the day.

chemo
 

is very hard on the teeth. Did you have chemo? I don't recall, sorry.:o

Drugs not only can cause dry mouth, they can change the pH of the saliva,
as well.

Your gums too can suffer, and some nutritional support can help this too.
They recede and expose the unprotected parts of the teeth, and that is where they decay so rapidly. So keeping nutrients up to prevent this gum issue, helps alot.

Some dentists recommend strong fluoride toothpastes, when gums recede.
There are also RX rinses. (Prevident and GelKam).

Vit C, CoQ-10, zinc, vit A, selenium are major players for gum health.

Good questions all...
 

Here's the timetable...PN/CIDP onset 3-1/2 years ago. On same meds for 2 years when cancer diagnosis hit me in the face...at same time as dental-decline-this time last year. Cancer surgery this spring and on a Aramotase Inhibitor [post cancer meds] w/no chemo or rads {YEP I AM VERRRRY lucky!} I'd never had a dry mouth syndrome from meds up till-now? Frankly my problems have been mostly the opposite...so why now? Why in Dec 05 prior to all this other fun stuff? There'd been no changes and in a generally stable 'maintenance-mode' w/one severe IVIG infusion reaction a week before the first dental 'Uh-oh', none since that first 'youre leaching enamel' in 12/05 ThankGOODNESS! Would the AI take 4-6 months to institute dry mouth? When a person goes from 3 mini-cavities a year minis/majors.. Plus a crown replacement to 10, well, ya gotta worry!

Only thing I can think of to connect dots is the cancer combined w/the PN/CIDP and the meds reaching a positive potential effect to a negative one. All pharm X checks indicate all the 'stuff' I'm on in combo is 'safe'. Frankly I don't THINK SO TIM! I'm beginning to think that pharm co.s need to do further tests on LONG TERM effects, especially when folks are on other meds...the 'combo' effect is what I'm suffering from and those guys nor the docs don't want to lissen! I'm doing the Flouridex diligently, but ONLY after my surgery..Who needs extra added influences prior to? And occasionaly a Periogard rinse to keep the 'evils' down [weekly?]. More I think on it all, the more I think that the dominoe effect is, well, dominoe-ing on me? There, That's all out. Thank you all Super People - Super spray will be coming up. Today! And MrsD, I've been trying to take your nutri advice, altho, my scare w/too much B-6 is now averted. Balancing the combo of vites is well, interesting. Thanks and Fuzzies to ALL! - j

Janster - EIGHT RC's? YIKES! My new crown was a replacement as the 'root' had gotten well...you know. Billye - Biotene is must be?!

Up until now I hadn't been connecting dots about my dry mouth. I'm like the Sahara when I wake in the a.m. (or at nite to visit the loo).
Can't ever remember being this dry.
Periodontal problems in the last 10 yrs, first root canal 4 yrs ago (extracted it 1-1/2 yrs later...Duh! waste of $$), exposed roots on my back molars -extractions, on the 'R'-3 bottom/2 top (in the back, can't chew on the 'R') all last molars extracted (impacted), haven't found cavities...... yet !
Had great teeth til PN 10 yrs ago.
Clogged sinuses all my life, no sinus infections - just gotta blow my nosey off allatime & therefore breathe thru my mouth alot when awake.
I realized this must be my dryness a.m. symptom- but never THIS dry.
I gotta moisten my lips alot too.
Is it the Lyrica? Ultram? Zetia? ALA? CoQ10?, Niacin? tobacco?-
all of the above? (please,...don't start on the tobacco- I got enough stress lately, without a lecture on it)
I just never started to connect the dots on the dry mouth, just thunk it wuz sleeping (breathing) with my mouth open. :(

some ideas...
 

1) for dahlek--- Arimidex does cause dry mouth. Once this starts, then the saliva changes, and hence the pH of the mouth changes...and down the hill you go.

2) For Nide (Bob)... receding gums... reveal parts of the tooth that don't have good or any enamel, and hence decay can start more easily.
This is when the Prevident/GelKam may help. Periogard only kills germs, it does
not do anything for loss of enamel or receding gums.
If you have periodontal disease, there is a treatment --low dose doxycycline..called Periostat that may help. This reduces inflammation of the gums. But smoking..this is not good. The oxygen levels are reduced to the
gums when you smoke. It is very hard to counteract this.

3) regarding crowns... I have a couple that are going on 20 yrs now. Can that be true??... oh gosh... 20 yrs doesn't seem like it.
My dentist is very very aggressive about crown installation --and I have to
admit with my 6 crowns now---I suffer greatly when he prepares them.
He puts a "rope" material way under the gums during impressions, and makes the crown go way down there... to be protected from decay. So while it takes me several days or a week of pain/swelling after he is through with me, I have not had alot of decay.Also when the crown is installed, he grinds the interior down..so it is way below the gum line. And he fits them tightly to the other teeth (my crowns are in the back) so food cannot be trapped easily between them. And I should explain that I have very soft teeth, and fillings you wouldn't believe. But adult decay..I do not have, yet!. (we have fluorodated water now--and maybe that is another reason?).

There are alot of reasons for poor teeth with health declining.
1) poor gums--poor nutrition low Vit C status, low CoQ-10
2) poor immunity
3) poor Vit D and calcium status
4) dry mouth/saliva deterioration due to drug therapies