The importance of seeing a dentist regularly

Two weeks ago, I had two teeth surgically extracted. The teeth in question were my lower right 2nd molar and premolar. About a year or so ago, the molar cracked and I got an abscess beneath those two teeth. I had to get a root canal in each, which was difficult because the roots were twisted and almost entwined. Unfortunately, the root canal treatment failed and I had to have both teeth extracted.

Because I’d had the root canal, there wasn’t any pain, so I didn’t go see the dentist after six months like I was supposed to. If I had, they’d probably have detected the failure, and they might have been able to just extract the molar and leave the premolar in place. But I’ll never know for sure, because I was just too busy to go to the dentist and put it off until I started noticing a little tenderness around that tooth this year. By then, both roots had collapsed and had to be cut out (not pleasant).

Getting the teeth replaced requires titanium pins to be inserted into my jaw and then crowned, at a cost of $12000 in total. Next to that, the crown I need (to replace a 15 year old root canal filling) seems downright cheap. In fact, I’m going to get another molar crowned as well, because it is at risk of cracking and having the same problem as the molar I had extracted. $1200 for a crown looks pretty good compared to $500 for an extraction and $6000 for an insert.

Why are my teeth so crappy? Well, it’s not because I don’t brush them regularly or well. In fact, it’s a little galling to have two teeth removed and then have the dentist and the hygienist gush about how wonderfully clean my teeth are and how I have such excellent oral hygiene. Make is seem even more unfair. Nope, it’s probably mostly genetic. Pretty much everyone in my family has fairly crappy and weak teeth. Growing up on Waiheke where the water doesn’t contain fluoride probably didn’t help either.

So, if you haven’t been to the dentist in a while, make an appointment now. Better to spend a little up front than have to spend a huge amount later on.