Conservation with my Dentist

[bogey21]

I had a tooth break off at the gum line. Otherwise it is OK. My Dentist pushed hard to dig out what was left and replace it with an implant for about $7,500. I told him that I checked my 3 generation Family Tree and see that only one person lived past age 84 (this is true) and that I will be 84 next month so I think I will pass on the implant. His response was "What if you are the exception?". My retort was "Well then I will have won the lottery". He just shook his head and went to make his next sales call...

George

 

[CalGalTraveler]

Sorry to hear about your tooth. Glad it is not bothering you.

Be careful not to use a rear-view mirror. I have a close relative who is a doctor and she says that 25 years ago healthy patients in their 90s were a rarity. Now they are quite common. 80 is the new 60. If you've got the money and want to do this go ahead and spend it. Or spend it on something you enjoy because it won't be of any use in your grave.

 

[clifffaith]

Sorry to hear about your tooth. Glad it is not bothering you.

Be careful not to use a rear-view mirror. I have a close relative who is a doctor and she says that 25 years ago healthy patients in their 90s were a rarity. Now they are quite common. 80 is the new 60. If you've got the money and want to do this go ahead and spend it. Or spend it on something you enjoy because it won't be of any use in your grave.

When we went to a CCRC presentation the phrase was "60 is the new 50, 70 is the new 60, but 80 is still 80!

George, I'm 20 years younger than you and REALLY did not want to replace the lower back molar I had pulled last month. About $3500 for the extraction, the same amount for the "screw" in four months (both from the oral surgeon), then who knows how much for the hideous mold making and actual tooth back at the dentist's office four more months after that (I get claustrophobic with the mold in my mouth and they have to stay with me tapping my forehead to keep me from freaking out). But they convinced me that the upper teeth would try to grow down into the space left by the extraction and could cause more trouble later, so I went ahead, grumbling mightily the whole way.

 

[GetawaysRus]

Medicine is heavily regulated, but dentistry is not covered by medical insurance or Medicare. So dental prices seem out of control. It's the wild, wild west out there.

 

[Sugarcubesea]

I had a tooth break off at the gum line. Otherwise it is OK. My Dentist pushed hard to dig out what was left and replace it with an implant for about $7,500. I told him that I checked my 3 generation Family Tree and see that only one person lived past age 84 (this is true) and that I will be 84 next month so I think I will pass on the implant. His response was "What if you are the exception?". My retort was "Well then I will have won the lottery". He just shook his head and went to make his next sales call...

George

George I need an implant and I had to wait the 6 months to make an appointment from the time they removed my bad root canal from 15 years ago... I had no idea that an implant was that expensive... I will have to ask what the cost is and save for it...ugh

 

[Brett]

George I need an implant and I had to wait the 6 months to make an appointment from the time they removed my bad root canal from 15 years ago... I had no idea that an implant was that expensive... I will have to ask what the cost is and save for it...ugh

depends on the dentist and other factors, I had a front tooth implant a couple of years ago - cost around $4000

 

[b2bailey]

I had a tooth break off at the gum line. Otherwise it is OK. My Dentist pushed hard to dig out what was left and replace it with an implant for about $7,500. I told him that I checked my 3 generation Family Tree and see that only one person lived past age 84 (this is true) and that I will be 84 next month so I think I will pass on the implant. His response was "What if you are the exception?". My retort was "Well then I will have won the lottery". He just shook his head and went to make his next sales call...

George

What is the alternative treatment?

 

[bogey21]

What is the alternative treatment?

The alternative is do nothing as it is one of my molars and I can do without it. It broke off at the gum line and my understanding is that the root is not exposed. Of course the pitch from the Dentist is that if I do nothing, the empty space will cause other teeth to move to my detriment. I respond the same way saying I will be dead before it matters....

George

 

[Patri]

Can't you get a crown?

 

[Talent312]

Can't you get a crown?

Not if there's too little of the old tooth left on which to set a crown.

BTW, implants cost a lot less in Mexico and Costa Rica than they do in the U.S.
I read about a dentist who has offices in both Tucson and Nogales.
She can charge about 1/2 in Nogales becuz wages and overhead are much lower.

I was tempted to book TS vacations in Mexico for this purpose, but never did.
.

 

[vacationtime1]

Not if there's too little of the old tooth left on which to set a crown.
BTW, implants cost a lot less in Mexico and Costa Rica than they do in the U.S.
I read about a dentist who has offices in both Tucson and Nogales.
She can charge about 1/2 in Nogales becuz wages and overhead are much lower.

I was tempted to book TS vacations in Mexico for this purpose, but never did.
.

We now have an answer to that ongoing question: what is worse than sitting through a timeshares sales presentation.

 

[DrQ]

Is it on the end or is there a tooth on both sides?

 

[Bucky]

I’m with you George. I’ve already outlived my father by 12 years. I’ve dodged bullets my whole life. From my military service to timeshare presentations. At this stage in life and at my age and medical condition, I’m not throwing needless money away. As long as I can chew my food and be pain free, I will also pass. I find the timing of your post to be good for me since I have a dentist appointment in the morning to see about replacing a filling that has recently come out. Will be interesting to see how many other things they say “should be addressed”.

 

[littlestar]

I had a Duraflex partial made and fit by my dentist for a couple of missing teeth. I love it. You can add more teeth to it later if necessary. The cost was about $800. It snaps in place and I forget it is even in my mouth.

 

[bogey21]

Is it on the end or is there a tooth on both sides?

Tooth on both aides...

George

 

[Roger830]

Rather than a crown, I had my lower rear molar removed over 30 years ago. I was told that the top tooth would grow down. It never happened.

 

[chellej]

You should be able to do a bridge that would cost less than an implant
DH is having an implant put in and it is a very long and expensive process.

 

[rapmarks]

When my aunt was about 85 she refused dental treatment even with dental insurance. She died at 92 and had to have special soft meals because she hadn’t done the necessary repairs and could not chew properly

 

[stmartinfan]

After watching my mother-in-law's progression through life until her death at age 100, I became more convinced that it's better to take actions when you can that will enhance quality of life later. For example, she had dentures and opted to repair a broken plate rather than replace it, because she was already in her 80s. But then when she was in the nursing home and unable to easily get to a dentist she had to put up with the problems caused by the repair rather than have the better quality of life she'd have had if she'd gotten a new plate years earlier. She also started to have pain with a bad hip in her early 80s. She'd had a knee replacement in her 70s so said she didn't want to do a hip replacement. Since her lungs weren't the best, we didn't push her on that decision, but she lived with pain and very limited mobility for another 20 years.

I know most of us won't live to 100 but her longevity wasn't based on anything special she'd done and she outlived all her siblings by many years, although she did have some ancestors with longevity. She was mentally sharp until the end, so I often thought it was unfortunate that she'd felt she was too old to spend money on herself when she was in her 70s and 80s.

 

[Lydlady]

I like the idea of the bridge if that would work. I've had about 4 implants (sheesh, I can't remember exactly) and unless it's a front tooth, I think I would opt for a bridge next time. The cost is one thing, but it took so long and wasn't exactly an enjoyable process.

 

[Passepartout]

I think that if it was me, I'd get a dental appointment someplace like San Miguel de Allende or Puerto Vallarta and rent a timeshare, VRBO or BnB there for a week. Come to think of it, I could use a new set of dentures. Thanks for getting me to think about it, George.

Jim

 

[Sandy VDH]

Funny thing about longevity. My parents lived well into their 80s, my mom 88 and my dad 85. Which is old age for the most part. However, they did not outlive their parents. In fact both of them lived a decade LESS than their oldest parent. My grandfather on my mom's side passed at 97, and my grandmother on my dad's side passed at 95.

Wonder what will happen with the next generation of us?

 

[moonstone]

My dad who turned 88 last month, had a cavity (his 5th in his life) in a back molar last fall. When the dentist started to drill it out the side of the tooth fell off. He explained to dad that he could do a root canal with crown or just pull the rest of the tooth out. Dad opted for the extraction. Since its the very back tooth so far he isn't having any chewing problems. Dad said he couldn't justify spending the money (even though he has dental insurance with his pension) on a crown at his age. He says he doesn't buy any green bananas either!

~Diane

 

[bogey21]

After looking at x-rays of the remaining part of my tooth and color pictures of the inside of my mouth my dentist and I came to an agreement. I will have a root canal, a new filling and level off the tooth at my gumline. Other than cost, a consideration is that extracting the remaining part of the tooth would require me to go off my blood thinner for 3 or 4 days risking another stroke which I am reluctant to do...

George

 

[Passepartout]

After looking at x-rays of the remaining part of my tooth and color pictures of the inside of my mouth my dentist and I came to an agreement. I will have a root canal, a new filling and level off the tooth at my gumline. Other than cost, a consideration is that extracting the remaining part of the tooth would require me to go off my blood thinner for 3 or 4 days risking another stroke which I am reluctant to do...

Sounds like a very reasonable solution. Glad your dentist is a realist.