Question:
I have a loose crown, it has been loose for 6 months and my dentist
will not take it off because he said it will do too much damage to the
tooth underneath. He said to wait until it falls out on its own, Is
this the normal procedure for this? The tooth is in the front, so
naturally I don't want to be toothless there.
Also, the gums around the tooth is irritated, probably from wiggling
the crown and there is a nasty taste coming from it. It is driving me
crazy actually. I am wondering if most dentists take this approach or
if it would be worth seeking another opinion. This crown is about 3
years old.
Answer:
I assume the tooth has had root canal treatment and a post. Almost
certainly what has happened is that the post has loosened from the
canal. If a crown is loose, it will generally be very easy to remove
and re-cement (assuming all is well underneath).
Generally I will try to remove a crown in the condition I think yours
is in. There is an increased risk of decay and root fracture if the
thing is wobbling around in there.
Occasionally I've had patients with multi-tooth bridges where the
bridge has loosened up on one or more (but not all) teeth and I have
been unable to remove it without risking damage to the teeth. I have
occasionally left some of these bridges in and monitored
closely--assuming in a few weeks or months time I will try again and
remove it. But I cannot see a justification for waiting in this case.
Usually if the crown is pulled straight out it will come out--then the
tooth underneath can be closely examined and the post/crown re-cemented
or replaced as needed.
I would get a second opinion.
Is the whole tooth loose? or just the crown.
what tooth is it in front? front front, or front side, could you send a
picture? or link to one
here are some thoughts. Possible lateral with impacted canine
underneeth.(root resorption)
Infected, abscessed, etc,Advanced Perio, possible spint needed?
nasty taste = infection of some sort, (periapical, periodontal, etc),
if it's an internal reabsorption thing going on, then we want to keep
it as long as possible to keep the bone around it.
It is tooth number 10, right in the front. I am pretty sure there is no
post on this tooth, but it did have a root canal done on it. That is my
concern too, because of the gum around it being so red, if it is
actually the tooth loose or the crown. I can move it back into place
though and it stays, so I am not sure that would happen if the tooth
was loose. Also there isn't any seperation between the gum and the
tooth. Thanks for the input, I go to the dentist tommorow and if it
cannot be corrected it looks like I will ask another dentist to look at
it.
I went in yesterday to have it looked at and it is a loose post
according to the dentist. However, he said he cannot "pull it off" and
recement it. He said I need a new crown. I guess he is going to drill
it off. And I am going to pay for the new crown because it is less than
5 years old so it isn't covered by insurance. They only pay half
anyway but it would have helped. My bigger problem is, I cannot get an
appointment until the first week of June. Isn't that too long to wait
to fix this?. I think it will fall out before then and I want to avoid
an embarassing situation. I guess I am going to have to look for
another dentist to fix this - I think nearly two months is a long time
to wait for an appointment, is that common?
If it's that loose it should be possible to pull it off. It may well
be best to try to make a more retentive crown.
Making a new crown is not a quick appointment you can "slip in" the
schedule. However, doing some kind of temporary restoration should be easy.
Two months to wait for an appointment may be routine for some dentists,
but unknown to this dentist.
