[marriedgal]

Hey guys,

I just want to hear what you all would do.
We brought how our two boys almost three months ago. One boy saw one dentist; another boy saw a different (same practice).

The 5 yr. old was told he needed all the work to be done by a pediadontist. (problems with nearly every tooth).

The 4 yr. old was told he should just brush a lot and check in after 6 months and see if things got worse (he has problems in every single tooth; worse than his brother). The dentist didn't want to traumatize him against the dentist.

We went ahead and found a pediadontist and he wants to put the boys to sleep and do all the work at once, but he is going to charge $6,000, + any fees the hospital wants to add, which could be a fortune. . .

Random, but important fact, the boys never complain about their very gigantic cavities. Either they are so used to the pain, they don't notice it -- or it just doesn't hurt.

Sooooooooo . . .
What would you do???
I don't want to sacrifice my kids' health, but were on one income and that's a heck of a lot of money on baby teeth . . .

Advice? Thoughts? Wisdom? Opinions? Similar experiences?????

THANK YOU GUYS!!

[Ms.Judi]

I am so sorry that you are having to deal with this. I would go ahead and have their teeth fixed now so as not to have any further problems in the future. Hopefully they can work with you on payments. Good luck!! Your boys are so handsome!!!

[kretzklan]

Popping over from Russia board as we've had a million dental issues. Are your boys afraid of the dentist now? If not, I don't see why they would jump straight to putting them to sleep. Both my children needed something done to every tooth in their head. We settled on a schedule to work on approx 2 teeth at each visit and spread the visits out every couple of weeks. We also opted to just pull most of the teeth since yes, they were baby teeth. We did have a bad ped dentist when we came home and switched after the first visit...but from there on out - no fear, no problems! They even like going now!

[LucyLuMyLuv]

I was "lucky" in that my 6 year old came home with a full set of silver teeth and one spacer. The dentist told me that it was important to cap the teeth if they were so decayed to preserve the placement for permanent teeth. He said the work was very well done and would have cost me a fortune in the US. Once they started falling out her permanent teeth are VERY crowded but the dentist said he would not recommend orthodontics for her as the enamel on her permanent teeth is also very weak from her early nutrition -- or lack of it.

[connorsmommy1999]

will your insurance cover any of it??

My friend adopted a 5 yr old who also had very bad teeth - every tooth had a cavity. They scheduled appts once a week and they did 4 teeth at a time until they were all done. It took just over a month. Her DD has no problem with the dentist.

I would get a 2nd opinion before I went the route your dentist is suggesting. --and it's not just about the money, there are risks with putting them to sleep.

[carlyincali]

We will be doing the same thing w/our daughter, when she comes home, at Loma Linda Childrens Hospital. It is wonderful. There is no trauma at all. They don't even take xrays till they're asleep. We don't have insurance and have been told that it's going to be around $4 to $5000.

Just two weeks ago she had to go to the dentist in GC on an emergency basis and have three teeth pulled and 7 "somethings." Not sure what they are called, (only got the word in Spanish,) but it is like a root canal.

My daughter is 5yo and her teeth are HORRIBLE.

[cjrogers]

This is interesting as I just had a conversation with a coworker about this. And I'll preface this with I don't know a whole lot about teeth.

But I do know that those "baby teeth" are going to fall out. If the teeth are in such bad shape that they will impact your sons' self esteem and things of that nature, then perhaps you should get a 2nd opinion and see what can be done. Some dental schools might be able to do this work for you for a fraction of the price.

From what I understand and do know, is that if you start working on that oral hygiene now, ensure that they have enough H20 with flouride or some flouride treatments and overall improved nutrition, then the permanent teeth should come in fine. That's not to say you won't spend thousands down the line on orthodontic work!

Some of this damage could also be from antibiotic use, medicines, nutritional issues, too. So perhaps by improving the overall health, you will improve the chances for the permanent teeth being in better shape.

I agree that you should get a 2nd, if not 3rd opinion - from a party that is not vested in your sons' teeth.... i.e, pay for a 2nd opinion only and make it clear that is all it is... no chance for business.

I'm sorry, at the risk of offending someone here, I cannot believe the idea of investing several thousand into teeth that are going to fall out. I hope a dentist can jump in here and correct me if I am wrong. Because this sounds a little bit shady to me.

I hope all goes well for you with this!!

[Mindybeth6]

We are dealing with this too but it's my bio son....yikes...bad mommy! Actually, his teeth are VERY close together and he has several cavities between his teeth but they are his molars. This is a REALLY stupid question but do those fall out too? ROFL I forget. I have put it off because I don't have the money AT ALL but my dentist made it sound like I HAD to get it done. It is SO Pricey because my son is TERRIFIED of the dentist, and yes, he has been going since 2, and still is terrified. They have to put him under and my insurance does NOT cover that because they say it isn't neccesary. UGH....insurance.
I have no advice...only that I understand.

[carlyincali]

Originally Posted by cjrogers

I'm sorry, at the risk of offending someone here, I cannot believe the idea of investing several thousand into teeth that are going to fall out. I hope a dentist can jump in here and correct me if I am wrong. Because this sounds a little bit shady to me.

The problem is, as in my daughter's case is that the teeth are so rotten (all the way through the root) that they will in effect rot the permament teeth waiting to come down. Also in Josi's case, as you can see by her picture I posted in the other post above, she has no teeth on top. (This photo was taken by me in March BEFORE she had three teeth pulled.) The top four teeth rotted away. So what's left are rotten stumps (for lack of a better word,) up under her gums. Those rotten, black, stumps and the infection inside (I guess it's infection,) have eaten away a good portion of her gums on top, especially on one side. I'm not sure if her gums are permanently disfigured or if they will grow back.

Anyway, when Josi's teeth became infected a couple of weeks ago, they were hurting her pretty bad. But, I do believe that her teeth always have hurt her, but she has become immune to the pain.

I'm not sure, marriedgal, if your son's teeth are as bad as my daughter's, but I do agree you should get a second opinion. That is a lot of money. And I'm sure they are wanting it upfront, aren't they? That's what we were told.

[DPline]

My son came home at 20 months old and within three months had two teeth crowned. (He has no enamel on his teeth.) It was done in the office with 'laughing gas' and was a total non-event and he was not scared of the dentist or traumatized at all. It may just be him (he does tend to be very happy-go-lucky anyway) but I would definetly get a second and possibly third opinion about the possibility of the work being done in the office to cut back the cost.

I am only going by what I have been told by dentists (though I have talked to several) but my understanding is that it is important to get cavities etc. taken care of in baby teeth because it can spread down into the gums and effect the adult teeth that are forming.

[mevertin]

We had work done on our 3 year olds teeth. He also had no enamel and has had some cavities. My husband is a dentist but he sent him to a children's dentist. He said if you don't treat infections in baby teeth it hurts, they abcess and the infection can spread into the gums and bones. Also, baby teeth provide the spacing for the permanent teeth to come in correctly. The dentist used gas on my little one and he did just fine-they were really fast. Good luck.
Mary
mom to Bobby 11, Bridget 10, Angela 8, Eddie 3 (home from Guatemala in 2005) and Naldo 17 months (home since Feb.)

[nathansvolunteers]

I have no "tooth knowledge" to share, but wanted to suggest that you contact Dspakowsky, whose daughter had dental work done after coming home, as well as Drjeanne, who if I remember correctly, is a dentist!
Best of luck with whatever you decide.....


CIndy

[jose'smom]

Been there....check out the dental school in your state and see if they would be willing to perform the procedures. My son saw a pedo at dental school for all his problems and while they typically charge a very low fee, they actually did his for free b/c they felt bad that he had gone so long with such problems. He was their "charity" case as they have certain amounts they are allowed to allocate to such cases.

[praying4rlittl1]

Kelli,
Emilee had this too when she came home. We did end up having her teeth capped and cleaned (10 of them!) under general anesthesia. We did for the reasons stated by the other posters. We still have no idea how healthy (or not healthy) her permanent teeth will be when they come in because there was so much damage to her baby teeth.

We asked up front if we could put the bill on payments. They were actually more than fine with that and we paid faithfully every month until it was paid off. They told us more than once that they'd rather we be up front and honest and do payments, than be a non-payer.

[carolun]

We are having the same issue with my 20 month old. He needs a lot of dental work and needs to be put to sleep in order to have it done. Our insurance doesn't cover the hopitaliztion part of it. We have contacted the hosptial where it will be done and asked for a break if we pay in cash. Long story short there is no break at this hosptial b/c they have a set fee no matter how long you use the operating room. But you could try to talk to your hosptial. Also I went to 3 different dentist until I found one I thought was honest and was putting my son first. The problem with leaving baby teeth in that are bad is they could cause a major infection and possibly damage other teeth coming in behind not to mention pain. It is a hard decision to make I hope you find some answers but don't be afraid to keep calling around and shop dentist till you find one that will make you comfortable.