I was getting a crown replaced and also needed to get a tooth replaced. My dentist suggested that I get a dental implant after some bone grafting to fill in the missing bone structure. I agreed. We went ahead with the procedure. Once the bone grafting was done, he provided me with a Maryland Bridge for a temporary tooth replacement. The problem I am having is that he cannot keep the Maryland Bridge on my tooth. I was told it would last for several months while the surgery site healed. But, in three weeks the bridge has come off four times. This was done by an implant dentist. A friend suggested that I might need to see a different dentist because this isn’t usual. Should I switch dentists? The only thing I’ve actually paid for is the bone grafting and Maryland Bridge.
Romy
Dear Romy,
Now, I have not examined you and do not know the qualifications of the dentist doing your work, but I will admit that I have concerns. Implant dentistry is a very advanced procedure and there are countless dental implant horror stories where things went very wrong for the patient.
My concerns are two-fold. First, he gave you a Maryland Bridge for a “temporary” tooth replacement. These would not be a good choice. In order to properly bond them, there will need to be some structural changes to the adjacent teeth. A notch, like the one pictured above, is required on the adjacent teeth in order to keep the bridge secure. Once the bridge is removed, that notch in your tooth has to be filled in with something like a composite filling. That’s not temporary.
Second, he can’t keep the Maryland Bridge secure. This gives me serious doubts about his technical skills and understanding of the procedures. If he doesn’t get something as basic as a bridge, I’m a bit concerned what would go wrong with something as serious as a dental implant.
It is perfectly fine to switch dentists even in the middle of the procedure. Your current dentist is ethically obligated to provide you and your new dentist with all his diagnostics and notes. Just make sure that whoever you go to in order to finish your procedure has post doctoral training in placing dental implants. You’ll also want to ask them what their success rate is.
This blog is brought to you by the Lafayette, LA Dentists Drs. Foreman and Thimmesch.
Click here to read about our sedation dentistry options.