My 15-year-old daughter is missing her upper eyetooth. She had braces and after the braces came off, she had a retainer to wear during the day that had a fake tooth on it, along with a retainer to wear at night that did not have a fake tooth. She developed a reaction to the retainer, and when she would take the retainer out you could see the impression on the roof of her mouth and the roof was very red and inflamed.

We have three doctors trying to determine the best thing to do and I would like your opinion if you have time:
1. The periodontist wants to put in a temporary implant, (he will not put in a permanent implant because she is not 18) but the orthodontist says he has seen the patients that have had this done and it does not look good at all.
2. The orthodontist wants her to have a Maryland bridge done but her dentist has said the teeth will look grayish.
3. The dentist wants the orthodontist to make a different retainer that she will not have a reaction to.
– Stephanie from Georgia

Stephanie,
When I read comments like yours where you have opinions from different dentists and you’re concerned about the appearance, I look for how sensitive the different dentists are to appearance issues. In my opinion, that’s the key point you can take away from this. The vast majority of dentists are technician-minded and not that appearance conscious. Surprisingly, this is true of most orthodontists, too. People think of orthodontists as specializing in appearance-related issues, but most of them are dedicated to “straight teeth”, not to “beautiful smiles.” There’s a difference.

And with these comments, please realize that without seeing the case, this advice is partially guesswork.

Yes, a Maryland Bridge makes the teeth on either side a little grayish. Many dentists think that amount of gray isn’t significant, but to patients it is. The fact that your general dentist is sensitive to this issue is noteworthy.

A dental implant is the best permanent solution. So I’d plan on that in a few years.

For now, a removable retainer with the tooth on it, made out of a material that she isn’t sensitive to. There are a variety of materials to make these out of.

Bottom line – it appears to me that you should trust the general dentist here.

Related links:
Read more about your options if you have missing teeth.
One option is a dental bridge.
Click here to read more about fixing crooked teeth.
mynewsmile.com, the most popular cosmetic dentistry web site on the Internet, has a case of Dr. Malone’s posted with photos of a Maryland Bridge replacement. Dr. Malone did a porcelain veneer bridge.