Monday, January 18th, 2010
I’ve worn full upper dentures for many years, but they are not working for me anymore. My dentist says my jaw bone has deteriorated, and is recommending dental implants. He quoted me a number that took my breath away! There is just no way I can afford the cost of replacing all my upper teeth with dental implants, not without help. Do you know of any dental insurance companies that would help pay at least part of the expense?
Heather in Raleigh
Dear Heather,
You are in a difficult position. If you have worn a full upper for many years, then your upper jaw bone has probably lost quite a bit of bone mass. Part of that “breath stealing number” might be for bone grafts in your upper jaw, which may be necessary if your jaw has deteriorated to the point that it can not support the dental implant root forms. Sadly, many people do not realize when they you lose teeth, you also lose bone at the site of the lost tooth. Your body reabsorbs the bone for use elsewhere in the body. If you’ve lost all your teeth, your jaw bones can deteriorate until you are unable to wear dentures of any kind, and you may develop a condition called “facial collapse.”
Your dentist is recommending dental implants in part to help halt this bone loss, and likely because it may well be the only option left open to you. Sadly, you will not find a dental insurance company that will pay for dental implants.
If you think about it from the insurance company’s position, it does make sense. Why would they sell you a policy and then turn around and pay for a treatment worth many, many times the value of that policy? It wouldn’t make sense, and they would not be in business long.
Most dental insurance policies will only cover the cost of the least expensive treatment. In this case, they would pay for a different set of dentures, but never dental implants. Even a policy through an employer, which is generally better than what you could purchase on your own, would have an annual maximum of between $500 and $1,000 payout for dental care.
Dental insurance works best when the dental insurance company sells to an employer. The dental insurance company passes on the cost of the dental benefits they pay out on to the employer (plus a little profit for the insurance company), and the employer pays the expenses with pre-tax dollars, as a benefit of employment.
Your challenge now is to find a way to get at least some dental implants in place, to help stop any more bone loss and perhaps provide an anchor for a new denture. Hopefully, your dentist can talk frankly with you about all your options, and will assist you in seeking financing. Best of luck to you.
Posted in Dental Implants, Dental Insurance, Dentures | No Comments »
Friday, October 10th, 2008
I am having implants - a complete set of teeth - done on the 31st. I’m going to be under for this, and being under for 4 hrs has me worried. They are removing a torus from my lower jaw and the rest of my teeth are being taken out and a first set of dentures put in. Is this common to take this long? How is this removal done? I will be under and am worried about this the most.
- Carol in Indiana
Carol,
First let me congratulate you for getting dental implants to replace your teeth that are being taken out. This is by far the best way to replace missing teeth. When your dentures are fixed with implants, they are stable and you can eat normally. With removable dentures as opposed to implant-retained dentures, your chewing efficiency is reduced seriously, and this contributes to a poor diet and a deterioration of your health. So it looks to me like you are doing the best thing for yourself.
And taking out that many teeth and replacing them with dental implants is a lot of work. It isn’t complicated, but it would take a fair amount of time.
Being in the office for four hours sounds reasonable for what you are having done. A torus is a benign growth of bone that often occurs on the tongue side of lower teeth and on the cheek side of upper teeth. It can cause problems when you have a denture because it interferes with the fit of the denture and the skin over the torus can easily become sore. Removal isn’t complicated. The bone is usually just shaved down.
And being “under” for four hours doesn’t seem like a real concern to me. Once you’re under, maintaining that for four hours isn’t difficult. I’m confident you’re in good hands.
Read about Dr. McKay’s drop-dead gorgeous dentures.
See the main web site of Seattle cosmetic dentist Dr. Brian McKay
Posted in Dental Implants, Dentures | No Comments »
Wednesday, June 18th, 2008
I had teeth numbers 4 and 5 extracted five days ago. I was told it was a difficult extraction and one of the teeth had broken. He then drilled, extracted it and stitched the site. My stitches have not dissolved as yet and I am scheduled to get my partials inserted in two days. Please advise me as my thinking is it’s too soon, however, I have heard that they place the partials in at the time of extractions. Would that be stitches and all?
- Jackie from Massachusetts
Jackie,
I feel for you going through those difficult extractions.
You don’t necessarily have to have complete healing before you can place either partial dentures or full dentures. That is often done. Sometimes complete dentures are placed the same day that the teeth are extracted. Right over the stitches.
Related links:
Seattle cosmetic dentist
Read about Dr. McKay’s gorgeous cosmetic dentures.
Posted in Dentures | No Comments »
