Question from a fellow classmate in med school

[lundysd]

Hey everyone, I have a qucik question regarding some dental care I just received.

After missing a 6 month appointment and moving to a new city, I visited a local dentist for a checkup and cleaning. At this appointment, Xrays were taken that showed a rather large cavity in a tooth I knew to be in trouble (I had pain in it for several weeks). The cavity seemed to be a concern to the staff, yet I was scheduled for a regular filling 2.5 months later (first available appointment). Upon arriving to the second appointment, I was informed rather quickly that it seems tha this tooth would now require a crown, so I was sent home and asked to come back 2 weeks later. Fast forward 2 weeks, and as I'm waiting for my temporary crown I was told that it would now need endodontic work most likely.

I realize that like medicine, dentistry is an imperfect science, but I had a few questions regarding how this all took place. Is it normal to wait 2.5 months to fill such a high-risk cavity? Would the x-rays be able to determine the extent of the decay such that endodontics would be recommended immediately? As someone who knows much more about this than I do, would you seek a second opinion/change providers?

Thanks for the help yall -- I have just learned from experiences in medicine that it's best to be proactive and educate yourself as a patient as much as possible.

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[crazy_sherm]

A dentist can only tell so much from xray and other clinical diagnostic tools. Sometimes you don't know the extent of the caries until you get in there and start removing tooth structure. The 2.5 month wait was a judgement call by the dentist based on his schedule and prognosis of the tooth. There's no such thing as a "typical" lesion and not everything is predictable. There is no way for any of us with out having examined you to make any sort of assessment or diagnosis, and even then, many dentists will have a different opinion. If you felt that the dentist was in error or 2.5 months ago you did not feel you should have had to wait, you could/should have gone to a different dentist for a second opinion.

 

[dinesh]

Picture an iceberg inside your tooth.
It looks small...but when you get in...Holy shiet!

 

[aphistis]

You should always seek a second opinion if you aren't satisfied with the first. That said, SDN isn't the place to get it. You should consult another dentist personally. Good luck!