I have been a dental assistant for 40+ years. If the tooth has not had the nerve removed (root canal), it will more than likely need that treatment to save what is left of the tooth. Most often just the root that is level with the gum. They might recomend removing the existing tooth and adding it to your partial. That requires a laboratory to repair it and being without it for a day or so. I would doubt it would be necessary to have a new partial made. You would not be out of line asking them to credit the $90 toward the new treatment considering you told them something was wrong. The tooth was probably heavily filled over the years and having the partial not seated as normal stressed it to fracture.

Oh, sorry! Did the tooth break far down? Have to be pulled? How will this affect your partial?

I have three wisdom teeth. One never came through and isn't visible on x-rays. I've hung on to them, since I lost four 'corner' teeth to the orthodontist when I was 13. (I don't think they DO that any more.)

Recently, my top right wisdom tooth chipped when I was chewing a raw almond. Dentist filled it with silver compound. About six weeks later, it broke again. (I was eating *oatmeal*.) Now the hole was quite large. Dentist wanted it pulled, and I wanted to keep it. He very reluctantly agreed to crown it -- because it's difficult to reach back there in my small mouth. He didn't charge me for the crown prep, but the crown itself was $1280. I'm still avoiding chewing nuts on that side of my mouth.

Hope you have a less expensive outcome.

Thanks for your insight, Marcopolo. The tooth is on the bottom front. Not root canaled--but it's one of the few that haven't been. If I'm offered a choice between root canal/crown and extraction, I'll have to reluctantly choose extraction. My teeth have had a lot of work over the years, and at my age (72) I figure they're more vulnerable and fragile than ever. Also, there's the cost . . .

The partial is only a couple of months old, BTW.

Chisue, I started grinding my almonds not long ago out of concern that a whole one could damage a tooth. Somehow matzohs didn't come under suspicion, however.

My sympathies Susan.

Sorry that happened to you, Susan. I started to make a joke that the dentist got carried away while drilling but it's really not funny. I've been the route of the failed root canals and I wouldn't wish that on you for anything. Good luck and I hope you reach a good conclusion with the dentist.

"You would not be out of line asking them to credit the $90 toward the new treatment considering you told them something was wrong. "

In my opinion you would not be out of line asking for them to do the new treatment for free.

Not fun, sorry you have to go thru this.

I tend to agree, Lucille. I'm hoping they'll offer without my having to ask.

So sorry! My DH just lost a cap. It fell out into his hand and then dropped down the drain.

Hopefully they will squeeze him in for a temporary. Not a good week for this. Plus we have a party on Sunday.

Yes, the timing could be better, couldn't it, Ellen?

To complicate things further, I'm coming down with a sore throat tonight. My family has had revolving sinus infections for a month, and mine was finally over a week ago. But then I babysat Friday and wiped a couple of noses, etc. Joey's in preschool now, and bringing home a nice variety of germs.

Alicante if your partial is that new there should not be a problem repairing it to replace the extracted root. You may not have the same retention as with the clasped tooth. Suggest you try a tiny bit of denture adhesive on partial before a meal. Stops partial from stressing remaining teeth with movement.

Whole almonds followed by NY style bagels are the toughest food most people eat. We do emergency treatment weekly to repair damage . I suggest the almonds in a sliced or slivered form, much easier to chew. Rip a piece of bagel off and put in back of your mouth. The anterior teeth are usually more fragile as we age.

Also it is possible to have dentist take the impression for the repair before extraction. It is not necessary to have a tooth out and wait weeks for healing with a empty space in front. May have to do an office procedure if shrinkage occurs in a few months. Not a big deal. Just a bit of fast set acrylic to partial.

Ellen, Have DH open trap on sink a metal crown should be in the trap. Can be sterilized and reused. If it is an acrylic type material it might be there, but they are much lighter. Worth a look, new crowns vs a recement charge.

Thanks. We have done that for other things. I think he was annoyed that it was never really right and wants new one.

Humph! I broke a root on a molar, periodontist had to remove the root. He said he didn't know how long tooth would last. Well, it lasted 3 weeks!

Had to go to oral surgeon to have remaining tooth removed! Not happy!

Now I have a $400 bill and no tooth to show for it, drat!

kathyg, ideally you could have an implant to replace the one missing tooth. Fortunately some insurance companies are covering part of implant charges. If you have a dental school near you it is possible to have treatment with a greatly reduced fee. Treatment is done by dentists that have completed training and are continuing to a specialty.

I feel like an idiot. I was reluctant to remove my partial yesterday afternoon, afraid I would disturb what remained of the tooth and expose the nerve or something, so I didn't take it out until I brushed my teeth last night. When I did, I discovered, to some initial confusion, that I hadn't lost a tooth at all. The upper part of a tooth that broke off came from my partial.

This confirms the well-documented observation that we see what we believe we're going to see. I was worried about the shifting tooth, so I assumed it had yielded to pressure and broken off. Also, I've worn a partial for decades, and never had any part of one break. So it never occurred to me that it could happen, especially with one so new. Plus I didn't look in the mirror. :-)

Yes, an idiot. I feel I should apologize for taking up your time. But I must say I'm also relieved.

Hopefully the good news is your own tooth is still there and that the dentist should be able to repair it. And thanks to marcopolo I'll have to switch to slivered almonds. I have to be careful of my front teeth - one had a root canal and the dentist mentioned that the roots are unusually shallow - so I now cut my apples, and hoagies into slices, and my bagels into bite sized pieces so that I'm not biting into them with my front teeth.

Hey! Great news! No apology needed. If you had NOT posted, we would not have heard from Marcopolo -- and DH and I would still be eating whole almonds.

No problem, it's a happy outcome and we are all "rooting for that" lol.

I recommend dental school, if you're anywhere near one.

ole (toothless) joyfuelled ... who thus wonders about the value of *that* recommendation!

No dental school, but we do have a massage school that I enjoy once in awhile. :-)

I'm glad that it wasn't your tooth but the partial. Hopefully you are feeling much better today.

Marco, they said that because my sinus cavity is right up under the tooth, they could not use a post. Also, got a price for a different tooth post, just the post would be $1,200. Told them, maybe when my house is paid for, that is a house payment!

The dental schools provide treatment on a sliding scale fee. Usually about half the charge of a private practice. They have graduated dentists and students that need patients to treat. All treatment is closely supervised by instructors in that specialty. Each step in treatment is checked by the instructor. It can take much more time then an appointment with you dentist. Finances are the motivation to have treatment in a dental school. And yes joyfulguy they make teeth for toothless folks.

An example, GS needed 4 wisdom teeth removed. Charge at oral surgeon would have $2,000. Dental school charge was $375 total.

Alisante happy it was not your tooth , glad I could give information that might be a help.

It is always informative to have answers to unusual questions. My partial has broken several times...and (darn) when one of the anchor teeth 'goes' I am terrified thinking about what is going to happen. The dentist who did my partial with an implant on one side sold his practice and I really dislike his replacement....and not many dentists do that implant surgery well. Wish we had a dental school anywhere near-by. I do try to be careful, and KNOW nuts and other stuff is dangerous. Yes, rarely even order a sandwich out, because it must look odd to be putting cut off pieces into the back part of my mouth!

nanny98, I never bite into pizza, always use knife and fork. Past worrying about anyone thinking my actions are odd.

When an implant is necessary, very important to have one placed that will become integrated with the bone. Placement is a surgical procedure, than a wait of 4 to 9 months for the bone to integrate with implant. After that the implant is uncovered and a crown made to attach to it. There are what is termed mini implants being done . They are screwed into bone after a seat is drilled in the bone. They are used as anchors immediately. Not nearly as sturdy or successful as the other type.

The solution to your problem might be this:

1. Construct a ceramic cap.

2. Root canal

3. On the day of cap placement, install a titanium post (peg) in the upper part of the tooth and then cement the cap in place. The post adds the needed support to anchor the cap.

This method of attaching a cap to a slender tooth is much stronger than cement alone.

It turned out the tooth on the partial wasn't the only thing that broke: A piece--sort of a small slice--broke off the side of the tooth I'd worried about (the side adjacent to the partial. The dentist repaired it with some filling, and fixed the partial. I hope I won't have to go back there for awhile.

Glad it was an easy fix. Be careful when gnawing the drumstick. :)

Haha I told the dentist I was going to stick to cranberry sauce. :-)

While any dentist, even general dentists, can and do put in implants, any one of the following - an oral surgeon, a periodontist, a prosthodontist - has several years more specialized training and more specialized experience to ensure the procedure will be successful and that any unusual circumstances are recognized and addressed.

Well, I don't know... but I don't think much about this "... the ligaments will adjust..." routine.

My dentist is a perfectionist and if I breath a word of being able to feel something awkward about the bite, she sets to and fixes the problem.

Is there a better dentist you could go to?

I usually see another dentist in the same practice, and in fact saw him this week when he repaired the partial and the broken tooth.

The explanation for letting the ligaments adjust was that she wanted to avoid leaving a space between the partial and the tooth, where food could accumulate.