Frequently Asked Questions

	General Questions
	I have been hearing a lot about Xylitol lately What does it do? What is Plaque? Who would benefit the most from sealants? How do I get a cavity? What is in-office bleaching? My bottom teeth are looking bad and a repair on the center front tooth veneer is needed. Can I get bonding and how much would it cost? I feel pressure type pain in the upper part of my mouth, possibly top back tooth. Is it normal for me to be able to pass air under my partial bridge? What are the pros and cons of using an electric toothbrush? Are they worth the extra money? I have a gingivitis problem. My dentist says it is due to not eating enough vegetable-type foods. Is that true? And what can I do about it?. Six months ago, I had a molar extracted and now there seems to be what feels like a bone spur on my inner gum line. It's uncomfortable, too. Can something be done? Our 6 year old son has terrible problems with his teeth. They are horribly decayed and they hurt him. We make him brush and rinse with Listerine 2 times a day. But he sucks his thumb. Could his thumb sucking be causing this rapid decay? My son is 3 years old (Jan 3 2002). When can I take him for his check up or at what age should kids start to see dentists? Thanks What can you tell me about dental "onlays". They substitue for silver or plastic fillings and resemble the appearance of porcelin. Do they stand up over time and what are the risks or downsides to restoring a decayed tooth with them assuming there is enough tooth left for the onlay to attach to. I've been told by my dentist that if I don't pay for "Premium" crowns on my upper front teeth, there will always be a gap at the gum line as the regular crowns DentaQuest discounts will never fit without the gap. But Permium ones will always fit. It's about 2 times more money out of my pocket. I need advice? I don't expect you to discuss the dollar amount another dentist charges, but I do need your opinion as to why inferior crowns/caps are used as a general practice,according to the office of my dentist, and your views on the difference between a regular vs premium crown. Finally, is it your opiinon I will have the gap with one but as promised no gap with the other? I have an appointment to begin the part of treatment on the week of June 14th. Won't you please give me your opinion and any other information available prior to that date? Thanks My daughter is turning three on tuesday. I noticed she has a hole in her front left tooth. I also noticed that her right front tooth is starting to blacken. I realize that I have to get her to a dentist, but was wondering what could have caused this. She does brush. She also still uses a pacifier. I was told that this may cause damage to the teeth. Is that true? My 5 year old permanant teeth are growing behind her baby teeth...What should I do? Great article on lip piercing. What about tongue piercings? Dr. Williams-- I'm 22 weeks pregnant, and in need of some dental work. (I'm a procrastinator of the WORST kind!)--I've got a filling that feels broken, but only hurts once in a while. (However, I don't want it to get worse.) I've also got a root canal that I never went back to have crowned. (It's been a little over a year.) And it's getting a bit...sensitive. Is there anything I can do now, while I'm pregnant? Please keep in mind--I'm a WHIMP when it comes to pain, and if any serious work needs done, I can't do it without novacaine. :-) Thank u for your help. Lynette Is there a way to remove stains from bonding? Is it dangerous or harmful if a tooth grows out from the roof of the mouth? I need to have a apico to teeth 9 & 10, how expensive and necessary is this procedure. I need a apico (surgery to remove an infection in a root canal). What should I expect? Within the past year or so I have started to get anxiety attacks when in the dentist and receiving any kind of service. It doesn't matter the type of service it is. What can I request that the doctor does to help with this when going to the dentist? Or what do I do in this type of situation, because it is really really making my trips to the dentist very horrible and it has caused me not to go as needed, I have some major dental work that is needed. Please point in the right direction, because I now have a new dentist and I need to make an appointment with them like yesterday. Thank You. Candice Adams Is it necessary to have sealants put on my children's teeth? What are the benefit? My teeth chip a lot. They don't hurt, but I can tell they are chipped because of the roughness. Do chipped teeth need to be immediately taken care of, or are they of no harm if not chipped at the baseline or near the gum? I think I may have to have an apico surgery....What causes the infection of a root canal?....Is my dentist to blame? My child is 3 1/2 yrs old. My Mom is a dental assistant and strongly recommends he see a dentist for a routine check-up. If he is not having problems with his teeth and we brush his teeth everyday, do you recommend the routine check-up? I think he would be too scared and it would be a waist of time. Please advise!! My 7 year old daughter lost her two front teeth just over 3 months ago and there is no sign of her permanent teeth coming in. The teeth became loose and came out on their own (no trauma). Should we be worried that the permanent teeth are taking so long to come in? Can I use those over the counter teeth whiteners if I have veneers or caps? My nephew grinds his teeth alot as he sleep through out the night and I have questioned my brother about it, he claim's that he has talked to a dentist and he was told that my nephew needs to grow out of this trend. I want to know if thats true and if this is good advice. My nephew is three years old and grinds them pretty badly as he sleeps, I'm worried about the damage of cracking, chipping, and breaking of his teeth. I don't want him to go through that pain. And the last question is would a retainer fix or be best for this problem. What can you recommend for someone who is an excessive nighttime teeth-grinder? (So much that mouthguards are being worn down, there is concern about teeth cracking, etc.) I am having a hard time getting advice past wearing the mouthguard every night and establishing ways to decrease stress (yoga, relaxation, etc, before bed.) Can you please offer me some more suggestions? Thank you! I was just informed that I will need an apico surgery for my #3 tooth. This tooth obviously had a root canal done on it 5 years ago. For years, I've been questioning a bone like mass right near this tooth. My dentist tells me that it is probably my jawbone but I was wondering, could it be a left over root from when I had my widsom tooth pulled? If so, could this be the reason why I have an abscess by that apico tooth? I am 30 years old and my bite has become more and more crooked over the years. When I open my mouth my jaw deviates to the left. These issues have been casuing me tooth pain and jaw pain and my dentist has had to shave down certain teeth to keep them from banging together and causing pain. Am I too old for braces? Would they even help? What do you suggest? I had porcelin filling place in my teeth and all of them fell out in less than 6 months. Now I have holes in my teeth and the dentist wants to do roots canal pocedures and veneers on all my teeth. Has this ever happen any body else. And why would the fillings came come out so fast. IN PAIN AND NEED ADVICE I have a broken front tooth. It's one of the biggest front teeth out of the two. I just broke it tonight. It was a tooth that had a root canal because the nerve got damaged from an injury. They put a temporary filling in, but they never finished it because my visit for the real filling I advised them that I found out I was pregnant, so they said they wanted to wait. I need to know if there is anything temporary I can do to fix this, to make it look better, and to make the pain go away atleast until I can figure out how to get to the dentist. I currently have no health insurance. I have been having a pain in my lower right jaw for a couple of days, and headaches. Today it feels a little like it might be my tooth, but it mainly hurts to open my jaw up really wide, or to chew. Any suggestions? Or should I schedule an appointment with my dentist? And if so, how immediately? I have 3 teeth that have started to decay and have holes. What would I need to have done to save those teeth? I'm 23 years old and I don't smoke or drink coffee (nor have I ever) but my teeth are starting to yellow. I was wondering what I can do about this using over the counter products. Which products are the best and are they "paints" or do they actually remove the discoloration? IS THERE ANYTHING LIKE NOVACAINE I CAN PURCHASE OVER THE COUNTER? I HAVE A WISDOM TOOTH COMING IN SIDEWAYS AND CAN NOT GET ANYTHING DONE TO IT UNTIL THE FOLLOWING WEEK. PLEASE HELP, I AM IN A GREAT DEAL OF PAIN!!!!! On the inside of my lower jaw, back in the molar area, a bump under the gum formed and became very sore below my back molar, eventually the bump broke through the gum and what was exposed looked like a small piece or chip of tooth. Eventually, it came out all together. Now,just as that side has started to heal, the same thing is going on on the other side. I recently had a routine cleaning, with a fine check-up. I have not had any extractions, and I do have some mandibular tori. what is going on, and is this something to be concerned about? Do any of the doctors use laser instead of needles because I am very afraid of needles. I have red sore which I have been told is ulcer on the right side on the roof of my mouth for about three days. Is there any over the counter products I should use? Or should I be worried it may be cancer? Do most general dentists refuse to see children under 6? What cons\cerns should I have if my child has a heart murmur? Should I change my subscribed dentist to one who will see a child under 6 when there is only one under 6 person on my family DentaQuest plan? I was wondering if electric toothbrushes are any better than good old fashioned brushing. is the crest whitenning strips actually good for your teeth? When would an onlay be preferable to a crown? Is one procedure more expensive than the other? Is an onlay as durable as a crown? I am a diabetic. Do I have to do anything before attending the dentist. I am very afraid of the dentist because of the pain. What preventive procedures can I use to strenthen my teeth, they chip very easy? I had a tooth pulled and am thinking about getting a dental implant. I also am planning pregnancy. Is it safe to do this procedure while pregnant? Or is better to hold off on either getting pregnant or the implant procedure? Right now I am wearing a flipper. Also, if pregnant shortly after the implant procedure, will any pregancy related gum problems affect the healing process? Hello, I am experiencing teeth sensitivity for the 1st time in my life and want to know what may have caused it and how to keep it from happening again...I am 32 years old. Thanks! 2 months ago i had my wisdom teeth cut out. about a week ago i started to feel like i had a bone chip in my right lower gum area. it started swelling and a little bit of white started to show through. i went to the dentist and found out it was my jawbone coming through. i am 35 years old. my dentist said that they can go in and shave some of my jawbone so my gum can cover it up. is this a good thing to be doing? I'm a 27yr. old female smoker that has serve gum disease. About a year ago, I had the procedure done that deep cleans under the gum line. Since that procedure was, done my gums have gotten alot worst! My gums infront of two teeth on my bottom of my mouth is almost totally gone causing me serious pain! Is there anything that I can do to help this pain? What can you suggest for my new dental procedure? Is it true that brushing with an electric toothbrush is better than with a regular hand toothbrush? My 3yr old top front teeth are turning brown, can well water cause this? I am 36 years old and have two teeth on the bottom that overlap each other and One of them wiggles like its loose. What does that mean? My bottom teeth have receded can they fix this? I just had a tooth pulled. Will the hole in my gum eventually close up or fill in, or will there always be a big hole there? I really don't want a huge hole in my gums. What are my options? I have a tooth that needed a crown that I got a root canal on in February of this year and I have yet to get the crown. Yesterday I was eating a nut and the tooth cracked in half. Presently I am having problems getting a doctor appointment b/c I am awaiting a new copy of my card. So, I thought in the meantime I would get some advice. Thanks for any information! I have a bump/lump on my gums in the back of my mouth. Lower right side. what is this... I recently found out I was pregnant and am approximately 4 weeks along. I had planned on scheduling dental procedures to remove several damaged teeth including two broken wisdom teeth and it would require either multiple visits with local anesthetic and a very large amount of stress/panick related trauma OR one visit involving hospital check in and being put under for the procedure to be done all at once. Since finding out I was pregnant, I'm concerned about doing EITHER method, as mentally I have a history of severe panic which would lead to large amounts of stress and high risk of stress related miscarriage in the case of repeated visits, and I've read that being put under could cause a high risk also (please note the information about being put under was gained from the web, so I can't verify it). I do plan to talk to an OB about the matter as I am not comfortable putting off a procedure until after labor with it being a good 8 months away, but wanted a more clear answer about the hospitalization method. As I said, repeated visits are a high risk for me, which was discovered while I was growing up due to the stress related dangers. Any information you can provide about the process used in hospitalization procedures would be greatly appreciated as I'm concerned that waiting could harm my babies health much more. I am 27 years old with crooked front teeth because I use to suck my thumb. I have a fake crown tooth on one of my two front teeth because I broke my front tooth years ago. Can I still get braces to straighten out my teeth even with the crown on my front tooth? My 3 yr old daughter fell and chipped her two front teeth last summer. Today I noticed the discoloration in her right front tooth was worse and there is a bump in the gum above it. does this signify an infection and a need to have the tooth pulled? in 1990 i chipped my two front teeth. the left tooth basically fell out and was placed back in and wired to the adjacent teeth. In 1996 I experienced a terrible infection and had to have root canals done on the two front teeth and the other tooth next to the front left. I then chipped one of the front again in 1999. In 2003 my front left felt loose and I apparently had a tooth that was "egg shell" like and had to have a post put in to reinforce the tooth. I have had recurring infections since then. I was told I was on borrowed time before this tooth would have to be taken out. My root canal apparently was unsuccesful on the left tooth and was advised to get a partial. I wanted something that was more real and fixed rather than a partial and was wondering about a bridge. My right tooth is in similar shape. So far I have not had any problems with it but my dentist said it isn't a matter of "if" but "when", and wants to remove both the front teeth. I was given an approx. quote of $4500 for a bridge. It is more money than I was wanting to spend..but I want results that I will be happy and satisfied with. I have suffered with these discolored, pain in the you know what teeth for 16 years! I am only 26 years old. Will the fixed bridge be worth the money? I want something that looks natural, are porcelin briges long lasting and natural looking? My insurance will pay half for a partial but nothing for a bridge. The partial was going to cost about 1500. Please, any advice would be helpful..Do I really have any other options?? i have an absess in my front top tooth and my dentist wants to pull it, is that safe? I slipped on the ice and hit the right side of my face where I had novacaine. the right side of my face was bruised including a black eye. I went for xrays and I do not have any broken bones.It's been 3 weeks and my cheek bone is very tender and there seems to be a small lump on it. could there be nerve damage? My toddler has two front top chipped teeth. A few weeks ago she fell and hurt her mouth and had a fat lip. I did not notice any chipped teeth then. Today out of the blue her front teeth are chipped and she did not fall. Could they have already been damaged from her fall early.Could she had chipped them while eating. Hello, can you advise me on a persistent gum problem? I damaged a small area of gum behind and between my two upper front teeth (while eating)about two months ago. Some of the skin covering the gum got scraped away, leaving a raw surface underneath. This made the gum swell and bleed and it was painful to eat. All the rest of my gums are in good condition. I couldn't see my hygienist until a month later. She cleaned and scaled my teeth and gave me some Chlorhexidine gel to put on the damaged gum every evening for four days. I did this and have also kept up brushing and flossing, but now, two weeks later, this damaged gum is still hurting, still bleeding (even spontaneously after a night's sleep!) and doesn't react to any antibacterial mouthwashes. Do you have any suggestions on how I can get the gum to heal? Do you think that salt-water mouth rinses could help, or any specific product? Why is it so difficult to get this to heal? (My hygienist seemed to think that this was a very small problem, but I'm worried about this inflammation and bleeding and fed up with the pain!) Many thanks for your advice. i have to turn my dental partial to be repaired so can i use to cover the gap in my front teeth temporarily until i get it back? I have some extreme soreness under my last molar in my bottom rear gums. It is swollen and there seems to be a white dot at the tooth and gumline. I feel this is an abcess, wat are the possibilities and wat can i do myself before goin to the dentist.? THanks DAVE For the past few weeks my sister has been getting severe headaches because of her wisdom teeth (which need to be pulled out), so I tried to research for things she could take or do to ease the pain until she does get them pulled. So far I haven't had any luck at finding anything (besides things like Advil/Tylenol/Excedrine, etc.) and I was wondering if you would be able to suggest anything she could do to help the pain abate until she finally does get her wisdom teeth out? Please help because sometimes the pain is so bad that she can't sleep and she has even thrown up. Thank you! my 16 year old son just pulled what looked like the tiniest tooth from where his wisdom tooth shoul come out. He has another one on the other side. could it be deformed wisdom teeth, when I say tiniest I mean tiny. Thanks For the past five months my teeth have been aching as if I've been clenching them--which I don't believe I have. They also are not meeting properly--usually the right side meets first, but this can change to both meeting or the left meeting --and the change can be just a couple of hours apart! I've had this mouth for 53 years now and this problem makes me feel like I've recently gotten someone else's teeth! Do I have any reason, other than the obvious discomfort, to be worried? Thank you for your help. I am 30 weeks pregnant and need to have some decaying teeth removed and replaced. My doctor has okayed the work but the dentist is a bit worried about doing the work while I am pregnant. Is it okay to go ahead and have the work done or do I need to wait? Thank You I am 22 weeks pregnant. I had two cavities on my front teeth. So I had them bonded about two months ago. I noticed the other day a piece chipped off the bottom part of my teeth. I am stressing out because these are my front teeth. Why would they be chipping? How long should the bonding last? And should my dentist fix it without charge? Is there maybe a better solution to repair it or just to rebond it? Thank you so much! Is porcelain filling better than composit? It costs about 600 euros more. Is it worth it? I have an abseth tooth that has made the whole left side of my face swell up and its very painful. It was a 3 day weekend so I suffered threw it and went to the dentist on tuesday. He opened the tooth and left it that way then cut my gums to let it drain. He put me on clindamycin 150mg 2 pills every 6 hours and gave me vicoden. As the night went on the pain became worse and when I woke up the swelling was even more. Why wont it drain and what is the worst case senario if it wont. Hi, I have a back molar with a resin (white) filling - when I am chewing if a grain is bitten on that tooth it causes a sharp pain with a throb afterwards - I was told by my dentist that I need a porcelin filling - I am questioning it as the filling is rather large and close to the nerve I cannot understand how this will make a difference - I had this resin filling taken out and another put in because they said it was leaking & that is why I was getting pain and now they are teliing me again that is why the pain is there. Thankyou Carol Hello, I am 31 yrs old and my dentist recommends I get my 2 top wisdom teeth pulled due to decay. The oral surgen indicated that I had extremely deep roots. None of my wisdom teeth are impacted and they have all surfaced. Should I be concerned about the fact that my roots are deep. Will I be at greater risk for complications? Very nervous... Thanks. I had a root canal done about a week ago on a side lower tooth. Right now i am experiencing constant pain in my upper front gums. What could be causing this? My son just turned 7 and has had a pulpotimy and a crown on one of his bi-cuspids. Now it is really loose. Is it too soon to loose that tooth? My 8 year old has a large lump in his gum above his upper 1st molar. This is a baby tooth. There is also a dark area at the root of this tooth. He only has pain when he pushes on the lump. Should I be concerned about infection? Should I encourage him to wiggle the molar even though it is not loose? He has had other permanant teeth come in behind baby teeth which we quickly had him wiggle out, but this lump is on the outside of the gum Thanks I have a child that just turned 2 years old. Is now a good age for her to start seeing a dentist? If so, what should I expect to happen at her first appointment? I have tried so many products over the counter and I still think my breath is not as fresh as I would like it to be. What do you recommend, I have a bridge in my mouth which is over 15 years, do you think it could be one of my cause of my breath problem? Is having a lip peircing canerous? or harmful? if a filling fell out can it be refill? My dentist says I have a hot tooth (back upper molar). Novacaine rarely numbs it all the way and wears off quickly. I pre-medicate with valium and realize that stress could cause the novacaine to wear off more quickly. The dentist has tried to drill and fill this tooth three times; first was unsuccessful; second was a composite filling the didn't seal to the tooth; third was a temporary filling after the novacaine wore off; and, I'm going back in a few days to get a second composite filling. Is there anything additional that can be done to help this tooth get filled? I've been in pain for four weeks and I don't know if it's the nerve being stressed, residual pain from the filling or the root dying. X-rays show that the root is still okay. My dentist seem reluctant to try nitrous oxide - would it help? Is it necessary that i have periodontal cleanings every 6 months? i floss everyday. My insurance doesnt cover this type of cleaning and its very uncomfortable. Thanks for your time. I am a 35 year old woman and I've been told by my dentist that I have gingivitis. I have had my gums skailed twice and I switched to an electric toothbrush. I have had straight teeth all my life. Recently I noticed that my buttom set of teeth looks to be shifting side ways. What can I do to straighten them back out? I was considering retainers or braces? What can I do? Help:) I went today to have 2 teeth filled and he had to inject the novocaine 4 times because I could feel him drilling my tooth--not pressure, but sharp pain. He tried several times but I couldn't take it. My whole mouth, lips, and tongue were numb, but he would hit the right spot on my tooth and it would send me through the ceiling! He ended up just putting temporary fillings in and said I have to reschedule. I don't know if I can do that again....why could I feel it? Next time he is going to use laughing gas on me, but I dont see how that will make me not feel pain? Is that normal, what should I do? my bridge can out and i want to seal it back myself for good.iam unable to go to the denist right now.can you tell me what to get so it want fall out again thank you Could you give me a few examples of what good oral health prevents ? I have been haveing a tooth ach for the last past 7 days and it hurts me to eat anything on my left side and then i have no teeth in the right back so, there for i am biting down on my thong? my insurance have kicked in but i do not have my card or any other information about my insurance yet. My health coverage has denied me dental partials saying that it was not a medical necessity to which I don't understand the meaning of that. How am I suppose to eat without them. Most of my teeth will be extracted and if I'm denied the partials they my deny me full denture if I decide to get them. My husband has rotting teeth and bad breath.he rufuses to see a dentist and now is having problems like foliclitis and mrsa.Can't his teeth cause major illnesses? bleeding of the gums had deep clean in gums also taking periostat 20mg but still having promblems. Hi Dr. Williams, I have a 19 year old son that never developed most of his permanant teeth. (He still has most of his baby teeth.) What are our options? Does Insurance normally help with matters like this? He is having some digestive difficulties due to not having the proper teeth and does not like to smile at all. What can we do? Please advise. Thanks, Rhonda How do you know if you need a root canal? My dentist told me that i need a nightguard to protect my teeth. because i damaged many teeth by clenching at night. But same time he suggest that i should think about clear braces (invagilin??) to straight my teeth. my question is would clear braces will do night guard fuction as well? I am pregnate And I have a broken tooth. They say I cannot get it pulled the pain is unbearable. What can I do besides Zpak or oragel??? can you put veneers over porclin crowns or how do you whiten porclin crowns i would like to know how do i go about getting a dentist for a 7 month old baby in my local area franklin va or suffolk i chipped my front tooth and need an emergency apt. what would that be considered under my classis plan? My daughter is 22 months and one of her front teeth has a hole starting and also is discolored!! The dentist told me to bring her back in 6 months!! They also told me that she will probably have to get those silver caps to prevent her permenant teeth from rotting!! My question is do they have another alternative besides the silber teeth, can we get a white cap instead?? Also will these silver caps hurt her other teeth?? my son is 5 and his teeth in the front are turning brown. he brushes good but there turning brown will it affect his adult teeth Why, for me and a sibling, does Novacaine wear off before the procedure even starts? Are there any Orthodonist in PA? My zipcode is 17360. I have DentaQuest Access PPO. Thank you. what can I do about bad breath that come for the throat area and little smelly yellowish balls that comes up to my mouth. This situation I have is very very stressful. My four year old grandson had a fall which split his lip and may have loosened one of his upper teeth. We took him to the e.r. where they glued his lip together. He did complain of his tooth hurting after the fall. About a week or so later, we noticed one of his upper front teeth is turning brown. Since these are baby teeth, is there anything that needs to be done? Thank you. hi, i'm not use to flosing my teeth, what is the best product to use to clean my teeth, becouse my doctor say i have to flos my teeth. thank you. I had some novacain for a root canal. It's 36 hours later and the left side of my lower lips are still partially numb. Is this normal. The corner of my lips when i drink something feels like they are being stretched. Thanks. I have a tori on both sides of my jaw bone. Have had for more than twenty years. They were small and no problem until recently. The one on the left side has grown a lot and is pressing against my cheek, and has ulcerated the inside of the cheek. The skin over the tori has ulcerated several times. My jaw movement is being restricted. I have an appoinment with my dentist in a few weeks. Can the removal be done under local anaesthetic? I have a real problem with most medications. I had to stay in a hospital overnight and missed 10 days of work from anaesthetic complications when my wisdom teeth were removed. How painful is recovery? I cant take narcotics. I also have a bad gag reflex. #3 would hurt occasionally when I would grind it for 2 years. It then started to ache and I had a root canal done my an eminent Endo. 5 months it was fine - now it hurts again. (I have no #2 and 4-5-6 are also RCT. The oddest thing is sensing cold - perhaps at the base of the tooth at the roof. We have basically taken the tooth out of occlusal and I still have this unexplainable pain/sensitivity to cold. No one can explain it. The endo and my dentist both say the xray is clear and don't suspect cracked tooth syndrome because of the time (3yrs) that its been xrayed, etc. It is crowned. Any new thoughts? I wear a night guard and my gum health is pefect. My sinuses are clean. Hi there, I have a temporary bridge that I got quite a few months ago and just recently had to have a root canal on one of the teeth. The Dentist put in a temporary filling and it has since come out and the back of my tooth broke off. I have put temporary cement in there for now. How long do I have before I risk an infection. I am in a lot of pain. Thanks. :) I have a 6 yrs old daughter and her baby tooth came out, its been 1 month and i dont see her permanent teeth showing, do i have to worry cause it was loose but it didnt fall out by itself she pulled it out, will it grow back. From a very long story, I was recently patch tested for allergies to bonding agents relating to fillings for teeth. My dentist worked with my allergist to test me for the materials found in composite fillings, crowns, inlays, and root canal. The results were positive for composite fillings so they are no longer an option for me. Are there any differences in composite fillings between manufacturers where I could have a reaction to bonding agents for some but not others? Inlays are very expensive and I really don't want to get the traditional silver fillings. I've been looking all over the Internet, but information on people allergic to dental fillings is scarce. Hi sir, I am a 33yr old male student currently working on a Ph.D in Clinical Psychology. Just under 3 yrs ago I had my teeth whitened and also had 2 porcelin veneer caps applied to the ft. 2 top teeth (previously broken and bonded because of a sports accident and stained). My natural teeth whitend to a B1 and the 2 vaneers were ordered to match. The initial results were astonishing and the vaneers matched perfectly, however they are now appearing to be darkening grayer and yellower than my natural teeth. I went in for an exam and cleaning yesterday and discussed my concerns with the dentist. However, he is telling me that vaneers do not change in color and my other teeth are just getting brighter from enamel wear and tear and transparency, but i have not been bleaching and know for a fact that my natural teeth are not currently B1's (because of all the coffee I drink). This does not make any sense to me at all. He is reccommending that i have 2 more vaneers placed next to the caps at another $2200 to make them blend in better. I don't understand this because they are clearly off in color now and it even shows up in pictures, yet it didnt before. I think there is a problem with something underneath the vaneers (bonding agents) or a poor replacement causing the vaneers to change color. Is this possible and what are your thoughts? Should the dentist replace the vaneers for me? I thought that these would be looking great for years...I will be getting a second opinion because I need to know if the front two vaneer caps need to be redone instead of appling more to additional teeth. I feel ripped off and cheated. Thanks for your help, Tarek My 7 year old daughter is complaining of soreness behind her top front teeth - it looks like it is swollen - almost as if the veins that run through there are enlarged. She says it hurts to eat. What could this be and does she need to be treated. Thank you. my daughter is 8 years old and has 2 teeth that she lost but the adult teeth are not coming in and it has been over 6 months. they are the front top ones. should i be concerned? my boyfriend has an abcess in the back of his mouth and we dont know what it is from, we popped it with a sterle needle but its not draining much and the pain is terrible, he can hardly open his mouth. we are working on getting him dental insurance hopefully we will have it by monday but is there anything we can do in the mean time to get rid of the pain?? thank you Jenn I feel that I have a small piece of food under the gum of a tooth. What can I do at home to relieve the discomfort. Thank you for your help, Mary Catherine Muccigrosso My dentist said I have peridontal pockets. I have only been with him for 2 years and he has never cleaned my teeth with an instrument. He only uses the "sand-blaster" with baking soda. That doesn't seem good enough to me. BUT he wants to put Perio Chips in every three months for a year. The cost is very expensive and our insturance does not cover them. Are these worth the expense? My daughter is 6 years old, is she too young to get braces. If my daughter is to young to get braces cause shes only 6 yrs old what would the dentist recommend I had a root canal on an upper molar several years ago, I then had pain above it this past Dec, I went to another dentist which said I had an infection and gave me antibotics for one week, I went back in one month and had to have the root canal retreated a long process, He didnt put me back on antibotics, I now I have a hard painful small bump above that tooth at the top of my gum line, I called the dentist and he put me on clindamycin 150mg. 2 every 4 hrs and said if not better by Friday to call him. ANy suggestions, my dentist has put atemporary root filling on my tooth and withing days i am in pain and then have to have antibiotics. my dentist says i only have 50% chance of it working. should i just ask to have the tooth removed My 8 year old daughter had pain the other day and i took her to the dentist.The dentist said she needs a root canal on tooth # 30 .Can i take her to a general dentist?The dentist I took her to said she would not do it. I don't have insurance and the enododontist is much more expensive then the general dentists that said they could do it. Could you plese help me with this descision?Thanks for your help. can a tooth problem cause pain in your neck and head? and if so what could be the cause of this pain. can i get a maryland bridge with untreated periodontal disease? where can I get local listings of dental offices that take my insurance here in Baltimore maryland I have been having pain/burning behind my bottom front teeth for a year now, the teeth themselves don't hurt, but the whole area behind them does. The problem is much worse when I talk a lot, which I do every day for my job. I visited an ENT about this and it was basically dismissed as nothing. The pain continues and no relief with advil etc...can you advise? thanks I am 16 weeks pregnant and I have an unbearable pain in my tooth. It actually is decayed and I think that its reached the nerves because the pain is horrible. Can I get the tooth pulled while being pregnant or do I have to hold off and wait till after the pregnancy? Is the electric tooth brush better that the regular? Will it do something to you gum line? My son age 17 was referred fro braces, when we went to be fittedand cast taken we were told his jaw was large, still growing and would need to be cut so that the braces fit properly. is this wise just to have straight teeth or should he wait until until he ages more and then fit fot braces.. are night guards safe, can they lossen your teeth or pull them out? i have recently purchaed some from my dentist and find them a little uncomfortable and am a little sceptical to using them, any advise? I had a very timy amount of decay on the back rough surface of two of my frontteeth. I asked my dentist to take care of this and he said no lets just watch it for a while. Now I have much larger decay and am very unhappy with his not bothering to explain that choice. I will be going to another dentist for a numbe rof reasons but wanted to know why he might have elected to do nothing until the problem got worse?..........also both front teeth also have cracks. I do not want to get caps because of how different they look than your other teeth and how extensive the work is for that. Will DentaQuest pay a portion of the cost for veneers and would that be a viable altrnative to caps in my case? Thank you M I am 6 months pregnant and have a wisdom tooth that is broken into two pieces one of the pieces is moveable but I think it's still connected to the root because to much movement causes pain, it is gettint to the point where I can barely eat and I also get food caught in it forcing me to eat on the other side of my mouth which is now beginning to get sensitive also, can I have this tooth pulled and also have the others that are beginning to get sensitive pulled too. I'd rather have nothing back there, and all the while still have a dafe pregnacy. My daughter is 4+ and she accidentally caused one of her lower front teeth to loosen, it hasnt fallen out yet, but I'm sure it will. Is it going to grow back, considering her age? Thanks I recently went to the dentist and had 8 fillings in one sitting, my jaw hurts really bad now to where I cannnot open my mouth. My dentist said that it is because I have a small mouth and the anestetic has a small area to dispurse in...... is this true? Also how long will it take to heal? What is a great way to make my childrens teeth whiter? My health coverage has denied me dental partials saying that it was not a medical necessity to which I don't understand the meaning of that. How am I suppose to eat without them. I have one question. I don't have dental INS so I've been putting of going to the dentist but I have what seems to feel like a hole in one of my tooths. I can feel it with my tongue and food seems to be getting caught in it. I can fit the tip of a tooth pick in the hole. I looked at a tooth chart online and it seems to be my 2nd premolar(bicuspid)on my upper jaw. I was wondering what could have caused this and what measurements would need to be taken to repair it. I was afraid it will cost an arm and a leg to fix and it doesn't bother me but I'm sure it will only get worse. thank you for your time. HELP! I am 16 weeks pregnant and need a root canal. I am terrified of the dentist! I went in this past week for the root canal, they gave me 3 doses of novacain and as soon as he started drilling, I almost went thru the roof. He gave me more novacain and restarted, but I could still feel pain. I had them stop and fill the hole. The dentist thought I had an infection and that is why the novacain was not working. So, I am on amoxacylin and he wants me back in a week to finish. I am terrified! I am not sleeping and feeling extremely anxious. I just want to be put to sleep and they can't do that while I am pregnant. he said to take Valium and that he will put the epinephrin in my novacain next time - oth of which my OBGYN frowned upon. Now I am not only a nervous reck for my own pain....but can this all harm the baby. I am terrified that I will never go back, my poor husband does not know what to do with me. Is there any say way to sedate me? Can I Have the Nitrous Oxide gas? Any info you can give me would be GREAT! Thanks i have ginervitis and i think my teeth are past saving would pulling all my teeth out be an option? they are loose and my breath always stink even when i brush drwilliams i have broken tooth at the bottom and chip tooth that can i do thank you I had a back teeth pulled almost a week ago and now there is a big empty hole there and I can see part of my bone is exposed inside the hole. Is this normal? Hi, I went for my regular dental check up and cleaning. My teeth were o.k. Two days later I developed a tooth ach and sensitivity to cold on the top and bottom left fang teeth and surrounding area. It is now 2 days that I have this sensitivity and ach, which is constant and sometimes painfull. I chewed a synthetic cork to help pacify the ach today. What could cause the ach and could it go away on its own? How long should the ach persist before calling my dentist? Sincerely, Eric hello dr, im 26 and have had a veneer fitted for the past 3 yrs, but for the past 6 months i have had gum disease directly above that tooth no where else. I floss and brush it regulary, is there anything else i can do? many thanks. Hello, I have just found out I am pregnant (only just so about 4 weeks) and am very worried because I had an amalgam filling fitted last week when I would have been 3 and a half weeks pregnant. I had no idea I was pregnant as had been trying for a while and was worried the tooth would get worse, so thought better to sort it out now than wait until I get pregnant- but I already was! I am extremely worried I may have seriously damaged my baby. Please help! My 7-year olds incisors (not the middle 2 but the ones beside them) are growing out of the top of his gums, way higher than the rest did. Is there a way to correct this now? My little girl, she will be 13 next month, is having a great deal of difficulty with her teeth. They are so close together they hurt her mouth. She complains of aches and pains in her jaws. The dentist has recommended braces. Actually, two different dentists have recommended braces. Are braces for cosmetic or medical purposes? Thanks, Steven E. Adams, BS, LC Licensed Chaplain im not sure why but my tongue turned kind of orange and i got a bunch of canker sores all of a sudden can you tell me why For the past couple of months I have had a very hard lump above my last top molar (on my gum) on the left side of my mouth. It does not hurt at all. I have never had any dental work in this area...I do know my upper wisdom teeth had not grow in yet as of last year. I had seen an oral surgeon who said they would come in shortly if there was room for them...Just the other day the back molar with the lump above it was very painful. The pain was/is very intense and comes and goes all day long. It is not sensitive to cold or heat but it hurts if I bite down or touch it. Is it possible the new pain and the lump are connected? What could these problems suggest?? I've just gotten a partion to fill in 2 gaps in my lower right rear and 1 gap in my lower left rear. Am I suppose to be able to eat with this partial on (it's one unit) I have two bumps on my jaw below my teeth on my gumline on my lower jaw. They feel like bone bumps, I looked online and see they may be due to grinding my teeth. Are these bumps in my jaw bone something to worry about? Ok so i see a really clueless answer to a question i see on here. I asks "my husbands tooth is rotting. blah blah blah, can it cause problems" The answer is very vague and what to expect from someone who makes cash by having people come in and ask them this question.. What i wanted to know and what this person probably wants to know is, once its rotting away and below the gum line partially (one corner of mine is below the gum line). I mean what really is gonna happen, wont it just rot away and dissapear if u take care of your mouth? Im wondering cause my throat hurts terrible, not liek the normal strep or anything, liek its cut or has something growing in it, i was thinking i got cancer , and theres no way imma go to a doc for that ill die when my time comes i cant afford to go to a doc for him to tell me i cant afford his help, i allready know this, cause i cant afford to go, im just wondering if this rot would cause some sort of tounge/thorat right behind the tounge problems. Can i just let it keep rotting and ittl be fine? i cant afford a dentist either way , so please dotn tell me i need it checked out, cause i just said i cant, unless you wanna pay for it for me. I had my wisdom teeth removed a week ago (Nov. 28) and I discovered for the first time two rather deep and impressive new holes in my lower jaw. Apparently this is were the wisdom teeth were and it will fill in (eventually). Is that true? I'm not going to always have two very deep holes in my mouth for the rest of my life? One week ago, I had some silver fillings replaced with composite material. The dentist told me that the fillings were rather large, so it took some time, and a lot of drilling to put them in. The problem is, a week has past, and I still can't put any pressure on that side without feeling alot of pain. Is this normal, and if it's normal how long will it last? My son is 7 yers old and one of his top front teeth has come through about 3 months ago but the other one doesnt even look like appearing.Is this a problem Cameron should you get a second opinion before having full mouth extractions my tooth cracked in half part of my filling fell out i have no pain so far this happend 4 days a go the dentest will see me in1 and ahalf weeks 12/28/ 06 is this to long . i do not feel hot or cold pain. thank you i had a 3 crown bridge prepared on my upper right mouth a few days ago i felt great first couple of days now the gum line looks irritated and not wanting to adhere to the temp crown he said i had severe swelling and gave me an antibiotic injextion in both sides of the gum tissue should i be nervous or will it eventually heal? I recently went to a dentist and had 6 teeth pulled. Everything was great , but i have noticed 3 lil tooth chips that seem to be pushing up thru the gum. My question is do i have a problem , or will these chips rise and fall out of my gums? thank you for your advice I have a pain in the bottom rear gums and it looks like I have a small hole. What would cause a small hole to appear in my gums? Thanks, Sam at what age should your 2nd Bicuspid (2nd premolar) fall out? My 16 month old daughter is getting all her top teeth 1st. She has her 2 bottom teeth but nothing else on the bottom. When will she get more bottom teeth? hello, I had a root canal done in 2003 (according to my dentist who did it). I am having complications and the right side of my face is swollen. It was a gradual pain that started with what I thought was my teeth moving because I have braces. The pain gradually got worse and the 2nd day I finally went to the dentist because the pain was unbearable. He took x-rays and told me that one of the nerve endings was a bit swollen and referred me to an endodontist because he could not do 2nd root canals. My question us should he not be responsible for the bills since he did not get it done correctly the first time? Please help because i don't believe I should have to pay again for an even more expensive root canal had it been done correctly the first time. My son has been wearing a retainer since his braces were removed for some time now. He suddenly noticed some bumps on the roof of his mouth. He says they are there all the time, but sometimes appear to be more pronounced and sometimes nearly flat. Wearing the retainer, which he was instructed to do during the night time, made these bumps worse. He is now quite concerned that this may be other problems, but I am quite convinced this is related to either his dental hygiene or retainer related. Your thoughts, please. I have dentures, have had for about 28 years now, I am having trouble with the bottom dentures, my dentist said it appeared as though my jaw bone was coming through the gums. He suggested implants, is there any other options out there for me to have my dentures. I recently had an apico done on tooth # 13. It has been 5 weeks and I still have pain in the gum area. The xrays do not show anything, but they also did not show anything before the apico and it took me 6 months to convince the dentist that there was a problem. When the oral surgeon went in, he found the infection behind the tooth. I went yesterday for a follow up and the oral surgeon said there is nothing more he can do. I am still in a great deal of pain. What should I do? Im wondering if I have a novacain allergy. Recently after being given novacain at a dentist appointment. my heart started palpatating so strongly that I almost stopped the procedure. Instead I said a quick prayer , continued and said nothing of it. I was not the least bit apprehensive or nervous about having the dental work done. I have experienced this before, but always thought it was my imagination, as I never had this problem as a child. However I could'nt dismiss it this time as my heart was beating so strongly that it really scared me. What are the symptoms of an allergic reaction to novacain? my mouth burns all the time when i smoke and i fine it hard to eat because my gums hurt even my lips are burning what is going on am i getting cancer in my mouth or somthing I live in NC. I've not seen a dentist in about 10 years...(except for an accident which resulted in emergency root canals & bonding on my 4 front teeth, about 4 years ago!) These are failing now & I have no insurance. My breath is getting HORRENDOUS & I am losing my mind with anxiety over the whole situation. Does ANY one do dentistry for middle class working families with NO insurance?! Thank you for your time. I have alot of teeth breaking off and swollen gums and toothaches...is it better to get all my teeth pulled and get all fasle or just keep going to the dentist for series of procedures? And what would be cheaper? i just got a bridge last week, and there is a bump on my gums were i got stitches what is the bump? Dear Williams. What are permanant dentures? i have a gap between my two front teeth. can you recommend any dentists that sould fix my problem in the taunton, ma area? How much does this procedure cost roughly? i Have tiny holes in my gum both sides behind the bridge where my tonsils are and every so often i develop smelly potato like stuff from these holes. i have been told that it is possibly my wisdom teeth but why would bits of smelly crap be emerging from the holes Hi, well approx four mons ago i had a molar on my bottom left restored. Since then i have been treated for an infection with antibiotics. Then was told i had tmj and was prescribed anti inflammatorys, now according to a specialist the pain in my jaw and neck is associated with strain on the muscles rather then tmj. I have been taking medication to control muscle spasms that are helping, however i am still experiencing significiantly abnormal pain and swelling. I now have a lump on my gum behind my top left molar which is painful and im wondering if i have an abscess. Throughout the last four mons i have been plagued by numerous symptoms.Still cant seem to pinpoint the cause. Is it possible that i have and have had an infection that didnt clear with the anibiotics but rather is lingering causing me pain and grief? Or are there any underlying conditions this sounds to be associated with? Any advice or information you can give me would be appreciated, thanks..April I had a tooth extracted. The detist had to saw my tooth in half in order to get it out. That was 5 days ago. On the second day of my tooth being removed I noticed I had an extra hole in my mouth. It is located under my tongue beside the site. Is there supposed to be a hole there? Am I still supposed to be in pain? Dr. Williams, I had four teeth that were filled one and a half weeks ago. My tongue on the left side is still numb but there is also a burning sensation so it is numb but also burning What could have caused this? Hi, I have recently noticed a small brown spot that has formed on one of my front teeth near the gum line. Is this a cavity? I have never had a cavity in one of my front teeth before. I am 33 years old. Thank you. Dear Dr. Doyle Williams, I just had 5 teeth pulled. Before they could pull them, they haad me on Cephalexin for 10 days 500mg. Also, Hydroco 500mg for pain. then after they pulled the 5 teeth, they put me on Pencilln 500mg for 10 days, and aslo Oxycod for pain. I did have 4 of my teeth surgly remove. Will this give me a fasle reading on a pregnacy test. Im getting a reading of a postive on a home test, I know my body right now is cramping as usuall letting me know I will start soon. Does all the med's and my body going into a shook of losing that many at one time? Please help. i have a Maryland Bridge on my front upper incisor. I need to replace becuase I have had for at least 12 years and i want to whiten. it looks really natural because my smile line is low. my dentist wants to replace with an all porcelan maryland bridge. i have sought 2 opinions and both say an implant will not be aesthetic for my situation. i am thinking of getting my gum enhanced to sit on top of the bridge instead of under as it does now. My question is : Is a Maryland bridge the best way to go or should I consider a crown? I am 52 yrs old. i want it to look like a real tooth. thanks Hi Doctor, I just got my front four teeth capped. I am currently involved in kickboxing and wanted to know if caps are easy to break if getting hit in the face or would the mouth guard protect my caps? Are caps easy to break? Or are they stronger than your teeth? I recently had three teeth on top try to abcess. I have porcelain vanneers. I had to be put out for oral surgery so they could remove the infection above these teeth. The gum looks healthy now, but I notice a black ring at the very top, and its causing bad breath. Is this normal?? i have a problem with my teeth. the back molar tooth caused me pain and i have gone to 3 dentists since. the first dentist said that he couldn't pull my tooth because the roots are very deep. i always have problems with getting my tooth pulled because of having deep roots. i am also hard to numb. the second dentist stuck me many times and still couldn't numb me enough. i had been on antibiotics for 10 days before this happened. he told me he would have to put me to sleep. he said come back in i week and continue taking anibiotics. well, 3 days later, my face swelled up on the side where he stuck the needles around and in the tooth. i went to the emergency room at the hospital. the doctor said i had an abcess and he stuck a needle with penicillin and stuck me in the butt with penicillin. meanwhile, 2days later,my face started swelling again but not as bad as the first time.i called the dentist and he gave me a prescription for another anibiotic. the swelling has gone down but my tooth still aches. i don't feel comfortable to be put to sleep in a dentist office. i don't handle anesteshia too well. i was going to get a root canal but i changed my mind on that because i have to pay for everything being done.i have found a dentist who does cosmectic surgery. he wants to pull out the top teeth i have left(which is five)because they are loose. he wants to pull out the back molar also. the question is; can i be put to sleep in a hospital setting? i always have to have something to calm my nerves before any surgery.also,this dentist said he could pull my front teeth and have temporary false teeth put in the same day. i still don't know what to do with my back molar as far as waiting to have it pulled or get it pulled first? also, could i have gotten a bad infection from the needle the dentist used because my face didn't swell until after he stuck me so many times to numb me. he even stuck several times through the tooth itself. I have a molar on the back right side of my mouth. I had it filled maybe 10 years ago, and the filling has fallen out. I have noticed that the tooth is now broken and in the past three days I have had painful toothaches in that area, that prevent me from biting down of that side or sucking in my cheeks (for spitting when brushing my teeth for example). I currently have no health insurance, but am working on getting another job to get it. I have tried anbesol, and it relieves the pain on the outside of the tooth, but not on the inside. I am worried that this will turn serious before I can afford to fix it. I have also noticed that I have been having constant bad breath because of this, even immediately after brushing my teeth, and sometimes the pain can get so bad that I get headaches on that side of my temples. I am hoping to get to the dentist within the next two weeks, is it terrible to wait that long? Are there any other ways that I can temporarily ease this pain? I HAVE A A PIECE OF TOOTH CONNECTED TO MY GUM IT REALY HURTS AND IT IS SWOLLEN WHAT SHOULD I DO? why has my 5year old daughter got 10 bottom teeth and 12 on the top Good morning- I had a root canal on a tooth that has a crown about 9 mos ago for severe cold sensitivity. The endodontist drilled through the crown rather than remove it. I was happy about that. Everything went very well. I had the temporary filling replaced with the permanent filling by my regular dentist about 2 weeks later. No problems for a couple of mos. Then I began to experience a 'tin foil' zinging sensation. No temp sensitivity etc...but I can elicit the sensation with the touch of a finger to the surrounding tissue. The dentist first ground the molar below the affected tooth, thinking it too high. To no avail. Then we tried antibiotics...again no use. She spoke of an apico, and I am just curious as to what is causing this sensation? My dentist is not really sure, and I know an apico is rare. Any suggestions as to etiology of this 'zinging' sensation? I appreciate your time. Thank you. I had a bridge on my back right teeth and last year my dentist said he had to remove them. After he removed them I started biting my tongue. I went back to the dentist and he said he needed to replace the 2 crowns beside the bridge he removed. I asked him about a partial and he suggested an implant. My question is, I don't want to keep spending money on my mouth, but I don't want to keep biting my tongue. I cannot afford a lot but I also can't eat on that side of my mouth. I also wear a night guard at night. I have very bad teeth and all of my teeth are crowns except the bottom front 4. I am very upset that I have to have something done to my teeth each time I go for a cleaning. Can you tell me if a partial is okay instead of spending a lot of money on a implant or two. Thank you, Terri P 10 days ago I fell and hit my two front teeth really hard. They were never loose, just very tender, almost like they were bruised. It looks like they may be darkening. Are they dying? What do I need to do? IS PAIN NORMAL WHILE A WISDOM TOOTH IS GROWING IN OR SHOULD I HAVE THIS PROBLEM CHECKED My tounge tingles, burning sensation. My daughter is 22 months and still breastfed. Her top 4 front teeth are badly decayed and deep cavities are in the molars on top and bottom (totalling 8 cavities in all). The pediatric dentist recommended crowns on top 2 molars and filling in bottom 2 molars and capping top 4 front teeth. But, I don't know if she should have them capped if there is a risk of abcess...would pulling the 4 top impact her speech? She only uses the bottom teeth to eat and I'd like her to have some top teeth to improve her appetite, but not at the expense of her health. The little teeth on the sides of the 2 front are broken off and so small that they barely come below the gums and the right front tooth is so black and broken off that it doesn't seem to be worth saving. The left front big tooth is starting to chip/crack now. Would it be a good decision to only cap the one big left front and pull the other 3? What would you recommend? I have inside my mouth, what feels like lumps in my lower jaw below my teeth. One on each side. They are hard and one side is bigger than the other. Is this normal? Or should I get it checked out. Thank you Why does my 3yr old grind her teeth? What can I do to stop her? Is it hurting her teeth or gums in anyway? What are the materials used in and heath concerns elated to composite resin fillings? Also, what is the best way to remove old alloy fillings so that heavy metals are not injested? thanks My four year old son just noticed a hard bump on the roof of his mouth he said it doesnt hurt. It feels weird to the touch what could it be??? Hello, I am a 23 yr old female with beautiful teeth from the front but embarrassed to open my mouth. I have always had very sensitive teeth that will break easily. My mom was the same way. A couple years ago a couple of my cavities fell out and we never had the money to go back and get them fixed. I know have my bottom back 3 teeth gone. They began to chip and break so much that i started pulling them out myself. They are all broken off at the gumline now and i do not know what to do. I just kept putting it off because of money and because i was so embarrassed to even go to the dentist. I have been sick for a few years now and i think the stress has made my teeth worse. Please give me some advice on what to do. Could this be why i have been sick for so long now? Is there an affordable way to go about this? I am open to any suggestion. Thank you for your time and I look forward to hearing from you soon. I had a root canal done in 2004 when I was in basic training for the military. My filling came out from the root canal. Should I need to go to the dentist right away? I have no pain since there is no nerve. The filling looked like cotton but it had an odd oder to it. The hole is huge and I can see clear down to my gums. Please help? Thanks. i have a big hole in my back upper tooth and i am 20 weeks preg right now. i have been taking oral gel for the pain. that numbs it. is that ok for the baby?