I had some pain in a tooth and went to see a new dentist who offered emergency dental appointments. He did an x-ray and said there is an infection on a tooth that already has a filling. He said there is so much decay that only about 10% of the tooth is viable and thinks it cannot be saved. So, he wants to extract it and put a dental implant in its place. He’s scheduled me for two days from now. I’m not too keen on surgery. Is there another option for me?

Kelsie.

Dear Kelsie,

I have some doubts about what this dentist is saying. If there truly were that much decay, he would not need an x-ray at all. In fact, the dental filling would have fallen into the tooth at that point. Plus, he is pushing you into a very expensive procedure quite quickly. I think you need to get a second opinion from another dentist.

Dental implants are fantastic tooth replacements, but only if you actually need to lose a tooth. With that in mind, another thing that bothers me is the fact that he only gave you a dental implant as your option. A dentist is ethically obligated to give you all your options. If you did not want a dental implant, a dental bridge would be the next best thing. The downside to this is it requires you to crown the two adjacent teeth. If they are healthy, you may not want to do that.

There are other options as well, but in reality, I have doubts you even need to remove this tooth. Please get that second opinion.

This blog is brought to you by Ahwatukee Dentist Dr. Harveer Kaur.