Probiotics and Denistry

Your question caught my eye, as I've been having a surprising amount of dental trouble (my *dentist* is surprised). OTOH everything I've found suggests that probiotics protect teeth. If you can find a source of this information that isn't wild speculation I'd be grateful.

I'm having dental problems from a dry mouth that is coming from medications I'm taking and the whole dehydration thing. 18 small cavities in a year I had around 6 my entire life before now. My gums have receded and that is where they are happening. I don't have gum disease. My dentist has crohns and he said nothing about my probiotics and we went through everything I take. I take VSL#3DS and s.bourdarii.

He has me using the prescription toothpaste and brushing my gumline at a 45% angle twice daily. The flouride is 1.1% versis the .25% or whatever it is for regular toothpaste. I am getting off of the offending medications ASAP. You might want to look in that direction.

FYI, I started the medications 1-2 years ago and the cavities surfaced in the last year. So it took a year for them to catch up with me.

I hate IBD, now I'm going to have big dental bills or worse. One tooth is headed towards an implant

About two months ago, while eating lunch, I cracked a wisdom tooth on the lower right side of my mouth. I literally spat out part of the tooth, put it in a plastic bag, and brought it to my dentist (not that I thought he could glue it back, but just for him to observe so that he could make a proper diagnosis).

The tooth had apparently gotten weak and part of a filling in the wisdom tooth had come out. Fillings do not last forever, by the way. Anyway he had to do a procedure whereby he drilled away the remainder of the filling, and then he did some kind of big filling (there might be another name for it) in the tooth. It was the worst pain I ever felt in a dental chair. He gave me 4 shots of novacaine, but it did not do much and he almost put the drill through my cheek on about 5 different occasions. It was exactly like the Movie "Marathon Man" with Dustin Hoffman, I felt like he was sticking a hot poker against the nerve.

My dentist told me that the enervation in the wisdom teeth is different than the rest of my teeth and unfortunately they are "tricky to do." In any event it was sore and sensitive to hot and cold and chewing pressure for a good 6 weeks after that procedure. It's a lot better now.

Anyway it was really weird when the tooth chipped and cracked and I actually spat out a big chunk of it. Nothing like that had ever happened before. I was taking probiotics at the time but I don't think it had anything to do with why that happened.

That's why you are so wise CT, you still have your wisdom teeth, lol. I had mine pulled before they came in and wrecked my orthodontic work at age 17.

FYI everyone,
I got gas all 3 times I had the filling work done. 6 fillings at a time is unnerving. I've been through enough that I'm not toughing anything out anymore! My grown daughter said why endure the anxiety? It doesn't put you to sleep just relaxes you, like having more than a few cocktails. When the grinding and filling is done he brings my oxygen level back to 100% and I'm back to my normal self with no hangover. I highly recommend it for prolonged dental procedures. He still used numbing and Novocaine but the drilling sounds didn't sound like a jack hammer in my mouth and I didn't have to white knuckle it! Of course my dental insurance doesn't pay for it but it was worth every penny

Up until this episode I never had any problem with my wisdom teeth. My father is 76 years old, is wiser than I am, and he still has his wisdom teeth too. Basically, until the chipping incident they never bothered me pain wise (they did push all my teeth together but not causing any pain or undue problems). But wisdom teeth just like other teeth get cavities, and cavities need to be filled, and fillings fall out, causing teeth to weaken structurally. Wisdom teeth are more prone to cavities for the simple reason that they are harder to brush and floss because they are all the way in the back of your mouth.

BTW the significance of wisdom teeth in evolution is that they assisted prehistoric humans in chewing tougher plants and foliage, which became less important as human diets changed and evolved. However the third molar certainly helps one chew food better as is needed with a J Pouch.

never ever got wisdom teeth!!!haven`t missed them..putting my two cents in about probiotics i doubt they have anything to do with teeth issues..thats just my taken it however..

CT, The word that you were looking for is Inlay...when it fills up most of the tooth...
I still have 3/4 wisdom teeth...they do not systematically remove them in Europe like they often do in North America.
I am shocked that anyone still feels pain with dentistry these days...my dentist swears to me that it is no longer necessary and that they have evloved since the good old days of pulling teeth with a wrench!
I've had root canals done with 0 pain and only a couple of shots (fine, they were really effective shots).
Intersting about the probiotics though...I have had some series of bad teeth years occasionally...times when 3 or 4 cavities show up 2 teeth cracked but I just thought that it was due to poor general health. I am back on the probiotics...doing nicely for my pouch...hope that one end does not make the other pay.
Sharon

Sharon,

In the USA, traditionally many dental patients were advised to remove wisdom teeth that were not causing any problems. One reason is that dentists network with oral surgeons and get kickbacks or referrals for referring patients to have their wisdom teeth removed. My father reported to me that his dentist was pressing him to have his wisdom teeth removed. My father is 76 years old, never had any problem with them and why would he do it now? It makes no sense to even discuss it. Removal has been casually mentioned to me by my dentist, and I told him no. The only way I would do it is if this filling was unsuccessful and the right lower wisdom tooth was causing me pain, in which case I would only have that specific tooth removed. But it seems like whatever he did worked.

However now that people do not have dental insurance under many plans, I suspect the gravy train of unnecessary wisdom tooth removals may be coming to an end. That being said, my office is on the same floor of a building and next door to a space rented by 2 oral surgeons, and they seem to be VERY busy and have an excellent practice. Occasionally, I will hear a patient screaming from their office, but not too often. I see enormous gas canisters in their office and I assume they dispense a lot of it to their patients.

Never heard of probiotics causing an issue, but one of the complications from IBD can be issues with dental health. Haven't had a ton of cavities, but I've needed periodontal cleanings on two occasions and also have some gum recession due to the malnutrition, vomiting, etc. I always had issues with my two front teeth being kind of pitted from all the wear and tear and while I had been getting them bonded for a while, at my last dental appointment my dentist suggested veneers for those two teeth, which I initially balked at for the cost. However, I did have the office call my insurance company and let them know that the damage was related to my Crohn's and they ended up covering 50% of the cost! Very surprised. I've also heard from others (haven't looked into it myself yet, but I think I will) with IBD that they are approved for four cleanings a year versus the usual two due to the chronic dental complications that can arise...may be worth looking into!

Thank you very much. I will pass this on to my dentist as he has crohns and I wonder if he knows about it. I think I could use the extra cleanings as well, especially with all of my recent cavities. He asked if I was throwing up etc, and I haven't been.

I was told that long term antibiotics and/or anesthesia will do a real number on your teeth and gums. I had excellent dental health all my life, but the year post colonectomy, I chipped my front tooth from eating semi-soft food and I had to have my gums scraped. But then again, I am past 50 years of age and this stuff just comes along naturally due to aging.

I'm past 50 but that is no reason to all of a sudden have 18 cavities in one year after having none in 40 years. My problem is the medications making me have dry mouth which has lowered my gum line and caused cavities there.

I'm sorry you chipped your front tooth Lesandiego! I suppose the soft foods and anesthesia didn't help me but I didn't develop problems until 2.5 years after my surgeries. I guess it takes a while for the gums to recede and cavities to form.

I want to say that it's not normal for our teeth to decline, at least as bad as mine have, at age 50.