My toddler has to have dental surgery!

[TracyMom2Three]

For the second time! He had dental surgery at 16 months and had a molar crowned and his top 4 teeth extracted. His bottom four teeth were capped but the day of the surgery they two middle bottom caps fell off :(

The two bottom middle teeth sunk back down into his gumline but are now back up and looking very unhealthy. Plus, he's now losing an eye tooth and all of his other teeth have decalcifications.

So, ds will be going under anesthesia again at the surgery center. In Jan. Exactly one year after his first dental surgery :(

I did not like how my son was out of my arms screaming that first time. I want to be able to walk ds into the op room and be there when they put the mask on him. I was denied this the first time and I don't want to be denied this time. We are using a different surgery center and pediatric dentist. I just wonder what my chances are of being allowed to do this? Does anyone know? Has anyone one been able to do that?

Also, I wasn't allowed to breastfeed my ds after midnight that first time and I can't go through that again. It was miserable and broke my heart. My ds is a frequent night time nurser. How do I fight it if I'm told ABSOLUTELY do not breast feed? Do I just lie and say that I haven't?

Another question.. we don't vaccinate and I'm worried this will cause a concern. Last time I was asked if he was current on his vax's and I just said "He's fine".

Anyway.. not looking forward to putting ds through this again. I will find out next week exactly what the treatment plan is but I'm thinking it will be several crowns and at least one extraction.

Poor little guy! He's only 26 months!

Oh..one more thing..ds has no top teeth in front and when I was told the top four needed to be extracted I was told my ds could get what they called a pedo-partial. Well, hearing that made it easier to go ahead w/the extractions but now I'm told that a partial isn't recommended! I'm told ds can go w/out any teeth and wait for his perm. teeth to come through. Any opinions on this?

Thanks,
Tracy

[simonee]

:hug

(sorry nak) you can prolly find some info on the treatment in this thread (http://216.92.20.151/discussions/showthread.php?s=&threadid=3692)

that sounds awful. poor little guy.

in case you do'nt find it in the thread above, i can tell you there's many places on this forum where mamas are adviced to and do breastfeed up to about 4 hours before hte surgery. breastmilk is not a drink but a bodily fluid like saliva. if your dentist doesn't know that, you can always tell that he didn't have any drinks since midnight :) Your vax response sounds awesome, worth saying again. still, you never know if this office is a bit more open minded, and educated :rolleyes:

also, check this thread on calming options (http://216.92.20.151/discussions/showthread.php?s=&threadid=3693), it may make the whole pre-op experience a bit easier for both of you. smilemomma swears by Peace and Calming.

it is also possible to stay with your child up till the actual surgery, tho it seems that different offices have different rules on that ~ probably related to hygiene. still, i would insist at the new office to be there, esp with your bad experience

4 teeth sounds like alot to miss, as he's learning to talk and all that. malamamama, who will no doubt respond to this thread :wave, knows a lot about spacers as she's iin a similar situation with her dd. she'll probably even point you to the appropriate thread in the dental archives, which i can't seem to find right now.

hth. mostly i want to give you and your ds some major :hug :hug :hug

[malamamama]

Oh my gosh:( :hug
What a hard thing for you to be going thru when he's so young!

Regarding your presence, definitely ask/request before the day of the appointment. I definitely have read experiences where parents are with their kids until they are "asleep" and there when they "wake up".

Regarding breastfeeding...according to Smilemomma, scientific studies show that breastmilk is a bodily fluid, not a food or a drink. Most dental offices are clueless. You can breastfeed him right up to the procedure and directly after the procedure. If you don't want to deal with the conflict, just nod your head, say nothing and do what you need to do!

Regarding vaccines...this would be an appropriate answer to avoid conflict. However, over on vaccines, it would be highly recommended that you know your "stuff" and can stand up to their probing with documented knowledge.

Regarding the extractions and a partial...YES, he should have a partial!!!! For reasons of speech development and self esteem. Smilemomma addresses this. In my dd's case, we are waiting for her 2nd yr molars to grow in completely to attach the partial. She is 3. So maybe its not recommended right now if his 2nd yr molars are not in all the way. But he shouldn't have to be toothless for the next 4 years!

Regarding the treatment plan...Have you explored the possibility of doing several appointments to do this work. Maybe a 1/2 hour each in the dental chair. Extractions are quick and doable with a local anesthesia. Caps can also be done in the dental office. Check out a thread called "treatment options".

I HTH!!!

[malamamama]

Hey Simonee! We cross posted!
Tracy, Indeed! The thread that Simonee directed you to about General Anesthesia has a post by Smilemomma that will definitely empower you to insist on your presence and breastfeeding your little guy!!!
And here's page 3 of this thread. Smilemomma's post of 9-26-02 talks about the importance of the partial. http://216.92.20.151/discussions/showthread.php?s=&threadid=743&perpage=20&highlight=traumas&pagenumber=3

[TracyMom2Three]

Thanks ladies for the links and the words of encouragement.

Oh, Reece will be going under gen anesthesia so that's why we're getting all the work done at once. He will be at a surgery center like the last time.

Well, off to read those links. I'm especially interested in the links concerning the partials. I've had to Pediatric dentists tell me that they aren't recommended. Hmmm.....!?

[malamamama]

So what were their reasons for not recommending the partial? Now, I could understand a removable partial not being recommended. But a cemented one?
How is your tooth brushing routine going? Is it an issue of keeping the brackets and all clean or something?
I would definitely insist on answers and keep looking for a dentist who will help you!
Our dentist didn't give a second thought to a kiddie partial for dd....so keep looking!

[TracyMom2Three]

Are you getting a partial for just one missing tooth? Reece has no top front teeth at all. He has his two eye teeth but will more than likely be having at least one extracted. He does have his molars up there. At this point..the partial would be pretty much a denture, kwim? I in fact, had a top denture when I was 5 years old due to dental injuries.

Our dentist said that a partial for the top teeth (that many of them) would be very hard to keep in ds' mouth. They would be anchored to his molars like a bridge but she said that the teeth of the partial tend to pop off quite easily. She also said that for ds' age it would be very difficult to get a good impression w/out anesthetizing him.

I don't know..I don't like the idea of ds being toothless until his permanent teeth come in. I really am leaning towards homeschooling now, lol!

Oh, she also said a partial with that many teeth would be very uncomfortable for my ds.

We have a very good brushing routine. I've been brushing ds' teeth since he got them in.

What's the partial like that you're getting for your dd?

[malamamama]

Dd is missing her two top front teeth. We haven't even got so far as making an impression. But I have seen the example of the partial. It will be two fake teeth, attached to a wire that attaches to brackets that wrap around the back molars.
It seems like there is going to be some uncomfortability and getting use to the wire and the brackets no matter how many false teeth are attached....hmmmm....Smilemomma, no doubt, has a more knowledgable answer here....:D

[CarrieBeary77]

Just want you to now that you are not alone. :) MY ds is 3 yrs ad7 mos old. In August he had the first of 3 dental visits. They're very good to him there, very kind, and he willingly goes with them to get his teeth fixed.

He had 4 teeth pulled (top front 4, seems to be hereditary because dd and I had the same issue) and 1 capped. They will be capping others in the future, when we get the money to pay for it. The first visit was $600. and the 2nd ansd 3rd are each about $900 - 3 crowns each time, plus the sedative and pulpotomies required each time.

It's nerve-wracking and traumatic for everyone involved. Ds came out of it in near hysterics, unfortunately. But dh and I were both with him that day and we held him all the way home. (Hard to do while in his booster seat, but we tried. :))

When dd had it done in May, she was 19 mos old and she did great. The office is kind of expensive, I guess, and my mil keeps nagging us about the cost and finding a cheaper dentist, but we interviewed a cheaper dentist and there's no d*mn way we'd go with one! This dentist is VERY gentle and kind to the kids. That is worth the higher price, imo.

Dh tells his mother to leave us alone about it. :LOL

When I had teeth pulled I had alot of bleeding, so I took Phosphorous for it. For the kids, I gave them Arnica and Hypericum before and after the surgery. In fact, before we went into the office, I gave them each a dose of Arnica to help.

Anyway, ust wnated you to know, you're not alone. :)

[malamamama]

So Carriebeary 77, Are you going to be getting a partial for either kids?
Wow, living here on this small island, it seems that dd is the only child missing teeth. Although it is unfortunate for all of them, I feel some comfort knowing that she is not an oddity in the bigger picture. thanks mamas for sharing your experiences!

[CarrieBeary77]

Originally posted by malamamama
So Carriebeary 77, Are you going to be getting a partial for either kids?


No. No money for it and I went w/o one and my teeth came in just fine, no trouble at all. :)