Fao Gizmonster

[jennyjoan]

And anybody who has had the dental implants.

Giz remember I said to you there was a "lump" behind the teeth - well it's only now I can sorta talk about it. The lump is actually a porcelain bridge.

Now 3 months down the line it still annoys me and to be quite honest I genuinely did not think I would be getting a bridge per se.

So what I think there is 2 implants into the gums and then 4 teeth on a bridge which was screwed in.

I am having extreme tenderness and awareness that there is something "foreign" in my mouth but the rest of my gums are tender too.

I did go back re the "lump" and he (implantologist) was looking at me like "astonishingly" - but my goodness you don't have that ugly denture.

this bridge feels certainly like a mini denture. will I ever get used to it.

he did offer at that time to remove it and "thin" it down but I'd been through too much I decided to give it time.

any opinions anybody and sorry for moaning so much about these.

[Patsy33]

I'm sure, like anything, you'll get used to it JJ. I can understand you not wanting any further treatment tho..

[jennyjoan]

thanks Patsy - like do you think 3 months is not long enough to be used to it by now. My tongue never leaves it alone - if only I could strap my tongue down LOL

Have you had them yourself

[jennyjoan]

I never got used to the dentures even after 5 years so I don't know.

[Patsy33]

No, I haven't had mine done,JJ. I'd like to!
I suppose it's best to talk to people who've had similar done. I bet you've a beautiful smile tho! :-)

[jennyjoan]

LOL - haven't been smiling too much lately - mind you they haven't stopped me from eating.

I just wondered if anybody else who had the implants have this porcelain bridge too.

[Gizmonster]

Hii JJ - sorry about delay in replying, I was out most of yesterday.

My implants are two implants into the gums, with one separate tooth attached to each implant, so no bridge. I do have a bridge which consists of two porcelain teeth attached together, fastened to the remains of a tooth and I've also had a 3 tooth bridge attached to the remains of 2 teeth (one of the teeth split in this bridge, so I ended up with a denture).
There's virtually no difference between a bridge attached to implants and a bridge attached to teeth. The only difference is what they're attached to, but the aesthetics is the same. In both of my bridges, when I run my tongue along the back, it's very smooth and just feels natural. It certainly shouldn't feel like it's a mini denture.
I'm just wondering if, when the impressions were taken, that the gums hadn't fully healed and maybe the gums have moved slightly since, so the bridge maybe doesn't fit as snug as it should.

You say that the rest of your gums are tender too??
Are you referring to the whole of the upper jaw, or just in the surrounding area of the implants??

[jennyjoan]

thanks Giz - great to get you. Sensitivity in most of the gums - I have been living with that for years and I knew this would continue.

As you say - I did believe in my head that I was getting a tooth in one implant and another tooth in another but I had 4 front teeth to be put in hence the bridge - so that is 2 implants with 4 "bridged" teeth. Is this normal Giz

[jennyjoan]

just running my tongue over the bridge - they "bulge" out a little bit behind the said tooth. So two bulges and thickish from the upper palate

[jennyjoan]

actually running my finger across the bulges at the back you can feel them - like I had no bulges with dentures. Shall I go back.

As I had said he did say hey ho - you don't have those terrible dentures

[Gizmonster]

4 teeth attached to 2 implants is normal
I'd guess that the implants are on either end of the bridge, to offer extra support, but it's not imperative.
The bulge that you refer to shouldn't be too noticeable, but maybe there are underlying factors that I'm unaware of. If your dentist has offered to trim them down, I'd take them up on the offer.

With regards to the rest of your gums - are they all quite sensitive and do the bleed sometimes??

[jennyjoan]

After getting a good deep clean last year the bleeding very much has died down. I could get used to the sensitivity if I was sure the bulges could be thinned.

I'm worried if I were to get them thinned would I be weakening the bridge per se and then if anything were to happen in the future it would be my "fault"

[jennyjoan]

you can literally run your finger (back of the teeth) feel the high bulge then dip then the high bulge which of course my tongue never leaves alone.

[Gizmonster]

You need to talk to the dentist, as he'll be best to advise you with regards to trimming the bridge down, but from my experience, it seems to me like it doesn't fit properly.

With regards to your gums, I'll share my experience with you .....

Every time I went to see the hygienist, she always tried to persuade me to use the interdental brushes to clean in between my teeth and I always used to fob her off saying that I used them whenever I remembered. The reality was that I never used them and my gums were a bit tender at times and often bled.
Anyway, I don't know why, but a few years ago I just decided to start using them and follow a routine to brush in between my teeth with the interdental brushes every night, before cleaning my teeth. On my next visit to the hygienist, she could tell I'd been using them and now my gums NEVER bleed.

Think about when you clean your teeth - your tooth has 5 sides: front, back, top and 2 sides. When you clean with toothbrush (manual or electric) you only clean 3 sides - that's 40% of your tooth not getting cleaned.
Try using the brushes and I bet after a couple of weeks the tenderness will be much better :)

[jennyjoan]

thanks Gizmo - I am aware of the cleaning as compared to the bleeding I had with the gums - it has completely stopped. The bleeding used to be so bad that it was often on pillow cases, perhaps a few drops here and there on the duvet. That has stopped.

I am going to try and see if I can get the bulges even - and when I do I will let you know.

Thanks Giz for time and patience. x