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Q: Yesterday I saw my dentist for a regular check-up. The hygienist saw me first and said everything looked good. I was happy because I hate bad news. The dentist came in and after a few moments and asked me if I was experiencing any sensitivity anywhere in my mouth. I thought about it then said “no”. He replied “good”. He went on and said that my lower back molars were showing a lot of wear. When he pointed this out to his hygienist, she said she had seen the filling weari

Q: Dr.Crapo: About ten years ago, I learned about veneers. I liked the looks of them very much and as I had a lot of old white fillings in my upper front teeth, I decided to have veneers to make my teeth look more uniform in colour and shape. When they were done I was extremely pleased. After five years my dentist said that because I was hard on my teeth throughout my mouth, I needed some crowns. I knew for a fact that I was a clencher, so I went ahead. My dentist told me th

Question: Dr. Crapo: I had a frightening and frustrating experience on my holiday this past summer. On the second day of my trip, I was eating an egg salad sandwich when all of a sudden, I felt something hard in my mouth. I quickly spit it out into my hand and it was a tooth – my tooth! On closer examination, it looked like a front tooth so I ran to the mirror – it was my left front tooth! I called my dentist (yes long distance) – I must have sounded hysterical – in a country

Q: Life is really three steps forward and two steps back. Try as I might I can’t seem to get my teeth fixed and they stay fixed. Over the years, I had decay then root canals and crowns. Then they said I had a hard bite because my crowns started breaking off and then I’d lose a tooth. I got so frustrated that I stopped going to the dentist even though I had missing teeth on the top and needed a bridge for each side. After years of poor chewing I went back because I had a tooth

Q: I am deathly afraid of dentists. I have always had trouble with cavities since I was a child. As an adult I’ve had tons and tons of work. So much so that a few years ago I decided I just couldn’t go back and have the dentist say you’ve got three more cavities, or four, or five. It was a bad decision because I was forced back by a toothache that ended up as a root canal and a crown. If only I’d gone sooner, it would have been a filling – ten times cheaper and far less painf

Q: Dr. Crapo: Many years ago (thirty-five plus), I had extensive bridgework. I lost my right eye teeth and the one beside it towards the front. Over the years it has held up well but I’m hard on my teeth. I’ve broken off porcelain from my eyetooth, which I guess is a fake tooth. The bridge is still hanging in there but I had to have the piece of porcelain bonded back on. I know it’s just a matter of time till something bad happens – so I went to a dentist to ask him about de

Q: I’m in a state. My life has had all kinds of ups and downs. It seems that I go from emergency to emergency, putting out fires. It’s a drag, physically and emotionally. The latest is my teeth. They are a mess. Decayed and broken down. I have about three left standing, and the rest are decayed to the gum. I’d like to have something to smile with, and I’m afraid of dentures because I saw my mother and grandmother with their teeth out, and it grossed me out. But then, I don’t

Q: I’ve had trouble with my teeth all my life. I’ve had big fillings, crowns, root canals and extractions. I never seem to be able to catch up with the dental work; no sooner is something done than something else crops up. It’s discouraging. I’ve asked several dentists why it happens and mostly I get the “floss more – brush more” brush off. I really was upset when several months ago one of my upper front teeth had to be pulled. I’m left with this tooth fastened to pink plasti

Q: I’m not a dumb guy. I have many skills in many fields. That’s a good thing and a bad. Good because I see things that, in my field of expertise, could be done better and I know they should be done better. Bad because sometimes I over analyse things and put things off that need doing because I want things done in a certain way and can’t find someone to do it “my way”. I’ve had bad luck with teeth and dentists doing things wrong. What has happened is that so much was done in

Q: Dr. Crapo: I am from Mexico. My husband and I moved to Canada forty years ago. We had a family and made a life here. My husband was a good father and provider. He was a very good man but sadly he passed several years ago. As I said, he always took care of us. About ten years ago we went to Mexico for a month visit. During that time, I had some problems with my teeth, so my husband said let’s get them fixed. He wanted the best for me, so he had the dentist put in gold filli

Question: Dear Dr. Crapo: I’m a forty-five year old man with an upper partial denture that’s been there for fifteen years. I lost my front teeth in a bar when a guy going for someone else, planted his fist between my front teeth. Three of the teeth were beyond repair and I never did find the fourth tooth. I was in the military at the time and they made me a partial which I’ve worn since. Two years ago, just before I got out, they talked of placing implants because they said t

Q:I’m terrified going to the dentist because of a nightmare surgery. My eye teeth were sideways – fangs under my lips. My front teeth were in and out. One forward, one pushed back like someone knocked it there. My dentist sent me to the orthodontist who said, “take out her eye teeth and I’ll straighten the rest of them.” He sent me back to my dentist who took out my eye teeth… all four of them. O my goodness, ninety minutes of hell! It remains to this day my worst nightmare

Q: Dr. Crapo: My mother had a trauma to the head fifteen years ago. Since then her speech has deteriorated to a state that she only can make a grunting sounds when she needs to communicate and then point to make herself understood. She understands everything we say, so we feel grateful for that. The problem is her teeth. She only has two teeth remaining on top and the remaining nine or ten teeth on the lower are decayed off at the gums. She also now complains of pain in the l

Q: Dr. Crapo: I’m a hard working forty year old who owns his own construction business. I’ve been in construction since I was a teenager. When I’m not working and planning, I’m into strenuous sports, biking, hiking and working out etc. Three years ago I saw a dentist and after looking at me he said, “Do you know what you’re doing to your front teeth?” “No” I said. “Have you been sick and throwing up a lot?” he asked. “No” I said. “Well something is eating the inside of your

Q: Dr. Crapo: About ten years ago I gave up on my teeth. They were crooked and full of fillings and every time I went to the dentist he’d say, you’ve got three new decay spots or five. It seemed like no matter what I tried, nothing worked. So finally, I said “to heck with this pull’em and give me dentures”. I thought I won’t have to go back and hear that I’d failed again. I also thought, finally I’ll have some nice teeth. So, I went through with it and had my teeth out and d

Q: I’m nearing my eighth decade. I’ve cared for my teeth in the best manner I could but at this point I find myself at a crossroads. I have lost all my molars, top and bottom. On the lower, I had implants and a bridge put in some time ago, but then my upper molars on that side got loose and they had to come out. The other problem I have is that I have a deep overbite. When I put my teeth together, my upper front teeth completely cover my lower front teeth. My dentist and hygi

Question: Dear Dr. Crapo: I’m eighty years old and I just broke a tooth, at least that’s what I thought, so I went to the dentist. It was very painful when I bit down but it was two days before he could get me in. By that time it seemed that every time I swallowed it hurt. When he saw it he said I’d split the tooth and it’d have to be pulled. I asked if he couldn’t save it and put a crown on it but he said he couldn’t and would send me to a specialist because it had to be tak

Q: Dr. Crapo: Nine years ago, I decided I wanted a better set of teeth. I had an upper denture and seven lower teeth with a partial. I had implants put in for new top teeth and crowns and a new partial made for my lower teeth. I had good care as far as I know and everything has worked well until three months ago when my implants on the upper denture wouldn’t hold my teeth in securely. I have two implants on each side of my upper jaw that hold the upper teeth in by a snap

Q: Many years ago, I had a lot of dental work done. It has served me well, but about two years ago I was hit while driving on the side and rear of my car. It has caused all kinds of neck and back pain, fatigue, loss of strength, and at times general malaise. For about a year after, I was not really able to carry out my regular and energy requiring activities of a wife, mother, grandmother, and member of the community. I saw various health specialists, had tests, and recommend

Q: About eight years ago I had problems with my front teeth and they had to come out. I had to wait till my gums healed to get a partial flipper so I could at least smile. After a year I’d had enough because I couldn’t eat with it in my mouth so I went back and they said, “We can give you a new set of teeth that will stay in better.” This time I got a real partial with clips and such so it would stay in my mouth as I ate. It was a whole lot better for about two years when I