Glad That’s Over

I am writing on Monday afternoon on my laptop, as I lie on the couch with an ice-pack propped against my lower left jaw—ten minutes on, ten minutes off, to reduce swelling. This, after getting an implant, following my tooth extraction in May.

This is the fifth time in at least a decade, maybe 15 years, that I’ve had to go through this very expensive procedure, because of a scleroderma complication that causes the roots of my teeth to resorb. It is no fun, but the alternative is worse—a mouthful of missing teeth. The first two steps (extracting the dying tooth and filling in the hole with a bone graft, then implanting the base for the new artificial tooth) take about three months each to fully heal. The final stage of getting a custom replacement made is not as prolonged, but it will be at least December before it’s all completed.

Any dental work for me is a challenge. I cannot open my mouth fully because the skin around my mouth doesn’t stretch enough. Fortunately, I have found experts who know how to accommodate my limitations. My periodontist is precise and very careful with me, and he has the most calming manner, which really helps me endure the procedure.

Which involved a lot of local anesthesia, cutting open the gum around the bone graft, then drilling with three drill bits of increasing widths, then screwing in the implant with a tool that is essentially a small socket wrench, capping the implant, then filling in any spaces with collagen tissue and stitching up the gum.

The drilling is the hardest part, sending vibrations through my skull. As the width of the drill bit increases, the vibrating hum gets lower and louder. I’m always afraid that the anesthesia will begin to wear off, which it inevitably does at some point for me in these procedures. Fortunately, I caught it soon enough so he could give me more shots and finish with no significant pain. But his skilled fingers are big and my mouth is small and it is never easy.

I’ve started antibiotics as a safeguard against infection, and so far the pain is manageable with alternating Tylenol and ibuprofin. If experience is any guide, the worst is now over and it’s just a matter of healing up (and paying in installments over the next few months). Here’s hoping the next tooth that dies will hang on for a few more years.

Evelyn Herwitz blogs weekly about living fully with chronic disease, the inside of baseballs, turtles and frogs, J.S. Bach, the meaning of life and whatever else she happens to be thinking about at livingwithscleroderma.com. Please view Privacy Policy here.

Image: Gratisography