I'm about to go back to my dentist after a 7 year absence where I was
starting my own business and couldn't afford dental work. I'm guessing
that I'm going to need a ton of work, both in terms of things that
need to be done (cavities, replacement of missing teeth in the back,
probably periondontal disease, etc.) and from a cosmetic perspective
as well. I have "temporary" caps on my font upper arch that have been
in my mouth this entire time, and they're very badly stained and
pretty disgusting. I've recently come to suspect that I've lost out on
more than one job opportunity because of them--which is frankly what's
prompting me to invest some $$ into taking care of my mouth once and
for all.

My question: in cases like mine where there's a lot of work to be done
over probably a few months, how much control do I have in terms of
what gets done when? My sense has always been that health related
stuff must be completely done before any cosmetic work can start, but
I'm wondering if it's possible to alternate.

What I'd like to be able to do is to get the temp caps on my front
teeth replaced ASAP (if not first thing, then at least early in the
process) so I can go to a job interview and not be self-conscious. Is
that a reasonable request in your minds?

Note that I haven't asked my dentist this yet. I figured I'd ask here
first.

What I'd like to be able to do is to get the temp caps on my front
teeth replaced ASAP (if not first thing, then at least early in the
process) so I can go to a job interview and not be self-conscious. Is
that a reasonable request in your minds?

Note that I haven't asked my dentist this yet. I figured I'd ask here
first.

On Thu, 26 Jun 2008 15:25:15 -0700 (PDT), Blasterbot5555
blasterbot5555 at (no spam) hotmail.com> wrote:

What I'd like to be able to do is to get the temp caps on my front
teeth replaced ASAP (if not first thing, then at least early in the
process) so I can go to a job interview and not be self-conscious. Is
that a reasonable request in your minds?

Note that I haven't asked my dentist this yet. I figured I'd ask here
first.


Depending on your periodontal condition, this may or may not
be reasonable.

When doing a reconstruction, stability and health of the periodontium
is first and foremost.

However, don't expect a reconstructive dentist to *just* make you
new temporaries.

Definitive restorations must be planned for the very near future.
There must be a commitment; that involves not only home care,
and follow ups, but monetary considerations as well.
1/2 down is not unreasonable, to start a reconstruction,
as well as full payment for any periodontal treatment that
may be required to insure a predictable and good outcome.
I had "lots of work" done at a dental school, and they made me wait