lmsmith Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 So, I went to the dentist today after spending like 2 months in pain. Apparently I need all of my wisdom teeth out. Does anyone know if I can get them done at a public hospital and how much this will cost? My dentist thought it would be about $2500. I will have to get general anesthetic (being awake is definitely not an option for me). Does it have to be really bad to get it done publicly? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barrie Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 I belive that if you have nothing in your bank account you may have a chance What ever happens, hunt around for a price Crowns for instance can cost fro $500 to $1800 for the same job/tooth Be aware though that if the damage goes to the nerve, it will feel as if someone has smacked you in the side of the head with a 4x2... When it happened to me, I told a chippy to get outa my way and if he ever hit me with a hunk of timber again, I would kill him.... I honestly thought he had wacked me one. I was totally incapable of driving so dont muck around and get it fixed urgently Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrienne Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 My daughter had her 4 teeth removed in the last school holidays. Went private (no option given) and it cost us $1800. Our Southern Cross policy has a clause in it that does not pay for extraction of teeth. Dentists used to do it, now they take the easier option and we have to pay for a surgeon instead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmsmith Posted December 3, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 My dentist said he could do it, but I'm terrified of dentists, and there were lots of tears and considerations of suicide just getting myself there to get them checked out. I really will need to be under general anesthetic. Was your daughter under general when she got hers done? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 Hi there, I used to be a dental assistant so actually know what I am talking about! (please don't listen to anyone else, there is so much mythinformation out there about teeeth) YES you can get it done at the hospital. Not sure if it winds up free or negligible. You need: 1: A community Services Card 2: A referral from your Dentist 3: A lot of time on your hands. Basically they refer you, then you go on their waiting list, then you wait and wait and wait and wait..... and wait and wait and then they call you up. You (usually?) can not get it done at the hospital without a community services card, UNLESS the dentist says you must have it done under general anaesthetic. HOWEVER You can have what is called 'concious sedation' It is an injection of some wonderful drugs that totally take your mind off it. Seriously we could cut all your limbs off and you wouldn't care. Most people sleep through it, BUT we can wake them up if need be (like "open wider, damn you!"). These drugs are a HELL of a lot safer than a GA, much much shorter recovery time, and there is an exceedingly fast antidote if so required. You probably will only remember walking into the room. Most have no idea how they got home or what happened in the chair However you need someone to look after you for the next 24 hours, can't drive, ought to have the next day off work, and costs a bundle. It can be done in the surgery and you can have it done as soon as you book in (no waiting lists) but it is usually done by an Oral Surgeon, who can be a little difficult to get in with at times, but a lot faster than the hospital. You need to book in first for a consultation with them, they check you and explain everything and give you consent stuff. You dentist may be able to refer you to make it faster. I can give the names of three oral surgeons I highly recommend, but they are in Palmy (we did get people coming from wangas to see us) IN THE MEANTIME: Antibiotics Savacol Mouthwash (from supermarket, tastes foul but effective) Keep brushing you teeth!!!! (you don't want to wind up with trenchmouth on top of this) DON'T put an asprin against it! Some people recommend this but asprin does NOT work topically, rather it will give you a nasty chemical burn. The combination pain-killers are good, esp panadiene etc. Panadol is a mild pain relief. Does that help? Hugs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 Crowns for instance can cost fro $500 to $1800 for the same job/tooth Having worked for 8 different dentists, some closely, DO NOT base your selection on price! Many cheap ones are utter SHITE Many expensive ones are just out to empty your bank accounts and also do SHITE work. Get a bunch of recommendations. Go with what you feel comfortable with. Ask if they take digital xrays - much much more shows up on them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 and seriously, we get SOOOO many calls each day with people asking: "how much to have a tooth yanked?" "$XXX and you need to pay on the day" "oh" And yes, we think they are all idiots who refuse to take responsibility for their own lives! (wow, two months out of the job and I can still seethe about idiots! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmsmith Posted December 3, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 Thanks so much Stella. My dentist has given me a referral, and I have a community services card. After hearing about the prices, and doing some googling about the possible risks, I'm considering sedation rather than GA. The price is the biggest issue for me, I don't have a job right now and I'm not really keen about spending $2000 on getting some stupid sore teeth pulled. However, I am really really terrified of getting it done, and having someone I know will go a good job and wont screw it up is probably the only thing that will get me there at all! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidb Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 I got all 4 of mine out when I was 17 so that it was paid for by the government, It was hell at the time, as I was awake and they hadnt actually come through my gums at that stage, but looking back it was a wise financial move (hint to you other 17 year olds), I started getting one at a time but after the first two, I decided I would bite the bullet (or was that the scalpel?) and got the last two out together- (it was not twice as painful.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chilli Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 well my bottom wisdim came throu good but the top ones are growing sideways towards front of mouth so my teeth are going croked and my front tooth chipped last year and its getting worse and now i have bad dreams that my teeth are falling out,i think i bite them hard when i sleep coz they seem sore in the morning, i need to go to dentist Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 i am on the urgent priority list a 3 or 4 month wait Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmsmith Posted December 3, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 OoOo...How'd you get on the urgent list? Is yours expensive too, or are you a smarty pants with insurance? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HaNs Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 Mine where 1.5k Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 well my bottem wisdim came throu good but the top ones are growing sideways towards front of mouth so my teeth are going croked and my front tooth chipped last year and its getting worse and now i have bad dreams that my teeth are falling out,i think i bite them haed when i sleep coz they seem sore in the morning, i need to go to dentist Three things: 1: It is commonly believed but impacted wisdom teeth are highly unlikely to cause your teeth to move. Think about it this way: there are seven teeth between your wisdom tooth and the midline between your front teeth... If they can't move they don't move. 2: If your teeth are sore when you wake there is a good chance your are grinding or clenching in your sleep. There is nothing you can do to stop this. Many, many people do it. Happens worse when stressed. You can wear down your teeth really badly and cause all sorts of problems later on. I do it too. Never realised until the last dentist I worked for. My cheeks always hurt and have muscle knots in them from clenching! I have a special mouthguard that I wear at night - I grind big holes in that but am not wearing down my teeth. It costs a bit to make one, but so does a full set of crowns if I wear my teeth away! Ask your dentist about this when you go next. 3: Please check your spelling. Your post is very hard to read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrienne Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 My daughter didn't have a general but what Stella refers to as 'concious sedation'. She is 17 but tiny - 46kg and it took about 9 hours to wear off. I took her home about an hour after she had it done, she doesn't remember much and definitely doesn't remember walking to the car. However she says the soreness from having the teeth out was way less than when they were in. It was only the two bottom ones that were stitched as they were not at all through the gum, the two top came out easily. Be brave, get them done, the pain won't go away if they do in fact need to come out. All Stellas recommendations about mouth wash etc were what my daughter was also given to do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chilli Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 yeh i never ever passed english sorry and i got six teeth between front and back i got 4 molers taken out when i was 13 coz my teeth were to big for mouth(or something like that) are your ment to wobble(only so slihtly) or is this a bad sign Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 Interesting...I had 4 wisdom teeth out when I was something like 15. Under general anesthetic. I didn't have any pain at all after the second day. (Except when I'd bite something wrong or whatever) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firefish Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 lmsmith - i'm like you about the dentist too! A little over a year ago i had one tooth causing me a lot of pain, even when i wasn't biting down. I didn't do anything about it. Then, a couple of months ago it happened again (same tooth). This time my parents made me go to the dentist (after lots of arguing and tears). Its either got to be taken out or a root canal. I'm choosing the do nothing until it hurts again option :lol: And i can't eat on that side either... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 Chilli - wobble.....? Depend.... NO they should be firmly attached to your skull. Loose teeth is a sign of serious breakdown of bone caused by gum disease caused by lack of proper care and attention. MOSTLY you see this on older people (40+ who have paid very little attention to their teeth). Sadly it is NOT reversible BUT it can be slowed or stopped by seeing your hygienist and really paying attention. Otherwise..... could be a few other things, either way, see a dentist sooner rather than later! (Sorry I could not make it sound better!) Adodge - The amount of drug given is based on the size and metabolism of the patient. A big person gets more etc. It is also usually given in small amounts and topped up during the procedure. Some patients are articulate and walk out of the surgery unaided, but still need to be watched. However they are usually kinda floppy after and may sleep for the next 12 hours or so. The memory loss is a great feature! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmsmith Posted December 3, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 lmsmith - i'm like you about the dentist too! A little over a year ago i had one tooth causing me a lot of pain, even when i wasn't biting down. I didn't do anything about it. Then, a couple of months ago it happened again (same tooth). This time my parents made me go to the dentist (after lots of arguing and tears). Its either got to be taken out or a root canal. I'm choosing the do nothing until it hurts again option :lol: And i can't eat on that side either... Yeah...that's what my wisdom teeth have been like for the last year, but in the last 2 months I haven't been able to eat solid foods or close my mouth. I finally had to go, and I'm so proud of myself that I didn't try until I got out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 lmsmith - i'm like you about the dentist too! A little over a year ago i had one tooth causing me a lot of pain, even when i wasn't biting down. I didn't do anything about it. Then, a couple of months ago it happened again (same tooth). This time my parents made me go to the dentist (after lots of arguing and tears). Its either got to be taken out or a root canal. I'm choosing the do nothing until it hurts again option :lol: And i can't eat on that side either... That depends on how bad you want it to get. (amazing how much pain people are willing to suffer through to avoid dental treatment that hurts much less, if at all!) There are two probable scenarios for what is happening: SCENARIO ONE: 1: Decay got deeper and deeper 2: It got close to or into the nerve which caused the first toothache 3: The nerve died and it didn't hurt 4: But meanwhile an abcess was forming at the base of the tooth 5: your immune system got low or similar and the abcess went from chronic to acute and now hurts like hell. SCENARIO TWO Is basically the same but it isn't always caused by decay. If there was an old deep filling or a crack in the tooth it can annoy the hell out of the nerve, but not enough for YOU to notice. Then the nerve dies and you get the joy of abcesses. THE FUTURE: The pain may go away again, like it did before. Toothaches can come and go like that, until it is so bad you BEG and BEG to be seen by a dentist, BUT because you are in so much pain the local anaesthetic can not work, and they send you off with some antibiotics and your misery. Or you can leave it and the decay eats away more and more of the tooth and a straightforward extraction turns into the digging extraction from hell. Or you could go and get the root canal done. No they are nothing like the bullshit horror stories you hear. They are long and boring and your jaw will get sore from holding your mouth open. But at least you get to keep the tooth. Or you could get the tooth pulled, and you will miss it. Just go do it now. It will be much easier in the long run Basically I am telling you the truth, but not putting a nice spin on it. I am not actually trying to make it sound worse to scare you. People think leaving these things is ok, because you avoid the inevitable. It isn't. Leaving things means the end result is MUCH MUCH MUCH WORSE than going now. Seriously, if you work in dental you get so tired of seeing massive issues caused by people who avoided going to the dentists when they knew they should. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinytawnykitten Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 Do you have someone who can support you when you get it done, come with you for the day, etc? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmsmith Posted December 3, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 Yeah, my partner is really good about it, he came to the dentist with me today too. He said he'll take me up to Palmy if that's what I want to do, so at least thats one side I feed good about! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 Yay for supportive partners! :bounce: (go give him a hug from us ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted December 3, 2008 Report Share Posted December 3, 2008 My husband had most of his teeth removed (all together) by an oral surgeon using the sedation method rather than GA. We had some lengthy conversations after they were removed, he discussed after-care with the nurse etc but had no memory of it the next day. He remembered walking into the hospital but nothing else until he woke up on the sofa. He took 2 days off work cos they said he had to and wasn't allowed to drive but, apart from dozing off and on the first day, was up and working on computers the next day. I am from the older generation who referred to the dental clinic as The Murder House - for good reason! Thanks to some horrific dental work inflicted upon me as a child, without the fancy anaesthetics, high speed drills etc they have today, I avoid going to the dentist until the pain gets too much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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