What's a single tooth worth?

[Mike Lassiter]

just back from the dentist.

I had a crown put on a upper tooth about 10 years ago not in the "front" but I would say a back front tooth. One that gets used about anytime you bite into something. It became loose over the weekend. I haven't had that loose tooth feeling in many years but the crown was very easily moved by touching it. There was a metal pin inserted into the tooth when it was installed.

I had to have the tooth pulled awhile ago. Unable to save due to decay below the crown that undermined the crown which is the cause of the problem. Already had a root canal done then the crown so there already been several hundred dollars spent out of pocket on it. Discussing my options a bridge, partial plate (I think) or implant.

I went many years without dental insurance and money tight trying to raise family etc. etc. and my teeth were in pretty bad shape when I was finally able to do something about them. Several crowns and root canals, numerous fillings - many hundreds of dollars spent on top of insurance coverage to get them in shape.

Been without dental insurance again for 4 years now until this year. So insurance has a $1000 year limit. Bone transfusion $2100, implant post $1800, crown $500 (yea - another one for the same spot!) for keeping a single tooth! I decided to just pull it and be done with it. I can still do bridge later if I want but, needed to get the tooth out today as I was afraid it would fall/breakout while eating. I told the lady that for a lot less than $5000 I could pull all my teeth and get dentures and get a WHOLE new set not just one tooth.

[Wade Lippman]

My wife is on her third implant. Your dentist is cheaper than hers. But she's worth it.

[Larry Edgerton]

Mike, I had to make that same decision. I was just about to start my new house for cash and they gave me the first two options. I think I mentioned the denture thing as well.

I had it pulled and never went back, I am not sinking $4K into one tooth. I do not really see it as a problem.

I jumped off of a ladder with a cord in my mouth, fastest way to break off a tooth I know off when you step on the cord.

Because of various misadventures I have three fakes and one missing, not all that far away from dentures anyway. Dentists all say how terrible they are but most people I know with dentures don't feel that way. Can't fix cavities in dentures.....

Larry

[Kent A Bathurst]

Neighbor girl usually got $5 each.

Doggone Tooth Fairy certainly upped the ante - I used to get a lousy quarter.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

The prices you show are about what they cost me over 5 years ago.

Prices can vary due to local economics. In other words, what one pays in NYC might be significantly different than one might pay in Idaho or California.

[Brian Tymchak]

Assuming you have medical insurance, you might want to check into whether any of that can be covered by medical. That bone transfusion might qualify.

[Mike Lassiter]

That would have needed to been done today when the tooth was pulled as I understood it, to avoid the bone closing up. She said they used cadabure (?) bone to fill in the socket the tooth occupied. Then in 3 months or so the jaw bone would fuse to the filler bone and grow around it. Gives solid bone for implant post to screw into.

[Val Kosmider]

In the land of the blind, the one eyed man is king.

Same goes for the land of the toothless. One of one? Pretty important. One of many? Not so much.

[Clay Crocker]

I spent about $6K on an implant 3-4 years ago. The tooth it replaced was second from the back, on the bottom and had a large ceramic filling in the middle. One day I was eating a chocolate chip cookie with walnuts when I bit down on a piece of walnut shell which caused the tooth to crack right down the middle. My dentist took the filling out to inspect the damage and he said it looked like the crack went down deep into the tooth. No way to tell for sure w/o going to an endodontist. I could have gone and had a root canal and a crown put on but there was still a chance I could loose the tooth eventually, so I opted to skip the root canal and go straight to the implant. The rest of my teeth are in good shape, no root canals and only one other crown at the moment, so I thought it made sense for me to go with the implant. The implant is supposed to last a lifetime (not the crown though) so I figured the cost amortized over 40+ years (hopefully!) was a good investment in my case.

[Mike Lassiter]

I spent about $6K on an implant 3-4 years ago. The tooth it replaced was second from the back, on the bottom and had a large ceramic filling in the middle. One day I was eating a chocolate chip cookie with walnuts when I bit down on a piece of walnut shell which caused the tooth to crack right down the middle. My dentist took the filling out to inspect the damage and he said it looked like the crack went down deep into the tooth. No way to tell for sure w/o going to an endodontist. I could have gone and had a root canal and a crown put on but there was still a chance I could loose the tooth eventually, so I opted to skip the root canal and go straight to the implant. The rest of my teeth are in good shape, no root canals and only one other crown at the moment, so I thought it made sense for me to go with the implant. The implant is supposed to last a lifetime (not the crown though) so I figured the cost amortized over 40+ years (hopefully!) was a good investment in my case.

Had similar thing on left rear tooth. Bad shape and getting a crown on it. First we had to do the root canal an pack with temp filling. Said to make sure all the nerve was out before installing the crown. So - the week before scheduled to install the crown, the tooth began to hurt more and more. After a couple of days I called and was called back to inspect. Tooth was abscessed and another x-ray revealed that it had in fact cracked down in the gum. So, we've got to pull it- no other options. I had to pay for the root canal then to pull it too. Didn't seem right, but I guess that's the way it goes.

[Phil Thien]

That would have needed to been done today when the tooth was pulled as I understood it, to avoid the bone closing up. She said they used cadabure (?) bone to fill in the socket the tooth occupied. Then in 3 months or so the jaw bone would fuse to the filler bone and grow around it. Gives solid bone for implant post to screw into.

But if the bone closes up on its own, isn't that the same thing?

These are the sorts of decisions I face now that I'm fifty and my ultra-soft teeth start to fail.

No corn nuts for me.

[William Payer]

But if the bone closes up on its own, isn't that the same thing?

These are the sorts of decisions I face now that I'm fifty and my ultra-soft teeth start to fail.

No corn nuts for me.

Without the cadaver bone graft ,I believe the bone will fill in but will be concave, and will be lower than the bone of the adjacent teeth. This level of bone is probably needed to fully support the implant properly.

Yes, once past fifty or so, we are like older cars ---something always needs repairs or replacement!

[William Payer]

Had similar thing on left rear tooth. Bad shape and getting a crown on it. First we had to do the root canal an pack with temp filling. Said to make sure all the nerve was out before installing the crown. So - the week before scheduled to install the crown, the tooth began to hurt more and more. After a couple of days I called and was called back to inspect. Tooth was abscessed and another x-ray revealed that it had in fact cracked down in the gum. So, we've got to pull it- no other options. I had to pay for the root canal then to pull it too. Didn't seem right, but I guess that's the way it goes.

Root canals are not a guaranteed procedure, the tooth can still have issues resulting in its needing to be extracted. A small fracture in the tooth and or root can allow bacterial to get in an decay set in. With no functioning nerve, you will never know it is happening unless you develop an abscess. The endodontist who did mine made it very clear that it could go bad.

[Clay Crocker]

Had similar thing on left rear tooth. Bad shape and getting a crown on it. First we had to do the root canal an pack with temp filling. Said to make sure all the nerve was out before installing the crown. So - the week before scheduled to install the crown, the tooth began to hurt more and more. After a couple of days I called and was called back to inspect. Tooth was abscessed and another x-ray revealed that it had in fact cracked down in the gum. So, we've got to pull it- no other options. I had to pay for the root canal then to pull it too. Didn't seem right, but I guess that's the way it goes.

Mike, the fear of having an experience like your's was the reason I skipped the root canal/crown and went right to the implant. Since I knew the tooth was cracked, it appeared to be about 50/50 whether or not the root canal would take long term. Given the cost of the root canal, I did not consider those very good odds. In my case the implant seemed to be more of sure bet.

[Phil Hansen]

Grow a moustache. Can't see the missing teeth. Lot cheaper.