May 26, 2005

• My Aussie friend went to a dentist o'er here in blighty, and in the course of a discussion about his toothache told the dentist that he had already had his wisdom teeth removed (when he was in the army some years back). The dentist, for some reason, wasn't satisfied with this, and asked him "are you sure?" To which my mate replied: "Of course I'm fucking sure. Are you sure you're a fucking dentist?" You should ask your dentist that.
• Yes, hello there. are you sure you're a fucking dentist?
• Not sure what questions you should ask, but I've had all my front teeth capped, (hockey's a fun game!) so I can tell you about the procedure. Basically, what he's going to do is drill your tooth down to a core, or, depending on the damage, insert a rod into the base of the tooth. Then he'll take a mold of your teeth. (usually tastes vaguely of cherry) From that mold, he'll make a porcelain crown to fit over the core or the rod. He'll then bond the crown to the core and voila! New tooth. The process may take a day or two for the final crown, so you may get a temporary for that time. It'll probably be a little thicker than your other teeth, but you can have it filed down if necessary. Hope that helped.
• There is no difference in the feeling of your new cap and your real teeth. It may seem a little slick to your tongue, but that's about all. You may want to ask how to properly care for the gums around the cap. Your gums will recede a little around a cap, there is nothing you can do about that. However, if you do not floss and brush the gums properly, they can recede more than usual. Given your cap is on a front tooth, you may want to consider how wide your smile is - the porcelain may not carry all the way down under the gum line, so you may have a thin line of metal showing. Depending on your ego and how wide you smile, this may bother you. You've got nothing to worry about, caps are a very simple procedure. Now, dental implants and bone grafts, there's something to worry about. BTW, Quidnunc - Considering the number of times I've seen people with user ids and passwords taped to their computer monitors, people who talk back to the television, and people with VCRs with the clock flashing '12:00', I'd say a dentist asking someone if they are sure they've had teeth out is a fair question.
• ask the dentist if he has these available discussed here
  
• i have porcelain veneers, are they an option for you? the tooth remains intact, and these are cemented on. i have gray tetracycline stains on my teeth, and my veneers look great! i love them and have had them for years.
• I'd say a dentist asking someone if they are sure they've had teeth out is a fair question Sorry mate, I may have mislead you. I'm not attempting to criticise the dentist: it simply struck me as an amusing response.
• I don't think the dentist will know much about basketball. Well, at least I don't see the connection. Maybe ask Deputy Shaq.
• I have a crown on one of my front teeth from a bike accident at age 8. I wore a temporary crown for several years because my teeth had not stopped growing yet. As a teenager I got the permanent crown, which has been in place for 16 years now without a single problem. Dentists I've gone to since then have all commented on what an excellent job she did. While selecting the crown, your dentist should allow you to see what he's doing with a mirror and should want your opinion on a final selection. Work hard to make it a good color match and size match - don't rush this part. Let him know that the appearance is important to you since it's a front tooth. Once the crown is in place, you should make some follow-up visits to be sure your bite is not adversely affected by the new crown. Don't be nervous - when you're finished, you'll have a better tooth than the one you have now!
• I, too, have a crown on a front tooth. The bite can be very important especially if you grind your teeth or if you have an overbite. I was grinding my teeth in my sleep and kept popping the crown off. It took 3 or 4 tries to get it adjusted so that it would actually stay cemented. But now it's perfectly fine.
• thanks for the thoughts u monkeys. wish i could get porcelain veneers, but one needs a strong tooth to put those on top of. also wish i could get spinning gold teeth (or at least a gold tooth), but being that i travel so much --- i realized that in some countries they'll jack ur ass for what's in your mouth. also wish i could use expletives, but the meaning would probably be lost in translation (as i'm doing this overseas while in korea since it is less than 1/2 the price of doing it in the states). also wish i wasn't nervous, but alas - ever since the injury (and seeing the curb stomping scene from American History X and the anime from Kill Bill) -- i've been a bit sensitive about anything related to teeth. well, i've got a date to keep with some novocaine. happy happy joy joy.
• If all else fails, "Hajima!" means "stop!" The rest of the Korean I know won't get you the best of service, so I'll refrain from giving you any more phrases.
• "hajima" won't get me the best of service either. That's how to say stop it to a 'child' or a friend. If i say it to a doctor or dentist, i'd be considered quite the "babo" (dumbass). "Kuman haseyo" is the polite form of stop please to be used with adults.