Dientes

Warning for the queasy: Teeth pictures

Went to the Dientes Clinic to have my wisdom tooth pulled. I felt nervous. I've had dental care before that was less than comfortable and I knew my body would rebel. Therefore I took an Ativan before leaving so I would be relaxed. By the time I got there, I was ready.

When the dentist began, he put the typical numbing lotion on my gums and a short time later, administered the Lidocaine injections. I began shaking uncontrollably. I was surprised. Why would that be?

It wasn't until later I learned the shaking was normal because another drug is also injected. It is called Epinephrine (also known as adrenaline!). This medication is used to help the action of the Lidocaine to numb the area intended for extraction. It also helps prevent excessive bleeding. One of the many side effects is tremor, which is exactly what I experienced. It calmed down shortly and I felt it was worth it if it was going to cut back on bleeding. With my blood in jeopardy already due to the Leukemia, I didn't want to compromise things.

Once this reaction calmed down a bit, the dentist tested my tooth to make sure it was numb. NOPE! It was not numb. He then proceeded to inject some more Lidocaine and we waited a little longer to take effect. He then tested for numbness again. This ended in my sudden scream. I surprised myself by that reaction, but somehow he had touched a nerve, a nerve that was supposed to be numb by then. He patted my hand and was very kind as he told me that he would not be able to pull my tooth. It was too deeply embedded into the bone due to the roots being curved instead of straight as a normal tooth should be. Therefore, the reason my nerve was so reactive.

He advised me to go see Dr. Tarsitano, who was most qualifed in the county to do extractions under anesthesia.

I was grateful for this knowledge, called and quickly made an appointment. But, I was also saddened to learn that my Medi-cal (medicaid) insurance would not pay for this. It would end up being paid for myself, a total of about six hundred dollars.

Yikes!

Oh, but the necessity was clear to me. I knew I would not be able to go through chemotherapy this way. What if there were a bigger emergency regarding this tooth in the future? This is how Dr. Wong had put it. So, I made the decision to put the charges on my credit card and deal with paying it off later. Thank heavens I have a credit card and I pay things off right away, therefore I have no credit balance to complicate things.

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You may be wondering why I have pictures of my teeth. After all, no one takes pictures of their teeth. Right? Wrong. Since I have had the OLP condition the last seven years or so, the specialist I see at UCSF has taken pictures of the changes in my oral mucosa. Therefore, I started taking pictures, too, in order to document changes that occurred when I was not seeing her.