Question:
Post ops one year or greater PLEASE read!
Hi! I am about a year and a half post op. Just went to the dentist to find I need four root canals, 10 fillings, and my jaw is deteriorating rapidly. I had absolutely no problems prior to surgery, had what my dentist called the 'perfect' teeth. I brought this up at my support group on Monday and was shocked by the fact that over half of the people more than a year post op had the exact same problem. Their teeth essentially went bad after surgery. My dentist is not up on the Gastric Bypass and its connection to dental health. (He will be by my NEXT root canal he promises!). Would be interested to know how many of you out there have had lots of trouble with your teeth post op! Thanks for your postings! (By the way my blood work comes back absolutely perfect everytime so I am getting all my nutrients, actually my calcium levels are TOO high!) AMY — purdue_1993 (posted on March 13, 2003)
March 13, 2003
Unfortunately, the level of calcium in your blood is not a good indicator
of whether you are getting enough. Your blood will leech the calcium out
of your bones (including teeth) to get what is needed in the blood. As far
as I know, the best way to find out if you're getting enough calcium is to
have a bone density test and then repeat it at regular intervals.
— garw
March 13, 2003
I have no words of wisdom to add regarding root canals (for one thing, I'm
only nine months out), but I will say that the first teeth cleaning
appointment I had after WLS -- about five months out or so -- was the worst
I'd ever had (sensitive gums, more bleeding than usual for teeth cleaning).
I really got on top of my dental hygiene and really started flossing at
least twice a day (instead of maybe once or twice a week -- I was bad about
it), brushing even after lunch sometimes (I never used to do that), and
just generally staying on top of tooth hygiene all the time. I moved my
next teeth cleaning appointment up (I now plan on three dental checkups and
cleanings a year instead of two). The next cleaning was the *best* I'd
ever had, probably because of being so vigilant about the flossing (for a
change!). Your post computes, for me -- we should check on our dental
health more carefully after WLS, whatever the reason for problems.
— Suzy C.
March 13, 2003
Too high calcium is not good news. In fact, it certainly spelled disaster
for me. Yes, gone teeth seems to be fairly common for us. What kind and
how much calcium did you take during this year?
— vitalady
March 13, 2003
Hi Amy: I too am 1 1/2 yrs post op & am having SERIOUS dental
problems....Not really anything pre-op to be concerned about....a few
fillings, etc....but in the last 4 mos I have had 5 teeth just break off(2
of them broke when I wasn't even eating anything,the tooth just fell onto
my tongue....I found out that 2 of the teeth broke off so close to the bone
that I have to have a crown and triple bridge.....I have a dental HMO and
so my part to pay on ALL the work I need to have done is a little over
$11,000....and that is the opinion of 2 different dentists...Does anyone
have any suggestions as to less expensive dental care....Can I get my
HEALTH INS to pay for part of this because it is a medical condition???????
If anyone has any suggestions, please e mail me.....Keep me informed Amy
and maybe between us and everyone else here we can figure something
out.....Joi
— Joi G.
March 13, 2003
Someone on here mentioned we may not have enough saliva. I think this is
something the docs and dentists need to resolve. Are you getting plenty of
fluids. I have always had bad teeth, so I can't comment. My daughter's
perfect teeth are fine so far.
It would take a serious study to determine if or why the surgery effects
the teeth. But, the bones too? Definitely sounds like calcium could be
leaching. Vitalady has a lot of info on this problem.
— faybay
March 13, 2003
I just went to the dentist and it was just as bad as always. Nothing too
different. My questions is 'is one year even enough time to affect teeth
and bones to that extent?'
— RebeccaP
March 13, 2003
I am sorry to hear you are having so many problems with your teeth. I am
about 20 months out and have had no problem with my teeth. I have always
been very conscience about brushing and flossing my teeth everyday. I
don't know if it is luck but my sister who has not had this surgery started
having problems with her teeth once she turned 30 so it makes me wonder if
age has anything to do with teeth problems.
— samizaki
March 13, 2003
I'm 20 months post RNY and been having horrible mouth pain in general
lately. I had a dentist apt sceduled but had to call in an emergancy apt
because the pain was becoming nauseating. I found out that I am going to
need a root canal (April) I think I'm opting for a pull...it's in the back.
I've never been one good for going to the dentist regularly and horrible
habits when it comes to flossing...but like a few of the others, I've
become verrrryyy good about flossing daily, brushing twice and using
antiseptic mouthwash. I'm still assuming it's my own bad habits that got me
where I'm at, but I will certainly keep my eye here to see if there is a
conection with the surgery. -Kim open RNY 7/17/01 -152
— KimBo36
March 13, 2003
The low sugar post op diet is reported better for our teeth. Plus dentists
say teeth dont go bad overnight. How long ago was your previous dentist
visit? I know for ME pre op I avoided all docs like the plague. A long time
between dental visits can equal tons of problems found when you walk in
that door. Then as a related question how many of us have TMJ, with that
clicking jaw noise. Is it possible all that extra chewing wears out our
teeth pre op? Then we must chew more post op. Just like wearing out knee
joints from weight can we wear down teeth from chewing?
— bob-haller
March 13, 2003
Early onI asked my dentist if he has heard of a corralations and he had
not, but in the past seven months I had one molar crack and had a crown
placed and now two of my molars on the other side have broken. Do I dont
know if it is a calcium draw from our teeth or what! But it is kinda
frightening! Calium levels are misleading, because your body leeches
calcium from your bones, you wont show deficient until it is really really
bad!
— ~~Stacie~~
March 13, 2003
Like Suzy C., below, I see my dentist AT LEAST three times a year now for
my cleanings/check-ups. Since I had about $10,000.00 (yes, 10 thousand)
worth of crowns, root canals, etc. done on my teeth in the last 6 years,
I'm trying to maintain the work I've had done. My dentist told me DRY
MOUTH is one of the leading causes of dental cavities. He put me on a
flouride prescription rinse, and I also use BIOTENE toothpaste for dry
mouth. I take some meds that cause dry mouth as well, so I have the double
whammy. So you must get in all your water and the flouride rinse is
definitely a good idea. Genetically my family tends to need a lot of
dental work. I really think genetics play a big part, too. Having your
dentist keep an eye on things more than twice a year, I think, will at
least perhaps catch some problems before they become dental nightmares.
Hugs, Joy
— [Deactivated Member]
March 13, 2003
I am three years out and have had a lot of problems with my teeth. I've
already had one molar crack and pulled and just had another molar on the
other side cracked and pulled. At the rate I am going I probably won't have
any teeth before I get 45. It is pretty scary.
— Sharon T.
March 14, 2003
Now that we know this problem is cropping up in post-ops, the bigger
question is, what do we do about it? Is the answer more calcium, a
different form of calcium, other types of vitamins? I'd certainly like to
see some dentists studying a group of post-ops to see first if the issues
are WLS related, and if so, what solutions are out there. I had a tooth
crack, and a piece fall out from eating a turkey sandwich. Only one I
have had so far and I am 13 months post-op, and floss daily, and would
certainly like to protect what I have left. Any answers out there?
— Cindy R.
March 14, 2003
Well i am 18 years post-op and have only had "normal"
tooth problems, nothing extraordinary...i use all
liquid vitamins and minerals, calcium etc etc for
maximum absorbtion and i always do my B-12 shot.
— Sweetprincess
March 14, 2003
I had the majority of my dental work done pre-WLS. I have had no problems
since. So perhaps it affects us all differently? I am 2.5 years out.
— Karen R.
March 14, 2003
This is a very interesting topic. I had no idea this could happen postop. I
have had extensive dental work done, jaw surgery and orthodontics. I only
have 4 fillings, all my own real teeth in a very healthy state and now I'm
a little nervous about this. I got out my text books from dental studies at
college and found some info. Flouride is proven to strengthen tooth enamel
so perhaps preops reading this should start now with topical treatments at
their dentist's office. Postops should also look into this. A flouride
treatment at the dentist costs less than 30 dollars and is well worth it.
The thing to ask your dentist is what could cause enamel breakdown so
quickly. Something physiological is happening post op and I don't beleive
that the calcium in our enamel can be leached to such an extent. Bones yes,
because they are constantly rebuilding themselves. Enamel does not rebuild
it self, it can only be made stronger with topical flouride or weaker with
acids. Once enamel is formed and has reached a mature state only surface
substances can make it weaker or stronger. My guess is that if your teeth
are actually breaking at the gum line, not slowly rotting as in cavities,
then something chemical is happening in your mouth. The saliva theory
sounds very possible, low saliva levels cause quicker decay with the
gumline area being very suseptible.
For those post ops with the dental problems, does your mouth tend to be
dry? For the post ops without dental problems, do you chew SF gum or suck
on SF candies or drink water by the mouthful, keeping the insides of your
mouth moist? Let's all get to a dentist, discuss this with him/her and take
care of our teeth. Remember, the more teeth you loose, the faster your jaw
bones deteriorate(shrink) and the harder it is to fit a denture. Chewing
with a denture can be very difficult.
— mary ann T.
March 14, 2003
I started thinking more about this. My mom had WLS 27 years ago. Her
teeth are fine. She has all of them and no crazy problems. shrug
— RebeccaP
March 15, 2003
I am 19 months post-op and haven't had any problems. I take my calcium
religiously though so that may make a difference.
— LLinderman
August 11, 2003
This is a very interesting topic. I too had PERFECT teeth before WLS. I
never had a cavity or filling in my 32 yrs! And I have excellent dental
hygiene. At one year Post Op I had my usual appt. with my Dentist for a
cleaning and guess what, they found 4 CAVITIES!!! I still can't believe it.
And now I constantly have soreness in my teeth. I've also noticed that
tarter builds up much more quickly than before WLS. I think there's
definitely a connection between WLS and teeth!
— Leslie L.
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