DJ wrote on 08-30-2011

Disappointed

I spent thousands of dollars for dental work (I paid cash since I am not insured) I had two crowns and some fillings done. Immediately after the dental work there was a small amount of discomfort which I attributed to my mouth getting used to the crowns and a new sensitivity to hot and cold temperatures which I also attributed to the crowns. However this did not turn out to be the cause of my discomfort. As fate would have it, I was on holiday this July 7th through the 11th, 2011 in Thailand. While en-route on the airplane the pain started become rather unbearable in my new lower crown. At this point I realized there was something more going on with the crown than just sensitivity to temperature. I went to a dentist in Thailand the same day I arrived for an examination. The examination revealed that the root of the tooth had become infected and that I would require a root canal. Since the pain was becoming more and more severe, I was able to schedule an appointment on the Sunday July 10th at 4:30pm. I attempted to enjoy my holiday by taking ibuprofen to subdue the pain. However, by Saturday night the pain became so unbearable I could not do much of anything. When I awoke Sunday morning the pain was now spreading into my lower jaw and neck. At this time I believed the tooth had become abscessed. Upon arriving at the Dentist that Sunday afternoon, the Dentist confirmed my suspicion of an abscessed tooth. He then explained my available options. The first being to save the tooth, which would require multiple visits and a course of antibiotics, or to pull the tooth and take a course of antibiotics. Since I am working in China with limited access to dental facilities (one of the reasons I had the dental work completed in the US), and the tooth being the most rearward tooth, my only real option was to have the tooth extracted. Fortunately because it was the most rearward tooth on my right hand side, the extraction has not had any real effect on my being able to chew or eat normally. I feel rather disappointed as I wasted a large amount of money to get Dental work done in the US in the hopes that the quality dental work would eliminate complications. I am now out the thousands of dollars I spent from my own pocket, and I am now missing a tooth, that had been crowned for less than 6 months. When confronted about these issues with my dental work, Dr. Ibsies only comment was sorry, not my problem after you left my office. He did not believe nor was he willing to even acknowledge that the dental work completed by himself may have had something to do with the complications I experienced.