Confused: Should you or should you not have your metal fillings replaced?

[GeoGeo]

I am confused. I have been looking for a good dentist and have visited 4 of them over the past few years. Two say my teeth are fine and I don't need anything done except having them cleaned. Two gave me a list of things that needed to fixed due to superficial cracks. Due to these superficial cracks they want to replace the metal fillings with composite. I actually went back to one of the dentists (not around here) who said I didn't need anything done and told them that another dentist where I live had wanted to replace a lot of the fillings because of cracks. He said not to.

How do you determine which is the right thing to do? How do you know if some dentists are just looking for things to fix to make money? Or are they really trying to prevent a problem down the road? It seems some dentists are more proactive (fix something that may become a problem in the future) and others are more reactive (fix it if it does break).

Sometimes you have something worked on that is not bothering you and then it becomes a problem. I just don't know what to do. Anyone have opinions or stories about what happened to them?

[Villages PL]

I am confused. I have been looking for a good dentist and have visited 4 of them over the past few years. Two say my teeth are fine and I don't need anything done except having them cleaned. Two gave me a list of things that needed to fixed due to superficial cracks. Due to these superficial cracks they want to replace the metal fillings with composite. I actually went back to one of the dentists (not around here) who said I didn't need anything done and told them that another dentist where I live had wanted to replace a lot of the fillings because of cracks. He said not to.

How do you determine which is the right thing to do? How do you know if some dentists are just looking for things to fix to make money? Or are they really trying to prevent a problem down the road? It seems some dentists are more proactive (fix something that may become a problem in the future) and others are more reactive (fix it if it does break).

Sometimes you have something worked on that is not bothering you and then it becomes a problem. I just don't know what to do. Anyone have opinions or stories about what happened to them?

Yes, I'm glad you asked because I have a good story for you:

About 15 years ago I had a dentist tell me that I had a small crack in one of my metal fillings. And there were two adjoining back teeth with large fillings also. He recommended that I put a crown on each one of those. He said you never know when the cracked one will get worse and the whole tooth may crack. The other two were not cracked but he said they must not be too strong judging by the large fillings.

But two other dentists said it was okay and nothing needed to be done.

Guess how long it took for that tooth to crack? 15 years! And only a small piece of it cracked and came off. There was no pain involved so I simply made an appointment to see my dentist within a few days. My dentist looked at it to determine what would be needed. She recommended a crown and I went back to have it done.

After I had it done I asked how long a crown would typically last. The answer: It varies depending on the environment and upkeep one provides, like brushing and flossing. But, generally, it might last about 20 years, give or take 5 years.

So I'm glad I didn't rush to have 3 teeth crowned 15 years ago. By now, or within another 5+ years, I might be in need of another fix. My current dentist agrees that some of my old metal fillings are quite old (I think possibly 40 years old) but is not putting any pressure on me to replace them.

[B767drvr]

I had all of my silver fillings removed 20 years ago (fully covered by insurance) and replaced with composite. Not only do they look much better (indistinguishable from your natural teeth) but I'm no longer concerned about the potential negative health effects of continued mercury exposure/ingestion.

Here's a disturbing video about silver tooth fillings:

Smoking Teeth = Poison Gas - YouTube

[getdul981]

When we first moved here, almost 4 years ago, we were searching for a new dentist. We have always had our teeth cleaned and maintained twice a year, so we were totally shocked when the dentist we went to told us that we needed somewhere in the neighborhood of $10,000 work between us. We never went back to that office. We now go to Palm Ridge Dental and have not been told that we need to have anything like that.

[asianthree]

Lived this long with them. I'm pretty sure I'll be okay.

[rubicon]

To address the OP's question, "Whom should I believe". Answer your question with a question "Why would a dentist who is also a businessman turn down business? By telling you the work was not needed indicates to me he/she is ethical and honest and that is who would be my dentist in the future

[GeoGeo]

After posting this question I was talking to a friend of mine. She said that she had a similar situation. One dentist saying you need to get that tooth fixed and another saying it did not fixing. She went with the second dentist's opinion. Guess what.....in less than a year she ended up with a root canal. Which cost her a lot more than the filling would have cost.

You just don't know which way to go. Having a crystal ball to look into the future would sure be a big help. :)

I am always afraid that is they mess with my teeth then they will create a problem that wasn't there before.

[Shimpy]

Remember when dentists use to fill teeth? Now all they know is root canal.
Years ago I was in a waiting room and picked up a magazine that was meant for the dental profession. It had an article in it that described how to build your dental office to a million dollar a year business.