posted on June 11, 2001 02:55:16 PM new
I'm considering getting my teeth fixed, which would require two years in braces, followed by upper jaw surgery (during which they'd pretty much take my head apart, then put it back together again). Has anyone been through this? How did it go?
My main concern is actually being under general anaesthesia. I know the risk is minimal but a girl I went to high school with died under anaesthesia while undergoing knee surgery. Have you ever been anesthetized? Were you nauseous coming out of it? Do you know anyone who died because of it?
The doc says it's riskier to drive to the doctor's office than to be put under, but it's still scary, and for elective surgery I'm just not sure if I want to take the risk.
posted on June 11, 2001 03:18:07 PM new
Is this something that is medically necessary, or is it more cosmetic? If you post your picture, we could give you some free advice.
posted on June 11, 2001 03:29:52 PM new
I ended up this spring having two teeth pulled in my lower, right side of my jaw. Because of this, the sockets caved-in, making little jagged pieces that were trying to jut out through the gums below. Not only that, but the tops of the sockets were razor sharp and were cutiing through the gum in both the front and inside of the jawbone.
So, 10- days ago, I had surgery on my jaw. They had to slice lengthwise the gum on the front and the inside along the edge. Then, once exposed, they used files to file down and to smooth out the surfaces, pulled out the broken pieces and then sewed it all back up. It took 1-1/2 hours to do and I was awake for it all.
The good news was that most of it was painless after the numbing-up session. About half-way through, the oral surgeon reached a nerve wasn't numbed and when he stuck the needle into the nerve, my tongue felt like I had just placed it in a live electrical circuit! WOW! That hurt!
The rest, as I said, was pain-free. I leceted to be awake for it, because you are never closer to death than when you are under anesthetic. I'm happy that I was awake for it. it isn't the pain during the surgery that bothers me, it is the pain afterwards and the narcotic perscription drugs you have to be on afterwards to kill the pain while it heals for a month or two. Fun.
posted on June 11, 2001 03:37:41 PM new
Have you considered the possibility of a spinal block? I was anethesized for 5 surguries within a 3 year span and only experienced very minor side effects; my orthopedist thought the anesthesia best, though I could have elected a spinal block. My wife, however, chose spinal blocks for a couple of shorter, less involved procedures, and felt that they were very effective.
posted on June 11, 2001 03:50:41 PM new
A spinal block sounds scary... but then so does anaesthesia. Maybe I should ask the doctor about that.
Borillar, sometimes a thought or a phrase will stick in my head nearly forever. I think, "you are never closer to death than when you are under anesthetic" will be one of them. That's the very reason I don't want to be put under.
I need to get my wisdom teeth taken out (so they tell me) and I'm glad that can be done with a local anesthetic, or whatever gas they administer that will make me not care what they're doing. I don't particularly love that idea, either, but I'm sure it's a better alternative than horrendous pain.
I've had general anesthesia and conscious sedation. CS is a mix of IV meds that knock you out, but the docs can wake you if need be. (Mine was Versed, Fentanyl, and a third agent). They woke me up midway thru the procedure,and I remember being mildly surprised that I wasn't uncomfortable.
posted on June 11, 2001 04:14:07 PM new
Snowy - I've never heard of that before! I suppose that can be considered an allergic reaction, though, along the lines of what I was thinking. My mom has had allergies to two drugs (one an anaesthetic and another a common painkiller) and she almost died during one episode, but I'm not biologically related to her so it's not an indication of what my reactions might be. However, I tend to be generally sensitive to chemicals and drugs.
I'm thinking this is really not worth the risk for what I consider to be a primarily cosmetic procedure.
posted on June 11, 2001 04:38:02 PM new
RainyBear, my dentist has proposed a similar operation for me. I'm going to pass for several reasons. I too am leery of anaesthesia although I had it when I had my wisdom teeth removed about thirty years ago and again last year for a routine exam. The first time I became nauseous afterward , but the second time I had no side effects.
My sister has been under anaesthesia three times in the last three years. The first time she had a bad reaction and the second time she almost died. Despite those experiences, she had a face lift last year and had no complications from the surgery - other than being left with a somewhat startled look.
As a result of seeing the change in my sister's appearance, I've decided not to have the surgery to correct my bite. Don't get me wrong about how she ended up looking. She was stunning looking before and she is still - but just different. Perhaps if I were younger, I'd do it. I'm 53 and despite complaining about new wrinkles and creases, I'm used to seeing my face. It's a constant in my life - something I see each morning (Yikes!)I'm not prepared to greet a stranger in the mirror even if she's a improvement.
posted on June 11, 2001 05:02:39 PM newshe had a face lift last year and had no complications from the surgery - other than being left with a somewhat startled look
saabsister, LOL!
I'm used to seeing my face, too. There are things I'd like to change but nothing I hate. I would like a nice smile, though, and since I'm 30 I feel like it still may be worth it. I don't know... all this was brought on by my husband going to work for a company involved with orthodontics, and by me starting to do contract work for them on orthodontic web sites. I was reading about it all the time and decided to go in for a consultation, and after finding out what extensive work would be needed I have a tough decision to make.
I just wish the orthodontist my parents took me to as a child hadn't said, "Oh, she doesn't need any work" -- because I did! This could have been corrected at age 7 or 8 without surgery. Parents, take your kids to the orthodontist at that age or they may end up struggling with a similar situation as adults!
posted on June 11, 2001 05:14:40 PM new
I had general anaesthetic back in November to have my four wisdom teeth pulled. I had no problems whatsoever - no nausea, no pain, nothing. I think a lot of the medicines they have now are much better than when I was a child (I'm 40 now).
Of course, I may be weird. I've had two separate tooth abscesses that never heart (the dentist was amazed). I've also had two root canals (for the two abscesses <grin>. I was petrified - everyone at work was giving me all these horror stories. It was nothing. They numbed me for the actual root canal but - even after the novacaine wore off - it never hurt.
But for what you're talking about - I'd definitely have the general anaesthetic. Go to a specialist - someone who does this on a regular basis. The person who did the wisdom teeth does nothing else (I can't remember his proper title - but he wasn't just an ordinary dentist).
posted on June 11, 2001 05:29:15 PM new
RainyBear. It sounds like you've done your research. If I were 30 years old, I'd probably have the surgery. I'm just afraid that at my age I might suffer through the surgery and a few years of braces only to develop gum disease and lose my teeth.
As I've gotten older my lousy bite has bothered me more. With hindsight, I wish I'd pursued a solution earlier - as a teenager or younger adult.
posted on June 11, 2001 05:35:10 PM new
The doctor I saw said he does 10-15 of these surgeries per week. He'd do my wisdom teeth, too, but in a separate procedure (and along with that he'd attach a little chain to an adult tooth I have which never came in, so the orthodontist can try to coax it down).
The orthognathic surgery is the scariest, though. That's the only thing that would require general anaesthesia. I read a description of upper jaw surgery and apparently they cut through the top of the gums, use a small chisel to detach the upper jaw from the rest of the skull, and break it before repositioning and reattaching it with (permanent) metal plates. In my case they'd also remove some of it so my teeth would be higher up.
I'm sure you all have a great visual picture of me by now, LOL... I'm not a monster, really.
posted on June 14, 2001 03:24:56 PM new
General anesthesia is very safe, as far as I'm concerned. Of course, it has to do with who's giving it to you. I would recommend an anesthesiologist, NOT a nurse-anesthetist.
I've had 3 generals in my life, 1 for wisdom teeth, two for oupatient surgeries. I got nauseous after one, but the other 2 were OK.
In just the last 8 years, my mom has had 7 generals, one for eye surgery and the other 6 for MAJOR stuff (joint replacements and breaks). Her only problem is that she didn't know she was allergic to morphine, and she woke up from the first surgery with horrible itching (which they quickly neutralized). Her only other bad experience was when she had two multi-hour surgeries only 4 days apart. She was 81 at the time, and I think her body just got overloaded with drugs. She felt REALLY horrible--she even wanted me to stay overnight with her, so I know it was bad.
Only you can decide how important the procedure is to your appearance, comfort, and/or quality of life. My mom and I are fortunate to be with an excellent medical group with a very good reputation, so I had no fears about death (especially after seeing they good care my mom has had).
posted on June 14, 2001 03:58:23 PM new
I wore braces for 3 years back in high school, and had my wisdom teeth removed once the braces were off. I was pretty nervous about my wisdom teeth, since they were growing sideways (never popped up out of my gums) and pushing against my other teeth. I was missing one wisdom tooth -- I just had three. Weird. Anyway!
They saw that I was nervous when I went in, and gave me something to settle my nerves. I'm not sure what they gave me, but after that, everything was hilarious. I didn't have a care in the world. They put an IV in my arm and gave me the anaesthetic that way, and in just a few seconds, the world faded away.
In what seemed like only a minute or two later, I woke up on the way to the recovery room. I was still in giggle mode, even with all the cotton in my mouth. I couldn't talk very plain because of all the cotton, but my mom was in the recovery room with me, and I wrote her a note that it was fun, and that I wanted to do it again! ROFL!
Overall it was not a bad experience at all (although I really don't think I'd do it again just for fun -- LOL!).
The only thing I would do differently is to take a painkiller as soon as possible after surgery, because once the numbness wears off, it can get uncomfortable pretty quickly. I waited until I was at home to take anything, and by the time my mom made pit stops on the way home to get my prescription and pick up my sister from the babysitter's, my mouth wasn't feeling so "hilarious" anymore. I was fine after I took a pain pill, though. No nausea at any point, even during the ride home.
The doctor that did my surgery was (and still is) the best in the area. When I went back to my regular dentist for a follow-up, he said that he couldn't even see where the surgery had been done, it had healed so well.
I would tell the doctor or nurse when you first go in that you're feeling pretty nervous, and see if they'll give you something to calm you down. It really helped me.
Edited to add: I was 17 when the surgery was done ... that was 15+ years ago.
[ edited by thedewey on Jun 14, 2001 04:01 PM ]
posted on June 14, 2001 05:38:26 PM new
mcbrunnhilde and thedewey - thanks for sharing your experiences with this stuff. I'm really going to have to mull this over for quite a while longer! I wish I'd gotten it over with when I was a teenager, but I steadfastly refused. Now here I am in the same position, only understanding it a lot more... and having to pay for it myself.
