For those of you who remember my sons emergency trip to the hospital last year when he had an abcess in his tooth, and how much he screamed when the tooth was removed with a pair of pliers....well this month he went back to the dentists again.
In September he began complaining of sore teeth again. This time I made an appointment with a pediatric dentist and the difference was unbelievable. This time my son had 3 visits to the dentists in late September and early October. He is now 7 years old - and it is 18 months after the hospital stay.
The first visit was for x-rays, cleaning and polishing. My son behaved beautifully. The second visit he had to get 2 cavities on one side filled, He screamed non-stop for the whole 40 minutes. I had to help hold down his hands so he would not push the dentists or the assistants hands away.
The third week we went back to get fillings for the other side and he behaved like an angel. It was incredible. He lay there quietly, hands on his tummy and did exactly what he was told. I had kept drumming into him all week that this next visit was exactly the same as the last one so he now knows what to expect. And he did.
The dentist asked - what is your secret. My son replied - I know what to expect now.
Once again there was a down side to these visits. My sons teeth have grown in rather crowded and haphazard way, and some of the teeth have not come down as they should, So he will need orthodontist work eventually to space his teeth out properly so that there is room for those missing teeth to grow into the right places.
I hope he will not need "railroad tracks". I dont think he will be able to accept those on his teeth. His teeth are pretty sensitive already. The dentist said there was a wire that could be wrapped around the back teeth to hold them in place to allow space for the missing teeth to grow in. This is the cheapest temporary method - around $400.
Showing posts with label dentist. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dentist. Show all posts
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Monday, March 31, 2008
Very Stressful Weekend
The last few days have been very stressful and somewhat traumatic. Last Monday (24th), my 5 year old son complained about a sore tooth, and so I made an appointment for Tuesday (tomorrow) with a pediatric dentist. I could not get anything earlier. But on Friday, my son started crying, and saying his tooth was really hurting him. He missed school as we took him to two dentists, but could not get any treatment. All we got was another appointment for Thursday (this week). Could not get anything sooner.
On Saturday 29th his cheek started swelling up. We rang around. The 24 hour emergency dentist would not sedate him. They only did local anathestics. My son hates needles, (left over from the vaccinations he got when he was younger) and I knew he would have to be sedated. So we ended up taking him to the Sick Kids Hospital. Once there, the doctors heard a heart murmur. Noone has ever told us that he had a problem with his heart. Under those circumstances he could not be sedated for a dental extraction. We ended up staying in the Emergency Room of the Sick Kids Hospital for the entire weekend - Saturday, Sunday and today (monday). He could not be admitted to the main hospital because there were NO spare beds. But he was listed as admitted so that he can get outpatient treatment to get his heart looked at by a cardiologist.
The good news is that this particular heart problem is NOT a major concern. It may become a concern when he is an adult, but right now my son should be able to lead a normal and fairly active life.
Today he had to endure needles for blood tests, and a 2 hour Echocardiogram - or a doppler ultrasound. His tooth was finally removed under local anesthesia, at 4 pm today. He screamed and screamed for every needle that he saw and had poked into him. We were kicked out of the ER room at 5pm, and then forced to wait for 2 hours in the main waiting room for the discharge papers, because 5pm is the staff changeover time, and the doctors have to do their rounds first. Got home after 7pm just in time to see his favourite TV program. Remember he has seen no TV for 3 whole days. That is a lifetime as far as my son is concerned.
I posted the 50 Greatest Books post on my one visit home last night. While hubby babysat through the night, I got Sunday night to sleep at home. I had stayed at the hospital on Saturday night.
On Saturday 29th his cheek started swelling up. We rang around. The 24 hour emergency dentist would not sedate him. They only did local anathestics. My son hates needles, (left over from the vaccinations he got when he was younger) and I knew he would have to be sedated. So we ended up taking him to the Sick Kids Hospital. Once there, the doctors heard a heart murmur. Noone has ever told us that he had a problem with his heart. Under those circumstances he could not be sedated for a dental extraction. We ended up staying in the Emergency Room of the Sick Kids Hospital for the entire weekend - Saturday, Sunday and today (monday). He could not be admitted to the main hospital because there were NO spare beds. But he was listed as admitted so that he can get outpatient treatment to get his heart looked at by a cardiologist.
The good news is that this particular heart problem is NOT a major concern. It may become a concern when he is an adult, but right now my son should be able to lead a normal and fairly active life.
Today he had to endure needles for blood tests, and a 2 hour Echocardiogram - or a doppler ultrasound. His tooth was finally removed under local anesthesia, at 4 pm today. He screamed and screamed for every needle that he saw and had poked into him. We were kicked out of the ER room at 5pm, and then forced to wait for 2 hours in the main waiting room for the discharge papers, because 5pm is the staff changeover time, and the doctors have to do their rounds first. Got home after 7pm just in time to see his favourite TV program. Remember he has seen no TV for 3 whole days. That is a lifetime as far as my son is concerned.
I posted the 50 Greatest Books post on my one visit home last night. While hubby babysat through the night, I got Sunday night to sleep at home. I had stayed at the hospital on Saturday night.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
