I have had a fear of the dentist all my life. It all stems from one bad experience as a kid. I just turned 52 and most of my teeth are broken or missing and it really affects my quality of life because I am so embarrassed by them. I want a confident smile back so I think I want to get dentures. Do I need to see a dentist or an oral surgeon to remove the rest of my teeth? — Michael
Michael,
Find a dentist who can do the extractions, surgery and dentures. There are typically dentists out there who do all three so it’s just a matter of calling and asking a particular dentist what he or she usually does. You’ll also want to address your dental fear and find a dentist who also offers sedation. You’ll take a pill that will enable you to have “amnesia” or a state of sleep during the entire procedure.
There is a certain amount of coordination that is needed between the surgery and the denture – particularly if you choose to get an immediate denture which is placed the same day. If you go the traditional denture route, there are still certain things a dentist can do during surgery that will help your dentures fit better and an oral surgeon would not be as familiar with that.
If you do decide to have an oral surgeon take out the teeth, go to your dentist first so that he can coordinate the procedures.
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