[Leica] Cracked tooth - options?

[walt at waltjohnson.com (Walt Johnson)]

Ah yes, outed at last...Another dentist/Leicaphile. One of the best 
Leica collections I knew of  was owned by a dentist. He'd been a photog 
and news editor before going back to med school. Hadn't seen him for 
years but he died at a pretty young age. Had he been willing to take a 
little medical advice from a photographer he might still be here. Eat 
less, exercise more.  Martha, Martha..where is that damn tube of superglue?

Walt (photojournalist/amateur health care worker)

Phil Swango wrote:

> Rick Dykstra wrote:
> A friend at work says that her dentist offered to do a root canal  on
>
>>> her cracked molar, though she had it extracted at the time (it  was a
>>> wizzy).  So the question is, is doing a root canal on a  cracked
>>> molar like mine generally an option, or not?  Perhaps my  dentist is
>>> a little conservative. ??
>>>
>
> OK, I'll out myself as a dentist, although more research than 
> clinical.  The
> basic idea here is that if the crack extends into the pulp chamber or the
> root canal(s), then the canals can never be sealed, and a traditional 
> root
> canal filling won't work.  If the crack is superficial or glancing and
> doesn't involve the pulp chamber, a root canal might work, but you'd 
> want to
> put a crown (cap) on the tooth to keep the crack from getting worse.  
> Even
> then there might be some risk of failure.
>
> Without seeing the actual tooth or xray, I would venture a guess that
> extraction is the only option.  Since the tooth you describe is the first
> molar (3rd from the back), it's a pretty important one from the 
> standpoint
> of chewing, etc.  If it were me I'd go for a replacement either by 
> bridge or
> implant.  Either one will cost you a bundle, so if you were planning on
> ordering that M8, think again ;-).  I have several implants myself and 
> they
> are quite a good solution.  But they are expensive, at least in the USA
> ($3-4000).
>
> And Walt, put down that tube of Superglue because it won't work ;-).
>