Teeth

[bkraft]

I had the misfortune New Years Eve to bust a tooth. I got lucky no pain. As I set in the Dentist chair for the first time in 25 years, it dawned on me. If this would have happpened in the "bush" I mean remote, outback fly for three hours or walk for a month type country and if signifigant pain was involved what exactly would one do? I'm serious here. How do you guys 'up country' deal with dental emergencys?

[Brett]

Upcountry guys just suck it up and go on. 

Seriously a broken tooth generally only hurts when the nerve is exposed to air or something sweet and or acidic.  A ball of candle wax jammed down over the broken tooth works until you can get it fixed right.  Of course you have to avoid chewing anything on with that tooth.   

[MGMorden]

I've known people to just yank out the affected tooth (or get a buddy to do it) when around a campfire, but personally I'm hightailing my butt strait to the dentist even if they have to medivac me.  I'm quite attached to my teeth.  I do my regular cleaning and checkup every 6 months (I literally schedule the next appointment before I even leave the office for my current one 6 months out ).   Most of them are in great shape.  Only have 1 filling (left - had one more mentioned below) in my mouth. 

My only trouble tooth was one that I had worked on when I was 11-12.  My mom, God bless her, was a bit tight on the wallet (I love the woman dearly but she grew up poor and never quite learned when she became an adult that she wasn't poor anymore and didn't have to scrimp like she did), so she'd take us to get our dental work done at the local health department.  Wasn't always the most competent staff.  My one tooth that I had filled then the "dentist" goofed up, drilled too deep, and damaged the tooth. Had to have a root canal done on that one that later failed and the tooth cracked in two not long ago and I had to have it removed.  I'm getting a dental implant this summer.  It's in the back so not visible which is why I've held off for about a year before having the implant done, but just from a self-image point of view I don't like having a tooth missing.

[Heather]

Within the few days after our house burnt a couple of years ago I had a wisdom tooth come in the wrong way and get badly infected.  We were too busy trying to re situate our lives so I neglected going to the dentist thinking I could just suffer through the pain for a few days.  Big mistake!  On about day four I was staggering around and to the outside eye I appeared very drunk.  My speech was slurred and I couldn't make a complete sentence.  Luckily for me, Matt had the good sense to make me go to the hospital.  My body was septic from repeatedly swallowing the infected fluid in my tooth.  I was very close to death when I was admitted.  I learned my lesson with a bunch of IV antibiotics and an outrageous hospital bill.   

Heather

[Yankee1]

My understanding is that in the old days that some would press an empty cartridge case down over the tooth to protect it until they could get it taken care of. "Bite the Bullet" On the subject of removing teeth,
I once watched a dentist place a small chisel like punch with a rounded edge against a persons tooth near the gum line and proceed to hit the punch with a small hammer. He did this to five teeth one by one and lifted them out one at a time. He was breaking the vacuum the assisted in holding them in he explained. It impressed me as to how easily he removed them.

[torpedoman]

Heather was lucky. before modern dentistry teeth were the leading cause of death.

[billy_56081]

One treatment for killing the root was to run a red hot wire up into the tooth and kill the nerve. That one is not for the faint of heart!