Hello All!!
Have any of you had more problems with your teeth, pain, cavities etc since taking pred??? Also why wouldn't my dentist like to open out a tooth to crown it while I'm taking 15mg of pred????
Many thanks
Andrea 😄
Hi Andrea. I've been on Pred for 17 months now and am currently at 3 mgs. My dentist hasn't mentioned any real problems with the Pred or the Alendronic Acid I also take. He says he's treated many patients who take both of these, but I've been lucky so far not to have needed any treatment. I do however see the hygienist every four months, and I must say my teeth are now extremely sensitive when she cleans around them with her scaling equipment. Normally it wouldn't bother me, but the other day I found it excruciating. Sensodine toothpaste doesn't help at all.
Hello Andrea, I personally haven't suffered from any teeth issues since on prednisolone, and 2 months ago my dentist performed 1 very deep filling. However, I have heard of members on this forum complaining of pain of teeth since being on preds but me.
are you sure that your dentist refused to do the work because of the pred as I believe it would make no difference and in the instances of tooth removal simply request you up your preds the day prior, the day of and the day after the procedure.
if however you are also taking any medication for bones, eg, alendronic acid then it is often normal for some dentists to refuse to perform certain treatments, mainly extractions, and request you visit a dental specialist instead. Regards, christina
I had very sensitive teeth which Sensodyne Pronamel helped. I have no idea why he won't do a crown - unless he's concerned you won't heal because of the pred - not that that is a problem I've had either. I needed a wisdom tooth removed whilst on about 8mg pred, might have been more, and was terrified. The dentist was very blase about it - and he was right. I'm also on an anticoagulant but I had little bleeding and it healed very quickly.
MrsO had a lot of trouble with her teeth while on pred but no more since she stopped taking it if I remember rightly - she's mentioned it on another current thread.
Alendronic acid often leads dentists to be very evasive about doing dental work and all work that needs to be done should be sorted out BEFORE starting to take AA. Some dentists refuse to do anything in the office with patients who have taken AA, even in the past. You do also need to be very particular about dental hygiene when taking bisphosphonates.
Hi Angela, yes I had to stop seeing a hygienist because the constant work caused hyper sensitive teeth too. I clean my teeth twice a day and now do not bother seeing a hygienist at all. I see an NHS dentist who checks my teeth twice a year, and she is most happy with them even though she shakes her head when I tell her I've still not given up drinking both black tea and coffee! But as part of my consultation she gives them a clean should they need it. If you have many fillings then that can be one reason for hyper sensitive teeth. Regards, christina
Hi Andrea,
I have been on pred for 26 mths and have definitely noticed a change in my teeth. They are very sensitive to cold. Even eating a salad is painful. I have tried Sensodine (sp??) but it didn't seem to help.
I have (had ) very good teeth with only a couple of fillings in 20+ years until I started the pred. I recently had a crown and 3 fillings done while on 10mg.
I am at 9mg following a flare and hope the sensitivity eases a bit as I decrease. Also, don't want any more crowns and fillings. I've better things to spend the money on🌴☀️.
I hope you can get your crown done soon. I would think there would be more concern about an abscessed tooth than a crown.
Hugs, Diana🌸
Thank you ladies!!!! That's it,, sensitive to cold!!! Quite bad actually, sometimes even cold air blowing seems to hurt!!!! Yes Mrs Mac I've always had lovely strong teeth but for how much longer I ask myself???? My dentist sent me away with samples of 'sensitive toothpaste' but I'm not holding out any hope!! 😁😁😁😁
Hello Eileen, thank you for your reply,, the dentist doesn't know if the tooth is too far gone for a crown or it may need extracting altogether!, it has a very big filling in it and there's an airline crack in the tooth! It doesn't bother me that much at the moment so dentist said to leave 'sleeping dogs lie'!!! She said she'd rather me be on a lower dose of pred before I have to up-it again in readiness for a possible extraction!!!!! Why does it all have to be complicated on pred????!!!! 😞😞😞😞😞
Yes, Andrea my teeth are sensitive my mouth burn as well no pain just the burning.. My dentist told me before I started taking preds. to let her know when I go back. Also anybody elas have issues with their eyes being blurry from preds. I read this cpould be a side effect.
Sorry about so many typos.
I don't think that prednisolone is the problem, I think it is Giant Cell Arteritis, if this is what you suffer from. I have seen bleeding gums listed along with inflammation of the arteries to the jaws. My dentist insisted my GP gave authority to enable me to receive a local anaesthetic from him. I had several problems with lower back teeth, the nerves had atrophied. I am wondering why there is such little research being done for GCA patients considering it is such a serious illness and so little known about it. Trying to find competent professional information is like looking for a needle in a haystack!
Hi i have 2 loose teeth and my dentist will not pull them as i am on pred 10mg, he said they will fall out themselves.
Crikey Margaret is that so???!!! Has the pred caused them to loosen or were they 'dodgy' teeth to start off with?? But why doesn't the dentist want to pull them?? Is it because of trauma?? Xxx
Hi, yes my teeth are very sensitive to cold after about 6 months on prednisone, so it seems to be a side effect for some.
GCA has become more complicated for me,too. My teeth just ache period and at times it is hard to eat...painful. I am on huge amounts of extra calcium/vitamin D ...will see if this helps bone loss including teeth. I agree there is a lack of GCA info..jaw, teeth, eyes, etc. We have these lingering giant cells in the linings of our arteries causing havoc! Since I started aspirin, pain seems a little less. Best to our painful teeth, Ann11195
Hi Phyllis,
yes, blurry vision is a side affect of pred and discussed in another discussion here on the forum. Sorry, can't remember the title.
Depending on if you have other symptoms like pain in your temple that is sensitive to touch or jaw pain when chewing you should check with your optometrist to rule out GCA. I'm sure one of the pro's will be along soon to advise further.
Hugs, Diana🌸
I don't know, but I'm seeing my dentist this month. I plan to see him every 4 months rather than every 6 months while I'm on these meds. don't trust what they'll do to my teeth.
the teeth were loosen years ago, and he managed to save them, but now they are so loose he cant, BUT he said hes never had a paitient on pred, so see if they will come out to save me trauma, i think hes not sure about causing problems.
Andrea,
For routine dental work that doesn't involve surgery, your prednisone should have no effect. Your dentist is probably being overly cautious due to increased risk of infection while on prednisone. As for alendronic acid, there is a very minimal risk of creating a condition called osteonecrosis of the jaw if surgical procedures are done. Again, the risk is extremely low from oral bisphosphonates and only in cases of surgical procedures and not routine dentistry, like a crown or even a root canal.
Depends on the dentist - mine wasn't in the least bit bothered about anything! And I didn't have to increase the pred for the extraction.
It used to be the case they recommended increasing the pred to cover the "stress". More recent thought is that it is better to monitor the patient carefully for adrenal insufficiency - and if it happens THEN use extra pred. It is only a few days you need it for anyway for something as minor as that.
Maybe sound out another dentist? Have you a dental hospital/school within reach? That is the palce to enquire about best practice for anything - they teach it all. I was lucky enough to be at a practice where one of the partners taught part-time at the local dental hospital.
I had problems with cold things at one time. Never used cold water to clean my teeth, drank water at room temp not out of the fridge. However - now totally back to normal even though I am still on pred and even an icecream poses no problems - though I am less enthusiastic about biting into semifreddo (why is it called semifreddo? It's always bone hard!).
Don't panic too much - this too shall pass!