Worried About Teeth

my s.o. still has sores in his mouth (1 month post rad).  he has been unable to stand the flouride trays he says it burns too much.  he has been using a prescription flouride tooth paste 2x a day and has kept up with flossing and rinsing.  his teeth were in good shape before he started treatment.  he is worried because he says his teeth alway feel coated even shortly after brushing and rinsing...he wonders what it is doing to his teeth.  as soon as he can he will get back to the flouride trays.

looking to hear from survivors and how their teeth faired after treatment.

 ~meesh

what floride gel do people use in ther tray?

I have not been able find one?

I have been useing:

Vince

colgate 5000 Rx toothpaste

 floss after each meal

but still very nervous about teeth any Help??

john

John,

Talk with your dentist who made the trays. You need the prescription for flouride.

DeniseB

can you tell me what it is called

i have been given one by my dentist called:

60 second taste gel

made by Pascal

but it is too strong to use everyday from what the manufacturer it is only recommended to be used every six months???

john

I have been using a Fluoride Gel called ( PerioCheck ) unflavored. I get this at my Cancer Dentist Office when I go for my check ups.

I use a Fluoride Tray daily for 5 minutes min., generally I go for 10 minutes with the tray. Take the tray out, but do not rinse my mouth out for 30 minutes as prescribed by my Cancer Dentist. I have had no cavities since my Radiation treatments and that was 3 yrs and 5 months ago.

With that said, I do stay away from sugar as much as possible. But allot of foods we eat have some sugar in it, such as yogart. Mouth maintenence is important for us. As my Cancer Dentist explained it to me, we are no longer normal as far as eating. It takes the normal person 6 months to get a cavity if they don't take care of their teeth. For us, it takes only 6 weeks. Does that mean we give up having a peice if cake and some ice cream now and again. No, just brush right after and we can enjoy stuff, just don't over do it.

I was also told that if we need a tooth removed, I would have to spend 6 weeks in a hyber barrick chamber, 4 weeks prior to the tooth extraction and then another 2 weeks afterwards. I don't want to have to do this after what we have already been through.

My Best to everyone here

John, I got Fluoridex , is says " 11% sodium fluoride, 5000 ppm" on it. It was a prescription toothpaste from the dentist who fitted me for my trays.

Meesh, the inside of the mouth will feel funny for a while, and it's very sensitive. The toothpaste I have is a sensitivity formula, it may be the ticket for your husband.

Best wishes to you all,

Mike

John- my s.o. has Topex flouride foam to use in his trays.  he got it at his dentist.

~m

Winicki,

           Please don't panic. We are speaking of the care of our mouths after the Radiation and the lose of our saliva glands that may or may not return.

          There is mention ot tooth removal, alot depends on the condition of your teeth before treatment as to whether the teeth are removed. If they are in good to average condition, they stay, if in poor condition, it is recommended that they be removed and dentures afterwards. I was on the border line and wanted to keep what I have. So far so good.

          Saliva in the mouth, helps protect your teeth, the lose of saliva puts our teeth at risk of decay, hence the fluoride trays to help, and staying away from sugar when poosible. Hope this helps.

On 5/26/2008 winicki846233 wrote:

We are totally new to this. My husband was diagnosed with SCC in the right tonsil on May 7th. What is up with people having teeth removed? His doc has said nothing about that, or about teeth care. Should I get him an appointment with our dentist? find a cancer dentist?? what is the next step that I need to take? i haven't mentioned this side effect to him yet. He starts his treatments on June 3rd.

Do get an appointment with your dentist to check the condition of his teeth. Most general dentist do not understand the implications of radiation, but they will know, of course, if your husband has any issues. We are seeing a radiation/ oncologist dentist in Gainesville, Fla. My husbands teeth and gums are in good shape, so we are going to start the trays with prescription strength flouride after radiation is completed. She also stated he would need hyperbaric treatments if any extractions were needed in the future.Time in the chamber would be 3 hours daily for a week before and after dental work. The hyperbaric chamber gives high doses of oxygen to the tissue to promote tissue healing in an area that has been radiated and prone to jaw bone necrosis.

I would call your rad/oncolist and medical oncologist and discuss the fact that you are concerned.

DeniseB