Category “Q. Catching gum disease”

hi there,

Long story short, My mum and my mom’s mother both had periodontal disease. My Nan had the gum treatment done that costs a few thousand, and lost all her teeth anyways. My mum put crowns on all of her top teeth. Her teeth disintegrated underneath and she ended up getting dentures also. This was when she was about 40 though. I also have periodontal disease. I have had it for a few years. So I went to a new dentist, he seems pretty honest. He did a very thorough evaluation and said I have 14 cavities on my upper teeth, 2 are in the middle of a root canal, and I would need 2 more root canals on the other side. I have 6 cavities on the bottom. He said to do things right and not do patchwork that is only really a temporary fix he would do like an overhaul on my mouth…and that my top teeth would pretty much all need crowns…the total with my insurance came too $17,000. Which I absolutely do not have. Not even close. So my mom and I were talking, and she thinks I should just go ahead and get a snap on full denture up top, and then get fillings on the cavities on the bottom. She says she went the crown route and ended up with dentures anyways…and her mom did the gum treatment and same thing. She said neither of them had teeth as bad as mine at my age (I’m 24). She thinks even if I had the $17,000 to do it…it would be a waste. What do you think? I am scared about having no upper teeth at my age. Yet, the dentist told me if I do not take care of the teeth now I will be looking at serial extractions within the next couple of years.