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    Losing teeth enamel

    I have always brushed my teeth several times a day yet I have lost quite a few molars since I have gotten MS. I have been concerned because my upper front teeth are losing enamel and the dentine at the top is exposed. Now, my upper front teeth at the tops have turned very dark like a stain as though I have been eating licorice but I haven't.
    The teeth don't hurt. They have no sensitivity to cold or heat. Is MS destroying my teeth?
    Show 'em who's got guts. Don't back down - Brian Wilson
    ******Surfer ED******

    #2
    MS is a disease of the central nervous system. It's not a disease of teeth or gums or bones. It's often said that MS expresses itself differently in different people, but not to the point that it turns into a completely different disease.

    MS, being a nerve disease, can be involved in sensations your feel -- or don't feel -- in your teeth, such as heat or cold or pain. But it isn't involved in the erosion of tooth enamel.

    Medications can cause problems with teeth/gums/bones, and some medication side effects can indirectly cause problems with teeth/gums/bones. For example, some medications can lead to a dry mouth, and the dryness in turn can cause dental problems. The medications can be for the treatment of any condition, not just for the treatment of MS or its symptoms.

    The NMSS has a brochure about dental health and MS you can get here: www.nationalmssociety.org/download.aspx?id=73

    One thing that stands out in your post is your mention of brushing your teeth "several times a day." Brushing is good, but a lot of brushing (especially with a hard toothbrush) can cause friction that erodes tooth enamel. And erosion of enamel from friction often happens up at the gum line, where plaque accumulates and can weaken enamel and make it susceptible to erosion. (I have a couple of deeply eroded spots up at the gum line and have had some discussions with my dentist about them.)

    Hopefully someone with a dental background can weigh in on this for you (and clarify anything I missed the mark on). But most important, what has your dentist said about the loss of enamel and teeth turning dark?

    Comment


      #3
      my fault is i didn't take care of my teeth as well as i should have if i would have known i would be using IV steroids, which weakens bones and teeth. Yech.
      i take calcuim supplements, use flouride tooth paste for sensativity 2x a day, use ACT II mouth wash 1x a day to strengthen enamel & use a sonicare tooth brush.

      a dental hygienist told me there is a lot of flouride in the tooth paste so rinsing with water after brushing just waste that. she advised me not to rinse after brushing...its really strange to do that at first...after a while it seems normal & not that odd. just rinse with water really well before brushing to get rid of any food particles, then brush. spit as much of the toothpaste out as you can but don't rinse with water. wipe mouth off with a kleenix or towel after spitting the tooth paste out.

      and i drink my coffee through a straw & drink more tea. the dentist told me that coffee messes up the chemistry in my mouth, so i should avoid it---well there was no way i could do that so did what i could. i drink more perperemint tea and drink my coffee with a straw to avoid staining my front teeth.

      how much steroids have you had, ms doesn't do it but steroids do.

      just got my teeth cleaned and there was some stains i hoped she would be able to clear, i'm not young and she said she wasn't able to clear those stains that i hoped would go with a teeth cleaning. to be young again when this stuff didn't happen
      but i didn't believe it would happen when my elders warned me it would.

      at times ms is just accelerated aging, aging on steroids
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        #4
        My dentist directly asks me if i have had any steroids since my last visit and how much. steroids are a big culprit.
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          #5
          Calcium with vitamin D--the body needs extra vitamin D to absorb the extra calcuim. then there is a maximum calcuim the body can absorb at one time, so i take a multi vitamin with calcium in it in the morning & then take an extra calcium supplement in the evening. separate times or my body wouldn't absorb it all.
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            #6
            Ah, steroids.

            I didn't have tooth enamel erosion until I began having
            Solumedrol treatments. That's exactly when it started. Having RRMS I've had several sets of treatments. But, my upper front teeth are firm and don't move when I press against them. Maybe they can be saved. I don't have a dentist at present and haven't been to one in over 3 years. But, I've had molars just crack in half and fall out painlessly. The nerves in the gums were already dead. I was thinking that since MS effects the nerves, and nerves are in the gums in that way it could cause loss of teeth.
            Show 'em who's got guts. Don't back down - Brian Wilson
            ******Surfer ED******

            Comment


              #7
              Steroids do wonderful things, but they also do terrible things. In the management of inflammatory conditions, a thoughtfully devised plan aims to reduce steroid exposure as much as possible. That plan usually includes the use of other medications to try to prevent an inflammatory event from occurring in the first place so steroids become less necessary. In MS, those disease-modifying meds are the CRABs, Gilenya, Tysabri, etc. In other conditions, there are different meds used.

              When steroids do need to be used chronically, a prudent management plan requires that patients and their doctors be vigilant about dealing with the side effects.

              Ed, from your posts it's apparent that you have a complicated intertwining of several health issues, where the kinds of things you're experiencing don't all have simple causes or explanations. MS is a disease of the central nervous system, not of all nerves any and everywhere. MS isn't known to damage or kill peripheral nerves in teeth and gums. Some other condition is responsible for that. (That raises the question of why that hasn't been followed up on.) Add to that any medications that damage bone or demineralize teeth, plus any mechanical trauma, and you've got a bad combination.

              The more health conditions a person has, the more diligent they have to be in managing them if they want the best possible outcomes. The trade-offs can become quite complicated. For you, that might mean finding a different way to manage your MS (change of medications, lifestyle changes) that might reduce the need for steroids. It might mean following up with a dental professional to investigate what's causing your dental problems and intervening in some way. It might mean actively working with several different specialists to coordinate the investigation and management of all of your different health issues. The choices can be difficult. Are you willing to live with the consequences of whatever you decide to do?

              Comment


                #8
                Yeah, if you have teeth breaking off & you don't feel it your gonna have to put getting into a dentist at the top of your to do list. call and make an appointment monday. do you have an idea of what dentist you will go to--maybe the one you saw 3 years ago? that sounds dangerous.
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                  #9
                  Will need to find a new dentist

                  The last time I went to a dentist I was living in San Diego but I have moved now to Redding in Northern California and don't have a dentist up here. I have such a dread of going to a dentist that I kept putting it off. I have a pcp up
                  here and I saw him yesterday about the possible bladder infection. I wish I had known what my upper front teeth looked like then. I could have asked him to refer me to a good dentist. I knew my enamel was eroding on those front
                  teeth but I'm very far sighted and don't wear my glasses when I brush my teeth and I don't pull my lip up to see the tops of my teeth. Like I said, they weren't hurting me.
                  So many traumatic things have happened in the past year like two severe falls with agonizing back pain and battling seizures. I just couldn't face going to the dentist but last night when I saw black stain at the tops of my teeth I was horrified. I've never heard of such a thing. I must see a dentist as soon as possible. Too bad I didn't show my pcp
                  yesterday. He might have had a clue as to what it was. It might be meds related. I'm getting lab work done on Monday. I'm kind of a procrastinator. Now that I'm living in Redding I don't even have a neuro up here either yet. The high cost of dental care was a factor too as I'm on a very low income, social security disability, and if it weren't for living with my mom up here in Redding now I'd be out on the street. So, thinking of a dentist means paying out a huge sum of money to me. That's part of the procrastination.
                  Show 'em who's got guts. Don't back down - Brian Wilson
                  ******Surfer ED******

                  Comment


                    #10
                    I am at a loss of what to suggest because i understand the roadblocks you have in the way of the "best decisions" are very real. the only thing i can say is i have empathy for you in your situation and that i hope the "next to the best" decisions are good enough. i'm a little tongue tied, i hope you understand i mean well & sending my best wishes to you.
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