Klarinet Archive - Posting 000248.txt from 2003/08

From: "Keith" <100012.1302@-----.com>
Subj: [kl] RE: Dental advice
Date: Sun, 10 Aug 2003 10:31:31 -0400

Ian,

First, don't worry - there are good treatments, but it helps if you get =
a
dentist who is sympathetic to wind player issues.

After an accident in my youth I killed my two front teeth although they =
were
still there, and root-filled. They survived for 40 years, and I now =
realise
my embouchure was getting worse all the time as they shifted slightly =
and
became loose. Eventually I lost the four front teeth, and had a =
seven-tooth
bridge fitted, a few years ago. This is brilliant. My playing improved a
lot, it is absolutely firm and gives me no trouble at all, quite the
reverse. So a bridge definitely works very well. You would need, I =
imagine,
a three-tooth bridge, including the teeth either side of the missing =
one.

The bridge teeth are made of palladium-silver alloy with ceramic =
surface.
They look and feel very natural and are immensely strong. In the USA, =
where
I had this done, the cost is about $750 per tooth, and I doubt if you =
will
get this in the UK under the NHS, so the cost may be similar. The bridge
process takes a few months to complete, but you get a temporary plastic
bridge almost immediately, on which is it perfectly possible to play. =
Just
don't bite! The lifetime is given as 7 - 10 years, but I know people =
with
bridges that have lasted twice as long. Floss!

Your dentist can advise you on whether a single crown is possible in =
your
case. It would be quite a large one so the root would have to be strong, =
and
you might be able to get a palladium-silver-ceramic "crown", sort of =
half
way between a crown and an implant.

I did look into implants. While I believe these are excellent as a long =
term
treatment, you have to have enough bone thickness to sustain the socket, =
and
I didn't. Also, the treatment takes much longer, 6 - 9 months, and I
understand you are without teeth in that time. Maybe you could have a
temporary dental plate.

Other people can advise on how dental plates work for the clarinet, but =
with
only one tooth missing this does not seem worth while.

And the neat thing is you can get your dentist to make the front teeth
absolutely even and just the length you want them for the mouthpiece, ie =
you
can improve on your former embouchure, as well as look better!

Keith Bowen

____________
Date: Sun, 10 Aug 2003 08:59:46 +0100
From: "Ian Black" <clarinet1@-----.uk>
Subject: Dental Advice
Message-ID: <002101c35f15$9b836f60$90e5193e@ToshibaPC>

>Hi.

>Just lost near enough all of the visible part of one of my upper front
teeth. I know this has come up before, but I'm connecting via laptop and
cellphone so I can't really search the archives. Can anyone give me an =
idea
of the likely treatments and what impact these may have for clarinet
playing?

Thanks

Ian
____________