Extraction of all teeth

Whyzit2

DH aged 83 stage 5/6 needs to have all his teeth extracted. Should it be done all in one appointment? I am concerned with anesthesia and whether I will be able to care for him after the procedure until he heals. Any recommendations will be appreciated.

ButterflyWings

Is he in pain? If you can provide a few more details the members will be able to help you better.

Whyzit2

DH is not in pain at this time. Every tooth has decay and some are broken. Also there is an infection under one. Our previous dentist said he would probably need this done this year. Because of insurance changes we met with our new dentist today and he said DH needs the teeth extracted and he would not do any work on them. He recommended doing it sooner rather than later before he is in pain and before his ALZ gets worse. He referred us to a surgeon. I don’t know if it would be done all at once or spread out over time or which would be better for DH.

I am 82, use a walker and don’t believe I’m capable of taking care of him if it is very involved. At this time he is quite mellow and we are managing but if this would accelerate his ALZ I know I won’t be able to care for him long term. Obviously I need to talk with the surgeon for some of these questions but I would like to have realistic viewpoints of fellow caregivers before jumping into this.

Thanks for your consideration.

wizmo

Do you have any indication how he handles anesthesia, even twilight type? Everyone is different, very difficult to generalize. DW age 59 early stage 6 had a single tooth extraction because it was cracked and not possible to repair. She was in increasing pain which had great impact on her mood and behavior. On the day, she got through the procedure fine but a delirium remained for 3-4 weeks until she got back to previous ‘normal’. With the pain gone though it was clearly a relief to her. A prior cataract surgery 2 Years earlier used similar sedation and she had immediate recovery. I would say plan for the worst case where you will need a lot of help to manage meal prep and feeding, and possibly significant cognitive decline which may be only temporarily. But get it done because it won’t get any easier.

DTSbuddy

I would get another opinion, and get opinions from an extraction dentist. Maybe you could have the one with infection pulled, because that will hurt for sure, and leave the others for now. Good luck.

Iris L.

I had two wisdom teeth pulled when I was in my 20's, it was very painful for a day. And I had to swish and keep the area clear of food. I would be most interested in removing the infected tooth, because it could spread sepsis.

Iris