Rhonda Bracey: At Random

… with a diamond drill bit.

Yesterday I drove up to the city to go through stage 3 of the 4-stage process in getting my tooth replaced. This time it was for the preparation work for the bridge — and payment of the bill.

The preparation involved taking multiple impressions, removing the old crown on the adjacent tooth, and removing the enamel and some of the dentine from the tooth on the other side of the gap where the old tooth used to be.

I usually have dental work without any anaesthetic — that worked well for the removal of the old crown and removal of about 60% of the good tooth material on the other tooth, but then I jumped! My dentist gave me a jab and I felt nothing more while she continued to grind down that tooth.

More impressions, then she made some temporary teeth out of an acrylic that she glued on over the stumps and I was done, some 90 minutes or so after I lay down in the chair.

I get the proper bridge when I return in about 3 weeks time.

Oh, and I got the bill for these two stages too — some $4400, which, coupled with the around $1500 already spent, means that that damned ‘pitted’ date will have cost me about $6000. Arrggghhh!

See also:

• A very expensive date! (which is how I got in this mess in the first place): https://sandgroper14.wordpress.com/2009/09/23/a-very-expensive-date/
• Tooth update (which describes the visit with the oral surgeon): https://sandgroper14.wordpress.com/2009/11/11/tooth-update/
• The tooth is gone (obvious, really!): https://sandgroper14.wordpress.com/2009/11/15/the-tooth-is-gone/