Sjogrens and teeth

[Guest guest]

As some of you know, I've had a blossoming of cavities from the start of my

Sjogrens. I've had fillings fall out and teeth shedding parts since then.

Saturday before New Years I had to go to the ER for an infected gum because

of the teeth there. The last time I talked to the Dentist, he quoted a price

of about $4500 to do it all, including a partial. I'm still having new

cavities even with increased hygiene. Now, the dentist won't touch me

because of the infection, I'll have to go a specialist. He doesn't want any

liability but will take money for an exam.

I've decided I'll still have deterioration even if the Sjogrens slows down,

so my first choice should be to pull the lower teeth that are left because

most of them have big cavities and put in a lower set of teeth. They

shouldn't get cavities (I hope) and will cost a lot less than efforts to

save the teeth. Does any of you have experience or opinions on this, or am I

wrong about the Sjogrens?

Dennis in Eastexas

" It's not Rocket Surgery "

[Guest guest]

Is soj. the only disease that causes this? I have

always had excellent mouth hygiene. For the last year,

all of a sudden, my cavities are increasing, my

fillings are falling out, my gums bleed like crazy,

all of my teeth are loose. I am having abscesses off

and on. I brush my teeth, bleed profusely, and parts

of my teeth break off. Now when I floss, my teeth are

breaking to pieces. I am to the point now that I am

afraid to floss. Could I possibly have soj.? What test

is used to diagnose this? Tami

Tami -Dossey

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 1/8/07 3:54:23 AM, ladydubois@... writes:

> Is soj. the only disease that causes this? I have

> always had excellent mouth hygiene. For the last year,

> all of a sudden, my cavities are increasing, my

> fillings are falling out, my gums bleed like crazy,

> all of my teeth are loose. I am having abscesses off

> and on. I brush my teeth, bleed profusely, and parts

> of my teeth break off.>>>>

>

I grind mine /clenchand have those results, finally got a tooth guard....for

night.

Do you grind?

Pris

[Guest guest]

I have had dry mouth for many years. Not because of RA but from cancer

treatments. I now take Pilocarpine (salagen) and I works for me. My throat no

longer sticks to itself painfully. I did not have any side effects from the meds

but everyone is different.

Jennell

[ ] Sjogrens and teeth

As some of you know, I've had a blossoming of cavities from the start of my

Sjogrens. I've had fillings fall out and teeth shedding parts since then.

Saturday before New Years I had to go to the ER for an infected gum because

of the teeth there. The last time I talked to the Dentist, he quoted a price

of about $4500 to do it all, including a partial. I'm still having new

cavities even with increased hygiene. Now, the dentist won't touch me

because of the infection, I'll have to go a specialist. He doesn't want any

liability but will take money for an exam.

I've decided I'll still have deterioration even if the Sjogrens slows down,

so my first choice should be to pull the lower teeth that are left because

most of them have big cavities and put in a lower set of teeth. They

shouldn't get cavities (I hope) and will cost a lot less than efforts to

save the teeth. Does any of you have experience or opinions on this, or am I

wrong about the Sjogrens?

Dennis in Eastexas

" It's not Rocket Surgery "

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

I diagnosed myself initially based on info from this group. I had dry eyes

with little to no tears, my sinuses dried up like up north in the winter

when it's too dry, and almost no saliva. I would wake up in the night with

my throat so dry I couldn't swallow and could breathe through my tightly

closed lips just like they were open. Now I go to sleep with sugarless gum

in my mouth and a sports bottle of water by the bed. I also have Visine

Tears that I drop in my eyes when they start feeling uncomfortable. My

Rheumy gave me some samples of Evoxac (sp?) and a prescription for them, but

they were too expensive. So I drink lots of water and other liquids that

aren't diuretics, and if I don't have that handy, a small pebble will

generate saliva. If you use the pebble idea, remember to NOT swallow too

many of them. =()

There seems to be another 'condition' called Dry Mouth, at least that's what

they advertise on TV. I know nothing technical about it.

Dennis in Eastexas

" It's not Rocket Surgery "

Re: [ ] Sjogrens and teeth

> Is soj. the only disease that causes this? I have

> always had excellent mouth hygiene. For the last year,

> all of a sudden, my cavities are increasing, my

> fillings are falling out, my gums bleed like crazy,

> all of my teeth are loose. I am having abscesses off

> and on. I brush my teeth, bleed profusely, and parts

> of my teeth break off. Now when I floss, my teeth are

> breaking to pieces. I am to the point now that I am

> afraid to floss. Could I possibly have soj.? What test

> is used to diagnose this? Tami

[Guest guest]

I know that a lot of the RA meds cause a lot of the

" dry " sympthons. I am currently on Plaquenil and that

is some of the noted side effects.

Lets face it, in order to attempt control over our

bodies that need repair, we are subjecting them to

foriegn chemicals. I have no doubt that this also adds

to our issues. But until a cure comes along I guess we

have no other choice then to keep searching.

I think your solutions are great ones and I too have

incorporated some of those into my routines.

Patti

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Dennis, I have had trouble with dry eyes ever since I had shingles many

years ago, and it's a lot worse now - whether it's the PMR or the meds, I

don't know. My ophthalmologist recommended using one of the natural,

preservative free eye drops rather than Visine. I use Real Tears, the ones

for severe dry eyes, in the individual packets. He said the multi-use

bottles were too easy to contaminate, not to use them. I believe Genteal

was the other brand he mentioned. I also keep a water bottle handy all the

time, I wash and refill them with filtered water, for the dry mouth. My

rheumy offered to prescribe something for me, but I'm trying to get off

meds, not add new ones. As long as I can keep it under control with easy

and natural measures, that's what I'm going to do.

On 1/8/07, betnden@... <betnden@...> wrote:

>

> I also have Visine

> Tears that I drop in my eyes when they start feeling uncomfortable.

> Dennis in Eastexas

> " It's not Rocket Surgery "

>

>

--

Shoreview, MN, until April! brrrr!

South Pasadena, CA

You can see my galleries at http://www.pbase.com/arenared986

[Guest guest]

> I use Real Tears, the ones

> for severe dry eyes, in the individual packets.>>>

>

Does anyone else use Lacrilube? ( mineral oil on your eyes)

It looks horrible, but it works!

I was 25 when I used eye drops in desperation. I was allergic to the

presevatives, my eyes were so dry they wanted to sew them almost shut.

Get PRESERVATIVE FREE drops!

Pris

I

[Guest guest]

I use prescription Restasis for my eyes. It took about 2 months for it to kick

in but I'm now able to wear my contacts comfortably again.

HTH,

Lori

Re: [ ] Sjogrens and teeth

> I use Real Tears, the ones

> for severe dry eyes, in the individual packets.>>>

>

Does anyone else use Lacrilube? ( mineral oil on your eyes)

It looks horrible, but it works!

I was 25 when I used eye drops in desperation. I was allergic to the

presevatives, my eyes were so dry they wanted to sew them almost shut.

Get PRESERVATIVE FREE drops!

Pris

I

[Guest guest]

I tried the mineral oil stuff in my eyes but it made my vision go

very blurry for a couple of days each time I used it. Now I use

castor oil, it works much better for me as far as the dryness, and I

get no blurry vision from it.

Tried Restasis but the stinging it caused lasted for several hours

each day and my eyes got puffy...guess I sort of reacted to it a

little bit. But I looked at the ingredients in Restasis and found

that it contained castor oil as the carrier, so tried it plain and

it worked.

>

>

>

>

>

> > I use Real Tears, the ones

> > for severe dry eyes, in the individual packets.>>>

> >

>

> Does anyone else use Lacrilube? ( mineral oil on your eyes)

> It looks horrible, but it works!

> I was 25 when I used eye drops in desperation. I was allergic to

the

> presevatives, my eyes were so dry they wanted to sew them almost

shut.

> Get PRESERVATIVE FREE drops!

> Pris

>

>

>

> I

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

> now faithfully use the gentea

>

What is it and where do it get it?

Thanks,

Pris

I

[Guest guest]

I can so relate with you.. since getting sick with RA/ sjogrens ( 2

years) I have had numerous gum and teeth problems.. just had a root

canal and abscess this week. 6 in the last year despite good dental

hygene.. flossing etc. I am so frustrated with this. Looks like

there are alot of us dealing with this.

>

> As some of you know, I've had a blossoming of cavities from the

start of my

> Sjogrens. I've had fillings fall out and teeth shedding parts

since then.

> Saturday before New Years I had to go to the ER for an infected

gum because

> of the teeth there. The last time I talked to the Dentist, he

quoted a price

> of about $4500 to do it all, including a partial. I'm still having

new

> cavities even with increased hygiene. Now, the dentist won't touch

me

> because of the infection, I'll have to go a specialist. He doesn't

want any

> liability but will take money for an exam.

>

> I've decided I'll still have deterioration even if the Sjogrens

slows down,

> so my first choice should be to pull the lower teeth that are left

because

> most of them have big cavities and put in a lower set of teeth.

They

> shouldn't get cavities (I hope) and will cost a lot less than

efforts to

> save the teeth. Does any of you have experience or opinions on

this, or am I

> wrong about the Sjogrens?

>

> Dennis in Eastexas

> " It's not Rocket Surgery "

>

[Guest guest]

Had cavities in my lower front teeth and my dentist said I should have told him

I had dry mouth. Apparently there is a big connection between dry mouth and

cavities.

For dry eye I use to use lacrilube. Found it helped to first put the tube in

warm water which made it less thick. Actually found genteal to be better than

lacrilube. The genteal gel did not have to be put in water first, it felt cool

in the eye and it was cheaper. Be very careful with dry eye. My eyelid stuck

to my eye and I forced it open and ended up with a lesion on my cornea. I now

faithfully use the genteal every night. I use eye drops in the morning before I

even open my eyes. Joyce

[Guest guest]

The big connection between dry mouth and cavities is that saliva adjusts the

PH in your mouth and is critical for guarding against cavities. That's the

way I read it.

Dennis in Eastexas

" It's not Rocket Surgery "

[ ] Re: Sjogrens and teeth

> Had cavities in my lower front teeth and my dentist said I should have

> told him I had dry mouth. Apparently there is a big connection between

> dry mouth and cavities.

>

> For dry eye I use to use lacrilube. Found it helped to first put the

> tube in warm water which made it less thick. Actually found genteal to be

> better than lacrilube. The genteal gel did not have to be put in water

> first, it felt cool in the eye and it was cheaper. Be very careful with

> dry eye. My eyelid stuck to my eye and I forced it open and ended up with

> a lesion on my cornea. I now faithfully use the genteal every night. I

> use eye drops in the morning before I even open my eyes. Joyce

[Guest guest]

I don't have Sjogren's, but I have Fuchs' corneal dystrophy. My eyelids

used to feel as though they were stuck to my eyeballs in the morning

when I was waking up. My ophthalmologist recommended GenTeal Gel, and

I've used it ever since at bedtime.

Sue

On Wednesday, January 10, 2007, at 12:04 AM, J A MANDLE wrote:

> For dry eye I use to use lacrilube. Found it helped to first put

> the tube in warm water which made it less thick. Actually found

> genteal to be better than lacrilube. The genteal gel did not have to

> be put in water first, it felt cool in the eye and it was cheaper. Be

> very careful with dry eye. My eyelid stuck to my eye and I forced it

> open and ended up with a lesion on my cornea. I now faithfully use

> the genteal every night. I use eye drops in the morning before I even

> open my eyes. Joyce

[Guest guest]

GenTeal gel is OTC, and I get mine at my CVS pharmacy or at WalMart.

Sue

On Wednesday, January 10, 2007, at 01:41 AM, NELLIESTAR@... wrote:

> What is it and where do it get it?

> Thanks,

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 1/10/07 2:28:57 PM, marysue@... writes:

> GenTeal gel is OTC, and I get mine at my CVS pharmacy or at WalMart.

>

> Sue

>

Can you tell me what the ingredients are, is it found in the eye dept in a

tube, or what?

Thanks,

Pris

[Guest guest]

My dentist told me that with Sjogren's an increase in cavities is

par for the course. I've had excellent luck with Biotene toothpast

and mouth wash. Even when I have a cold and have to breath through

my mouth because my nose is clogged up, the Biotene mouthwash coats

the inside of my mouth to help with moisture. Another thing is to

avoid cola's with any form of surgar as well as candy. I use surgar

free candy and gum. My dentist also recommended using gum with

Xylitol in it. One gum that has this in it is Trident. But watch

which one you get, the Trident that comes in a foil pack like

Dentine doesn't contain Xylitol. Xylitol is actually good for your

teeth and gums. Since I've been using all of these products, I

haven't had any cavities. My Sjogren's has been VERY active over

the last year. Another thing to consider is Floride. You can

usually get it from your dentist. Some will just give it to you

others will charge for it. The one I have looks like toothpaste and

helps greatly. My dentist also said that RA can affect the

ligaments that help hold your teeth in place. Wich basically means

that your teeth will shift. Mine do really bad. Because of this, I

grind my teeth terribally. Well, I hope some of this will help you

out. SAnd I pray that your dental problems resolve. Gentle hugs

and prayers, Marina