4 New Patients

Today, Dr Lim saw 4 new patients:

• a mother (implant) and son (whitening) pair
• one for orthodontic treatment
• one whose crown was dislodged.

In the first case, the mother had multiple loose teeth which is indicative of a periodontal (gum) disease. She complained that her last dentist extracted her two front teeth although they were "perfectly good and healthy". The only problem with them, according to the patient, was that they were loose.

It appears that the patient did not understand that she has gum disease and she wanted to go ahead to have implants to replace her missing front teeth. We will have to make it very clear to her that if she has gum disease and she still insist on having the implants done without addressing the gum problem, there is a high chance that the implants will fail.

The second patient was rather straight forward. The patient's elder sister had her braces done with us and she recommended him to see us. Now it's his turn to straighten his teeth. Dr Lim took the necessary x-rays, photos and impressions so that we can present the treatment plan at the patient's next appointment.

The last patient was also recommended to see us by our patient. This last patient had his crown done in Taiwan. The crown that he dislodged was a plastic temporary crown and according to him, the dentist did not tell him that it was only temporary and that his second appointment with the dentist was to fit the permanent crown. If he had known, he would not have chewed gum on the crown. In addition, although he grinds his teeth in his sleep, he did not wear his nightguard to bed.

Dr Lim relined his temporaryt crown and recemented it with a stronger cement as the patient has to visit several other countries before returning to Taiwan for his dental appointment. Dr Lim also cautioned him that his dentist may have some difficulty removing the temporary crown because of the stronger cement.

Hopefully, with proper communication with our patients and understanding by our patients, we will be able to serve our patients better.