Going to the dentist while pregnant

Hello my fellow mums and dads,

Just had a question regarding going to the dentists while pregnant, I'm 25 weeks pregnant the 2nd time around, to a 2nd girl :), but am having so much pain from one of my molars that have chipped, and just want to get it removed because its robbing me off my sleep so just wanted to know about anyone whose gone to the dentist while pregnant and what procedures we can get while pregnant etc etc...

Thanks in advance

TheKelly was a dental assistant, if you PM her I'm sure she'll be able to help you.

I had a wisdom tooth removed when I was 9 weeks pg and had local anaesthetic for that.

I had a filling done at about 16 weeks, and had an injection and they said it was safe. I didn't have any xrays done.

I think it's safe as long as the dentist is well aware of your condition. You can't really leave it if you're in pain so it's something you gota do.

I was a dental assistant for 6 years, we saw plenty of pregnant women at different stages of their pregnancies .
There are different local injections that are harmless for the baby , unfortunately , being pregnant myself , I can no longer remember the names but I can find them out easy enough if anyone needs to know .

I had a tooth extracted last week - with local anaesthetic. No x-ray.. The tooth pain leading up to it was waaay worse than any pain post extraction and I manager fine with just a couple of panadol that night. Good luck.

Just a little info that might help:
1) Local anaesthetics are safe for all stages of pregnancy, as long as they dont exceed the max number of recommended cartridges, each diff brand/type of cartridge has its own limit, but a safe bet is between 4-6 cartridges for an average sized female
2) normal routine treatment is fine, in check-ups, definitely scale/clean/polish (very good for preventing or treating gum probs or infection although during pregnancy your gums are more tender and prone to bleeding due to hormones), fillings etc
3) extractions and rootcanal treatment are routinely done during ALL stages of pregnancy, it is SAFER to have treatment than NOT to have treatment and get get an infection/abscess which can lead to septicemia which can cause damage to the baby (rare though)!
4) despite what controversy xrays seem to cause, a set of small xrays or the big full mouth xray dentists take is about equivalent to the radiation you are exposed to in one hour in direct sunlight or an airplane flight from aucklan to wellington. The reason that dentist will NOT take an xray if your pregnant is because most pregnant mothers are paranoid about it , not because its unsafe. And the reason the dentist will always leave the room when taking the xray is because we take >50-100 xrays every week on average and so legally we r not supposed to be in the room whilst taking the xray, its an OSH thing :)
Hope that helps you ladies out there! :)

Yay! Glad it worked out so well.

I am also glad about this topic. I haven't been to the dentist for 2 years as too scared basically.

But I have been brave and made an appointment for Friday - I am going to be firm with them and ask them just to check my teeth and gums, and be honest with them that I am scared of the dentist. I want to make sure that I don't have gum disease as the baby book says that can sometimes cause pregnancy problems.

My main terror is the machinery they use, even the cleaning equipment.

If I need any work doing and it isn't urgent, then i will re-book and go back after the baby has been born.

Kazzam