dental work??!!

Morning to all; Hey, I have a pm/defib and am wondering if there are any special instructions to give to dentists or their technicians about staying 6 in away from the device when cleaning, drilling etc. They had a tendency to lean on me b/4 when working and I wonder if that is too close. Thanks for all feedback! Dave.

11 Comments

No REAL problems

by donr - 2013-02-17 03:02:25

The only thing that can cause trouble is if they need to use electro-cautery to cut gum tissue in a crown prep. THAT is a NO-NO! It will interfere w/ PM.

Otherwise just remind them & they know all the problems - specifically say "Remember, I have a PM/ICD. Please do not lean on the area where it is."

Just about everything is air driven, so causes no problems. Apparently they have a thing about using the ultrasonic de-scaler when cleaning teeth.

Don

I had no problem.

by terrythetech - 2013-02-17 03:02:26

Had xrays, cleaning done last week. I told them about my pm but it did not change anything. Felt nothing related to pm at all. Having root canal and crown this coming Friday.

Terry

dentist

by Tracey_E - 2013-02-17 04:02:02

A very few heart conditions revommend premedicating with antibiotic. You can check the list here. It gets smaller every year
http://www.ada.org/2157.aspx


As Don said, the cautery thing is a bad idea. They should also keep the cable for one of the gadgets away from us but I don't remember which one it is, ultrasound? The tool is ok, just don't let them rest the cable on you. I don't even know if they still do that, been a while since I've discussed it with them.

Just make sure your dentist knows!

My mistake

by Grateful Heart - 2013-02-17 05:02:25

I recall now. BS said not to let the wire from the Cavetron lay on your body.

I'm getting old Don...I'm certainly not getting any younger!

Now...can we look upon BS favorably again? :)

descaling

by Alma Annie - 2013-02-17 05:02:32

I had to have my teeth cleaned and descaled manually rather than the electric descaler. The dentist knew all about it and told me it would interfere. Other than that everything else was the same.
Alma Annie

Dentist

by Grateful Heart - 2013-02-17 05:02:38

When I went to the Dentist after my ICD implant, they wanted a written note from the Cardiologist that I did not need to be premedicated with antibiotics.

They also had me check with Boston Scientific regarding the use of the Cavetron (electric cleaning device) they use. BS also advised not to let any cables/ wires lay across your body, including the cable for the drill.

Hope this helps.

Grateful Heart

BS is full of BS

by donr - 2013-02-17 05:02:41

The drill cable contains nothing but AIR. The high speed drills are little air driven turbines - that's what gives them such high speed. Unless, of course there is an LED light in the drill head. Then it will carry a very low voltage electric current & not much Amperage, either.

I had a tooth extracted by an oral surgeon. He wanted a cardiac clearance because he was going to sedate me - plus he wanted my INR to be at 1.0. That was no big deal - I was scheduled to have a shoulder operated on the nexy afternoon.

Don

Grateful

by donr - 2013-02-17 07:02:07

Dunno. That makes more sense - BUT, OTOH, anyone who has their cautions written by a lawyer - I'm not sure about.

Don

Don

by Grateful Heart - 2013-02-17 09:02:52

I see your point.

Antibiotics...............

by Tattoo Man - 2013-02-18 01:02:10


.............................I used to take 3grams of Amoxicillin before any dental work..including just straightforward cleaning.

In the UK this was all about Proffesional Liability. About three years ago the Dental people and the Insurance people decided to stop pre-treatment 'Cover'.

The thinking behind 'Cover' was that any dental infection makes a bee-line for the heart. A single 3gram dose is pretty big and as has been said above, may represent, in itself, a source of risk.

Tattoo Man

Been There ~ Done That ~

by Carolyn65 - 2013-02-18 02:02:44

The medical people told me just to let my dental office know I had the PM ~ I did and the only thing the dental office said was they would just being doing the cleanings manually, no big deal. I have had fillings, crowns, root canals, cleanings, etc. since my PM.

Now, since I have had complete knee replacement, I was told by my knee surgeon to take antibiotics each/every time I have any dental work, ie, cleanings, extractions, etc. to keep any germs from going straight to the warmest place in my body ~ the knee replacement. The surgeon and dental office said if bacteria should go from my teeth to my knee, I would have to be hospitalized with a very serious infection.

I told my Heart Dr/pacemaker people this and asked about the PM ~ My Heart Dr. said he did not believe in having to take antibiotics before medical/dental work.

I was told early on by the hospital, the heart Dr. and the PM rep to always tell anyone in the medical/dental fields of my PM just to cover all bases.

Carolyn G. from TEXAS ~ ~ ~

You know you're wired when...

Intel inside is your motto.

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