Should I fill?

[Stickyspot]

I recently got two conflicting diagnoses from 2 different dentists...now I am totally confused for how to proceed!!

I have deep fissures and had 3 fillings in my adult molar biting surfaces (3 different teeth) before I was 13. I have not had a cavity since until now (maybe)

About ten years ago my dentist was "watching" one of my top molars...I never had any pain or other symptoms in this tooth. After losing my insurance I did not go to the dentist for about 2-3 years again...I moved and ended up at a new dental office. It was a terrible experience (another story) and I was told that I needed to have the tooth filled that my previous dentist was "watching".

Because it was such a bad experience I never went back and for the first time developed a dental phobia. I did not return to the dentist for over 5 years. I moved again and finally worked up the courage to go to a new dentist. They found nothing to be filled and didn't even mention the tooth that was in question all those years back. I went back to the same office and had another good checkup.

My last checkup had a new hygienist that I didn't like and seemed to bill for things that were not done. When the dentist  examined me she barely looked at my teeth, didn't take new X-rays (the last ones were taken 2 years before) and casually mentioned that I had two small OLD cavities in 2 totally previously unmentioned teeth needing to be filled now...the original tooth that was in question before was again not mentioned.

Needless to say I was annoyed and not confident in the diagnosis. I wasn't sure why she didn't bother to mention that I had trouble spots before and I was unhappy with her lack of exam before diagnosis. I decided to seek a second opinion.

I went to a new state of the art office and did not mention the previous dentists diagnosis. They took full digital X-rays and the hygienist examined me. She mentioned a few spots of staining that could possibly be a problem and brought the dentist in. He examined the X-rays and my mouth and pronounced that all looked good. The hygienist then asked "what about number 16?" and he looked again at that tooth...poked it and pronounced it needed to be filled. This is the tooth that was being "watched" more than 10 years ago now and supposedly should have been filled more than 5 years ago!!!
He never mentioned the teeth that my other dentist wanted to fill at all!!!

Now I'm totally at a loss for what  to do. The tooth in questions has always been a darker colour and I think draws attention due to that...if it had  a cavity for 10 years (at least 5 years) shouldn't the decay be huge by now?? And why hasn't my other dentist noticed it if that's the case?

I'm not opposed to having necessary work done...but I know it's bad to drill teeth if they don't need it and I would like to avoid that at all costs.

I'm at a total loss and looking for advice...should I seek a 3rd opinion? Wait and see at my 6 month checkup?? I have no idea....

All opinions are appreciated!!

[mommyofbhp]

Without seeing the teeth and their xrays it is hard to make a judgment call here. All I can say, if both dentists say to fill a particular cavity I would do it asap. As for the teeth that you're not sure about, go to a third dentist and see what they say. If that dentist says that those cavities need filling then do it asap also. Good luck.

[scottma]

Caries has active and inactive state. The one who diagnosed minimal caries was most likely correct. It's really a piece of cake to detect or diagnose caries if radiographic image is available for licensed dentists. Keep in mind dentistry is a business. Your descriptions appear you have sound dentition, no need to worry. If in doubt, go to dental school, I believe dental schools are academic oriented, there is no commercial interest involved.