HELP!!! Mercury dentistry while pregnant :(

[oh_so_blessed]

I went to the dentist to have a crown done today. He said I had a small cavity that needed filling. Turns out he had to drill out a mercury amalgam filling that was there and he replaced it with... a mercury amalgam filling. I did NOT know any of this was happening, I has ASSUMED that it was composite he was doing, and I had no idea he was removing mercury. I would have left this for after pregnancy. I am so upset right now and I don't know what I can do. I read there are prescription chelating agents, but that they can bind other metals, too, (calcium, iron, etc)...

Does anyone know what I should do?

 

[Chezzz]

Honestly hun. Im sure your going to be fine.
Ive read loads about these fillings from ladies on here.. there such a tiny tiny chance anything will even reach your baby let alone harm him.
Does your dentist not know your pregnant?

 

[elle1981]

Sweetie...take a deep breath and calm down.

I had a massive amalgam filling a few weeks ago, I lost half a tooth and a composite wasnt appropriate.

I had a long chat with my dentist and my mw before I had it done, and they reassured me it was fine. Dentists will give you a filling...they will not ever give you an x-ray ever!!!

Thing to remember is that mercury is poisonous to us whether pregnant or not, all dentists will take precautions..you will never ingest it as any things drilled out etc is removed via the suction etc! You and baby will be just fine!

Elle xx

P.s i am an ex dental nurse before I was a sahm, and have seen lots of pg ladies have these fillings and have perfectly healthy beautiful babies xx

 

[Inoue]

You'll be fine hun. Mercury doesnt do that kind of damage your thinking. Im in dental and mercury is not a hazard to us per say (we dont handle it anymore like old days but use machines) but its more of a danger to the environment when people are cremated (vapour in atmosphere). Thats where the problem is. As elle said, dont stress, everthing will be fine xx

 

[toothfairy29]

I agree and I am in the trade!! I am 19 weeks myself and still safely drilling and filling with mercury every day!! As the others have said, we take lots of precautions to protect the patients and ourselves with suction and safe handling of all dental materials. The amounts of mercury in filling materials these days is tiny too!

 

[oh_so_blessed]

I still don't feel safe. I feel like dentists and people in the industry are made to believe this is perfectly safe. He certainly didn't seem concerned when I expressed dismay about this. I am shocked, honestly. I am certain that I have swallowed some shards of metal- no dental dam was in place and there is no way to be that good with suction, not to mention I couldn't help but keep swallowing during this whole thing because I was stuffy and couldn't breathe.

So today I have swallowed shards of metal and breathed in more obviously toxic fumes than I ever do in my chemistry lab (I could distinctly smell toluene, which is very unhealthy).

I am worried. I would never have agreed to this and I feel like the industry is being extremely irresponsible by doing this, and particularly this doctor having not even told me that this was part of what he was doing. I thought I was going in for a crown and a small filling. I assumed the small filling would be composite as that is mostly what is offered now unless there is a real reason not to (ie, huge filling).

I am looking into blood testing for heavy metal toxicity. I am considering telling my OH. I know he will freak out but I feel he has the right to.

Boo to dentistry for making this out to be safe, and for not considering pregnancy as a contradiction- if anything should be, it's definitely that. And, yes, he knows I'm pregnant.

Here's a quote from march of dimes:

"Babies who are exposed to mercury while in the womb can suffer severe damage to the nervous system and may die. They may have brain damage, learning disabilities and hearing loss. "

So, yeah, I'm pissed. I am considering a law suit. Seriously.

 

[Chezzz]

hm I dont know if id take it that far? but thats just me.
Maybe write a formal complaint at the least. im sure your baby will be fine, loads of ladies have their teeth filled whilst pregnant.. there will have been such a low amount of mercury in the filling i doubt it got into your system?

 

[Inoue]

Then you need to take it up with your dentist although theres not really a problem. People have tried to put your mind at ease as this is what we do all day, every day.

 

[brunette]

I'm sorry you feel this way. There is no research to suggest that placing amalgam fillings during pregnancy is in any way harmful, although some dentists and patients may elect to delay treatment until after delivery. Most people are exposed to much higher levels of mercury in the environment and their diet than during the placement or removal of an amalgam filling. Best wishes for your pregnancy.

 

[weejenb]

The March of Dimes also says this :

Some people are concerned that mercury fillings may harm the nervous systems of developing fetuses. Should pregnant women avoid mercury fillings? In 2009, the Food and Drug Administration concluded that mercury fillings are safe for most people, including most pregnant women.

https://www.marchofdimes.com/pregnancy/stayingsafe_mercury.html

If the FDA says its safe, its safe. Try not to worry too much about this, many women are exposed to much worse during pregnancy and go on to have happy healthy babies.

 

[babyjo]

I'm sorry that you are going through this stress but you really should not be worrying like this. I don't work in dentistry but work with substances far higher in mercury and other toxic substances and am not worried about my baby as full precautions are always taken and I understand the evidence. Dental staff and other medical care workers are exposed to far more day in day out and the evidence says that female workers in these types of professions have NO higher abnormalities than the general public!

Also plastics in the human body are not necessarily safer!!!! People always go on about plastic white fillings etc- Bisphenol A is in some resins so I wouldn't say it's "safer" per say.

Please don't worry about one silver filling. it's not worth the stress. x

 

[oh_so_blessed]

If the FDA says its safe, its safe. Try not to worry too much about this, many women are exposed to much worse during pregnancy and go on to have happy healthy babies.

ahahah!!! I wouldn't trust the FDA as far as I could throw them. They have the interests of big business first, much like the EPA, sadly. Government is not to be trusted, at least not here.

I appreciate that you all have tried to put my mind at ease. But, that's really not why I'm here. I'm not necessarily looking for comfort, but rather hoping for real information. It is hard to find what the best thing to do from here is. There is a lot of conflicting information out there. Of course the dental industry is huge and as such they are a huge influence on what is deemed safe, so I can't necessarily trust anything the government has done. You also can't listen to quacks who don't know what they are talking about and jump at everything. There is a truth somewhere in between, and it is usually found in the academic papers. It's just a lot to sort through. From what I gather DMSA is the only approved chelating agent for heavy metal exposure, but Cornell has some preliminary work done that says it may have bad effects on the immune systems of developing fetuses that may cause problems later in life so that is highly concerning.

I do not necessarily blame the dentist for his assuming this is safe. People are blinded by what they are told. I do wish he would have told me what he was doing. I feel blindsided and in the case of something controversial that is really upsetting. And this IS controversial, regardless of what you all think.

 

[At.Last.x]

Are you serious?! Sorry, i'm possibly being hormonal today but I think you need to get a grip!! Seriously, what are you going to sue the dentist for?! You were aware you were getting a filling. Big or small, YOU assumed it'd be one type when it was the other. YOU did that. The dentist made you aware he/she was doing a filling. If there is a rule in the dentist 'book of rules' that says one should tell the patient exactly what type of filling they are having, of course sue him/her. Otherwise, i think you're being silly. Sorry, maybe this is the USA way of dealing with things if they're unhappy with it, but I certainly don't agree. When I holidayed in america, i went to a court and watched a case where one homeless person sued another homeless person for stealing their packet of crisps?!?!?! Wtf!! Is that what this world is coming to?!

 

[weejenb]

If the FDA says its safe, its safe. Try not to worry too much about this, many women are exposed to much worse during pregnancy and go on to have happy healthy babies.

ahahah!!! I wouldn't trust the FDA as far as I could throw them. They have the interests of big business first, much like the EPA, sadly. Government is not to be trusted, at least not here.

I appreciate that you all have tried to put my mind at ease. But, that's really not why I'm here. I'm not necessarily looking for comfort, but rather hoping for real information. It is hard to find what the best thing to do from here is. There is a lot of conflicting information out there. Of course the dental industry is huge and as such they are a huge influence on what is deemed safe, so I can't necessarily trust anything the government has done. You also can't listen to quacks who don't know what they are talking about and jump at everything. There is a truth somewhere in between, and it is usually found in the academic papers. It's just a lot to sort through. From what I gather DMSA is the only approved chelating agent for heavy metal exposure, but Cornell has some preliminary work done that says it may have bad effects on the immune systems of developing fetuses that may cause problems later in life so that is highly concerning.

I do not necessarily blame the dentist for his assuming this is safe. People are blinded by what they are told. I do wish he would have told me what he was doing. I feel blindsided and in the case of something controversial that is really upsetting. And this IS controversial, regardless of what you all think.

I don't want to sound cruel in any way here whatsoever, but you say you're looking for real information, but don't seem to be accepting any information from any source saying that this is safe? You seem to be focusing on the information that's negative. If you don't trust the government, who do you trust? Cornell's work is preliminary, as you said, so why be concerned by that when nothing has been proved?
I'm just struggling to understand if you will actually listen to any reassurances/information that we are providing for you, as you've asked for, I don't intend for this post to be upsetting to you in any way, I'm just curious.

 

[weejenb]

I agree and I am in the trade!! I am 19 weeks myself and still safely drilling and filling with mercury every day!! As the others have said, we take lots of precautions to protect the patients and ourselves with suction and safe handling of all dental materials. The amounts of mercury in filling materials these days is tiny too!

oh_so_blessed, have you read this properly? toothfairy29 does this every day and is telling you that you don't have to worry. Dentists have to work with pregnant women all the time, they will take precautions as necessary and wouldn't do anything that would put you/your baby at risk.

 

[oh_so_blessed]

Hi there all,

Listen, just because a coal miner does it every day and feels like he's fine doesn't make it a safe activity. I'm just saying that if you're going to say something is safe, there should be some data behind it. And not data that is funded by corporate interests- actual sound unbiased research. This is the research that generally comes from academic sources. So, no, I'm sorry, just because someone does these every day does not mean they are necessarily qualified to say it is safe. Perhaps they know it to be safe, but if they don't give their resources that state so I cannot trust their information.

And, no, I probably won't sue the dentist. But, I ABSOLUTELY think they should be required to tell you if they are using a method that is CONTROVERSIAL, which mercury amalgam filling certainly ARE. No, they weren't when this guy started dentistry, but they are now, so inform your patients of your plans if you are planning to use something that is potentially toxic. I'm sorry, comparing this to suing over potato chips is plain flat out ignorant.

Mercury is toxic. Bottom line. No person here can say any differently because it is absolutely known that it is. Now, the question becomes what is the extent of the exposure here (and, "not a lot" is not an answer) and what can I do to minimize it. I have read that some people naturally have more glutathione than others, but there are also foods that can help you produce more potentially. I am still reading up on it. But, it turns out mercury is not eliminated without glutathione.

 

[oh_so_blessed]

I'm sorry that you are going through this stress but you really should not be worrying like this. I don't work in dentistry but work with substances far higher in mercury and other toxic substances and am not worried about my baby as full precautions are always taken and I understand the evidence. Dental staff and other medical care workers are exposed to far more day in day out and the evidence says that female workers in these types of professions have NO higher abnormalities than the general public!

Also plastics in the human body are not necessarily safer!!!! People always go on about plastic white fillings etc- Bisphenol A is in some resins so I wouldn't say it's "safer" per say.

Please don't worry about one silver filling. it's not worth the stress. x

Great, I had no idea there was BPA in the composites. I hate dentistry. Truly. This stuff is proven to be a hormone disrupter, they should not be using it if there are alternatives, which clearly there are as there are several resins available. I will definitely be doing better research and verification before I ever get another filling. I wish I had better teeth! I brush regularly and I have had more cavities than many people. One of my coworkers has only had their first one recently. Stupid genetics!

 

[weejenb]

Listen, I'm not going to post on this thread again, because I don't want you to feel like I'm trying to argue with you or anything - I was just trying to help you to feel better about the situation.

A few days ago, I accidentally handled a medication called finasteride, which can cause seriousbirth defects, because there was no warning note by the doctor on the cardex stating that this medication shouldn't be handled by pregnant women. I didn't learn about the dangers until after this had happened. Am I thinking of suing the doctor? No. Because sometimes, these things happen in life, and once its done its been done. It's frigging awful, but I can't do anything about it now, I know that my risks are minimal, and all I can do is wait and see, but I know it'll be ok. Many pregnant women all over the world are subjected to much MUCH worse exposure and have healthy babies.

I'm sorry you don't feel satisfied with your dentist, but as an experienced practitioner, he is following his guidelines and is doing to you what has been done to thousands of pregnant women before with no ill effect. I have over 20 fillings myself, most of them amalgam, and will probably have to get more during this pregnancy. It sounds like you're like me, I have teeth that are prone to decay no matter how well I look after them. If the choice is either a filling or let my tooth decay, causing me pain and discomfort, possibly leading to an infection which could need treated with antibiotics, or lead to root canal treatment etc, I'm going to go for filling. The research, my midwife, and my dentist tell me that its safe, so I'm going to do it. Because I'm no expert, all I can do is put faith into research, professional experience, and the experiences of other pregnant women, who have had no issues with mercury fillings.

I do hope that you manage to stop worrying about this so much.

 

[Inoue]

We HAVE to read guidelines to all substances. I deal with mercury, acid etch, phosphoric acid ~ the list is endless. Ive read the safety manuals and I deal with this stuff due to people like yourself with a high cavity rate. If you think youve been 'exposed', think if the people doing the actual work for you! I will be suprised if a dentist goes anywhere near you in the future if you take this further.

Whatever anyone says, your going to disagree so there was no point wanting a responce to this thread.

 

[oh_so_blessed]

We HAVE to read guidelines to all substances. I deal with mercury, acid etch, phosphoric acid ~ the list is endless. Ive read the safety manuals and I deal with this stuff due to people like yourself with a high cavity rate. If you think youve been 'exposed', think if the people doing the actual work for you! I will be suprised if a dentist goes anywhere near you in the future if you take this further.

Whatever anyone says, your going to disagree so there was no point wanting a responce to this thread.

I love that people who can't comfort another get annoyed and stomp out with "you don't listen" etc. Please, spare me. I have told you exactly what I'm looking for. Information. Research. Not hearsay, which is what I'm getting here. I know that many pregnant women just want to hear that everything is fine. But I want to do the best I can for myself and this baby. That is certainly in contradiction to believing what people say when they have NO RESEARCH or DATA that backs them up that isn't UNBIASED.

So, do or don't post to this thread, it truly doesn't bother me one bit either way as you clearly do not have the information I'm looking for, which is, again: how much exposure and how to mitigate it.

Now, complain all you want about someone who says something about lawsuits. That is secondary to what this thread is about. It was frustration on my part that made me feel like this guy should pay for having put me at risk. And, honestly, he should. At the same time I feel bad for him because he truly believes he's doing his best. What I'd really like is for him to inform people in the future. I doubt that anything short of a lawsuit would make him do that, and that's certainly bothersome. I have never sued anyone, so I'm not some lawsuit happy potato chip victim. I think those of you guys that have taken this bit and run with it have done so because you have NO INFORMATION that is actually useful and are upset that I do not believe your word. I'm sorry for that, but know that it is not personal. There is nothing short of actual research that would be satisfying here. Yes, I differ from most people in that I am not here for a pat on the back or the belly. But, now you know, and you can post or not, that is your choice. Cheers.