Oxycontin Damaged My Teeth (Page 20)
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Has anyone else known oxycontin to rot the teeth? I used to be on vicodin until my doctor told me I needed to switch to a morphine based meds. She put me on ms contin but I had problems with it so she put me on 80mg oxycontin. Eventually my body built up a tolerance so she kept raising it, i have am now on from 4-6 per day of the 80mg tabs. It scares me that this is what rotted my teeth because only 5 yrs ago i had only 2 cavities that needed filling and then only 1 yr after going on the oxycontin i had to have all my top front teeth pulled as they where rotting from the inside out the dentist said my mouth looked like a heroin addict's mouth looks. He said it was shocking to him that normally he only saw such damage from someone who abused drugs with so much dental damage, but i have never done any street drugs and have only take my meds as prescribed to me. Now i have lost 80% of my teeth and as a beautiful 41 yr old mother its devastating. I cant afford dentures and sure cant afford implants like i would like to have. I am a single mother and refuse to date because i have lost my teeth now, i had beautiful teeth before i started on the oxycontin and only 2 small cavities that needed filling. Does anyone else have this same problem and if so why hasn't the company making oxycontin warn patients of this possible problem?

If i had known this would cause me to lose most of my teeth i would have never agreed to go on it. Of course my family doctor who has been prescribing them tells me she hasn't heard of any other cases, yet when i researched the med online there where others like this why hasn't something been put in the warnings about this med, i sure would have preferred to have lived in pain the rest of my life rather than lose my teeth and be unable to even eat now. My health has gone downhill fast as i cant even chew foods necessary for good health. All I can eat now are yogurts, and liquid type of foods which isn't much. My kids are 7 and 9 yrs old and they watch me cry when we go out to eat and they order steak, and i can smell it but can't order one as i know i wont be able to chew it. This is so devastating for me. I want teeth so badly if i could wish for anything in life besides not to be poor anymore it would be to have a full set of real teeth or implants but i could never dream of having them, and i don't know anyone out there willing to just help me get any either. I have always helped others all my life, but cant even help myself, i have had to have 29 surgeries now since 1991 when a drunk driver hit my car and caused me major injuries with my lower back and knees, i have had a full lower back fusion and 8 arthroscopic knee surgeries until a year ago they finally had to do a full right knee replacement and now they are talking about doing my left knee soon.

So my life has been up and down with surgeries and i would go thru one more surgery just to have teeth implanted if i could. but i could never afford it, but i would like to know why these drug manufacturers are making a medication that could cause teeth to rot like this without warning us patients or even warning the doctors about it. This is just terrible of them i think, as now i am the one paying for this by having no teeth to eat with at such a young age now. I am a vibrant young 41 yr old at 5'3, 120lbs, slim woman, nice looking too as i was a model in my younger days, so i keep my looks up. But to have no teeth now... I never smile anymore, I am to ashamed to smile even though it wasn't my fault i lost my teeth. I think they should pay for me to have new teeth but no one wants to admit that the med causes it, but my diet wasn't the problem back when i started the medication and i wasn't drinking coca-cola either or doing street drugs so i know that wasn't the cause either. The only thing that changed within one year to cause this was starting the oxycontin medication. Well, if anyone out there can help me let me know thanks.

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Dear Christine it's the Mailman and i feel your pain ! You don't deserve anything but support because no one would want the life that you go threw everyday !! I have dropped off the grid because I just get so tired of being in pain and feeling like every thing I do is twice as hard as it should be ! The Meds feel like they don't do anything anymore until I forget to take them and I then I know why I do ! I don't do much of anything anymore but seen your mail and wanted to let you know that we do the best we can and try to do it again the next day! I just wanted you to know it is good to hear from u and wish u only the best in life !

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My pain management physician recently put me on the Fentanyl patch (initially on 50mg but most recently on 100mg) and, although I'm still getting used to it, it appears to be more effective in the long term control of my pain. Something for the rest of you to consider, especially if the Oxycotin ER is no longer an option sure to its cost (or of, like me, you're in the dreaded Medicare donut hole!). Mind you, however, it's still going to carry its own set of side effects, I believe it might be a valid alternative to Oxycotin. Im still using Oxycodone for break through pain, but not NEARLY as many/much as I needed to before starting on the patch. Furthermore, you don't needed to have to remember to take your pills since the patch administers its medication on a consistent basis every three days at which time you simply remove the old patch and replace it with a new one (but in a different place on your body). The best news for me is that it was covered by Medicare, even though I was in the donut hole, and only cost me $5! I'm still left with awful teeth but at least I'm not in as much pain and I can afford the patch which, hopefully, might give me the wherewithal to investigate other options to get them replaced. Good luck to all and I hope that, if nothing else, this information might help others in their primary quest for pain relief which will, in turn, give them more motivation to work to find alternative methods of getting their teeth issues resolved. Bless you All, Christine

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i like the way you're very positive about your situation and i agree to some extent with what you're saying about not letting it ruin your life.

i've finally had another response from a solicitor re my own case and it's been a negative for the same reasons that verwon has outlined, very disappointing as it is.

it does leave me feeling angry at consultants and doctors who don't make it clear about the long term effect of taking these drugs. because as patients who clearly are suffering with acute pain, that perhaps, it's this that makes us neglect finding out or asking for all the facts about long term side effects?

i had another side effect when taking a drug called pregablin in conjunction with oxcontin. for about a year i experienced drop attacks, i'd just fall over for no apparent reason. i didn't feel feint, nauseous, dizzy or anything, i'd just fall over. my legs would go like jelly and over i'd go. thankfully not in any dangerous situations, though i did fall down some concrete stairs but only got minor bruising. i spent 18 months seeing a neurologist and it only became clear and stopped when i began reducing my medication.

clearly a lot of consultants do have a better knowledge about medications, combined medications and their side effects but i believe are either lazy or economical when explaining them, this should have some repercussions on them because as i've said before we are the victims and have to suffer the consequences.

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i used tl bw on 120mg oxcycontin a day (3/40mg) for my excrutiating back pain.i too have lost all my teeth bar 6 front bottom ones.i do have a top denture wich helps when i smile but i cant eat alot of food that id love to.ive bn on the oxcys for well over 10yrs and have asked chemists if the drug would rot my teeth and have bn told no.i knew i was right about oxcys rotting teeth but mine have bn from thw inside.now ive read other people haveing the same problem i know its not in my head and i dont get dry mouth either wich can vause decay.thank u to all who have wrote about their problems wirh oxcys and their teeth.i just wish i could aford screw in onez instead of my upper denturd.

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Oh, Mr. Mailman! Thank GOD for your training so you KNEW what was going on with you and that they were indeed able to administer the crucial drug to you in time! I, too, am on the 80mg ER, but can't afford its $300+ price tag now that I'm in the dreaded donut hole! So, I have no choice but to try and keep the pain at bay with only the IR 30 mg. pills which, as you well know, is next to impossible. There are times, like you, that I just want to give up but I know I can't..... at least not for my 85 year old Mom.... the rest of my family is of the opinion that it's all in my head or, worse, I'm a hypochondriac! If you happened to watch the 2-part Dr. Phil show this past week, you'll understand that my brother, sister in law, and at least one of their kids thinks I'm just like that nut case so I've got no family support at all (aside from my Mom but she's got medical issues of her own). Makes me feel so useless that I can't support HER when I've got so many needs of my own. I don't know what the answer is anymore. My only hope is to possibly do one of those "fund me" pages to see if there's anyone out there who might want to contribute towards having the rest of my teeth removed and then get some dentures. In the meantime, we do what we can, right? God bless you, too, Mailman! I'm glad to have you to talk to! Much love, Christrine

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Oh Christine it seems we are in the same boat!! I to suffered extreme abdominal pain and after 4 ER visits they finally figured out that it could possibility be the gallbladder and took it out January of this year!! Of course I still have some right rib pain and now it extends down my leg and my RX is 80mgs of oxytocin plus oxy 40mg of oxycodone a day. The saga continues because this March after dinner I notice my left hand was not reacting properly and my left foot was dragging so I made note of the time and having prior first resapnder training after 15 mins no change so I called 911 and I had a stroke and thank God they gave me TPA within 2 hours and I fully recovered. So life continues and Thank God I am better than many other people out there with greater malidies than myself. So God Bless all of you and don't give up the struggle!!

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Hello, Mailman, and please forgive the late reply! I can't begin to thank you enough for your kind words as they've made me feel better inside and that I actually (tried) to get something accomplished. You know, though, that it becomes impossible to actually make anything really happen when it requires the participation of others who would rather take than to contribute. You, of anyone, were the most cooperative but it's sad that our efforts weren't enough. And, although I recently had my gallbladder removed, I still have a tremendous amount of stomach pain (which was being masked by the gallbladder pain) so now I have to go through an endoscopy to rule out stomach cancer. If that's not what it is I can only pray they find out the source of the pain. Plus, now I'm in the Medicare donut hole so I can only afford one of the two pain medications I need to keep the pain under somewhat control (Oxycodone unfortunately and still) and I've lost two more teeth in the meantime. As always,I wish you, too, the very best and we can continue to commiserate together even if the others won't. Be as well as you possibly can and thanks again for your kindness. Christine

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Dear Christine - I know Medschat could not do anything more than what they have done and for that I thank them from me ! Then it was you and you alone that did everything to try to get this thing going and myself and anyone that spoke to you did nothing but complain or wait for teeth to fall from the sky and land in our mouth ! For anyone who knows you where the first person ever to be able to get the site to let us get in touch with each other and for that alone you should be very proud of yourself because as you did this you were getting sicker by the day ! You needed anyone of us to just take over or lend a hand, and I myself should have been first to help you but this is in no way a valid excuse but being injured and dealing with my depression and pain from 1997 and as of right now my back has been really getting to where I have become angry at every one including my family and friends because of the pain ! I am to a point where I am so tired of being tired in pain and loosing any pride I had left because of my teeth has made me a person that doesn't want to go anywhere or do anything! So I would not have helped but probably made it tougher for you ! For that I am truly sorry and wish I did more but I didn't ! I watch people want to have there name on a legal suit but nobody wanted to pick up where you got us and move forward. Anyone who has spoken to you knows you are going through some really bad health issues that put you where it was just to much for you. I hope u have found some relief with your pain and I want the best for you and anyone that is dealing with what we are going threw because your injury is one thing. But when we were and still are being givin medication that destroy's your teeth and have to take it because they have you to a point where there is nothing you can do about it ! A label of warning about what it will do to your teeth and your life should be the least they could do ! They know the money they make we can't even imagine ! But greed, and not caring about the people it is sold to is horrible and they should step up and fix the teeth that they took from us and they make enough money that they wouldn't even notice the difference in there pocket at the end of the day ! Christine please hold your head high and know you have done more than all of us put together ! Also I know nothing about anyone else that has anything going on to help other than all that you have done ! If I did I would have been in touch with you before I would do anything ! That is the least that I could ever do for you ! If I hit the lottery I will be in touch and get our teeth done right away and I will take you to dinner for a nice steak dinner ! God bless you and hang in there Christine ! I thank you for all you have done for me ! I hope some day everyone on this site goes for a steak dinner and when your done smile and be happy again ! God bless everyone dealing with this and any health issues you may have! Mail has been delivered!

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I lost all my teeth due to percocets for my injuries nd pain .we are all screwed

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I also believe the medication should list this side effect. I took biotene n it didn't help. Now I have to pay $13k for post

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Hey, Mailman.... Christine here.... do you happen to know how that new group chat thing (that Admin put together) worked out? Anyone participate? As you know, and in addition to my own medical issues that takes everything out of me (still), I was VERY disappointed in the fact that, aside from a few, most everyone else who were clamoring to have our emails shared (so we could all "talk" to one another) no one actually participated so I just got fed up and let it go. Thus, after having read about what was later put together, I was wondering if it was anymore successful than what I had already tried to do? I hope so BUT it's usually those who complain the most who end up being the least likely to actually pony-up and get some of the actual work done (at least it was in my case). I applaud what admin tried to do, though. Hope you're doing as best as possible... Christine

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Hi autumn i also experienced rotting teeth from Oxycontin. Did you all get a group together that I can join or did anyone contact a Atty that I could call as well. I would appreciate it if you could get back to me. I would love to support and help out with this.

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I would be willing to join you in pursuing something further because I as well had beautiful teeth before starting Oxycontin. I had just had my braces taken off cuz my treatment was completed. Over a 7 yr period I noticed my teeth getting rotted from the gum line then eventually they just got bridle and started falling out. This has hindered my life terribly cuz of embarrassment. I have no money to even pull the rest out and get dentures. The dentist said I have thousands of dollars of work needed in my mouth. All I do is cry on top of my medical issues. I'm a mess I just want my beautiful smile back. If I knew for 1 sec that Oxycontin would have done this to my teeth I would have researched other medication.

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while I don't disagree with your comments particularly as I now know a lot more about the medication and have stopped taking as well.

I would add though that the information that comes with the meds is very economical with the reasons why they cause tooth decay. as a member of the public I wouldn't know that " dry mouth " which is a side effect would be the cause of the decay and I think that should be made clear and isn't!

I would add, that if a medication can be so devastating then surely it's the duty of the doctor or whoever prescribes the medication to know this and warn the patient to the potential harm that it can do. and my doctor didn't !

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I live in South australia in answer to the question where we live to get more resources

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yes i totally agree wat ur saying. i been on oxycontin for 7 years and had perfect teeth too but now im soooo aashamed of my teeth. their all black and falling out and just speent easter in intensive care this year because of an abscess in my mouth and they had too have emergency surgery and then kept in a coma for couple days due too blood poisining. i had lockjaw and everything.. my teeth r disgusting.and they were perfect before i started this medication. i have turned into a real hermit and neva smile. smae thing always had a partner and so happy , but now i have no one and nothing but a mouthful of rotton teeth. my dose went as high as 140mg a day but im down too 80mg daily now. its ruined my life in everyway frrom being a hermit too having rotton teeth too thinning hair and looking old and fuzzy brain that couldnt organise a thing let alone have my life in order like i used too have. i used too work in an airport as security for years and hurt my back patting down a passenger which led too 2 back operations which was the beginning too the end of my good life and the start of my life now 7 yrs later which i wouldnt wish upon too my worst enemy. so yesssssss, oxycontin does ruin ur teeth no matter wat the so called experts say ppl like u and i should know as were the ones with rotton teeth and i used too be a very proud confident woman and always had a partner but that all went out the window with my teeth. so ur not alone my dear.

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I'm amazed at the number of people that have posted threads regarding the link between oxycodone and dental decay. Is there a class action suit or is there a law firm to contact. Has the manufacturer of oxycodone helped anyone with dental repairs ?

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as some of you may recall i asked the dental law partnership to look into my case. and without boring you with all the details, they've finally come back to me and the upshot is, they don't feel there's enough hard evidence to bring a case against either the pharmaceutical company, my dentist or doctor. of course I don't agree.

clearly to pursue my case under a "no win, no fee" basis would prove too costly from their point of view because of the difficulty in trying to prove my claim.

it was also made clear that the cost of bringing an action against a pharmaceutical company would be enormously expensive and is another reason they wont take it on.

i did provide them with a link to this forum, simply to state that i wasn't a lone victim of oxycontin. i asked about a legal suit and their comment was that all on here's situation is different and therefore again hard to pursue.

while we may all have come to our current positions via different routes, surely the common denominator is, we were all prescribed oxycontin to treat chronic pain and we have all suffered tooth decay.

for those of you that live in the uk like me, i would urge you to contact the dental law partnership with your own story because no doubt, the more of us that do, the more weight it will give us and just might convince them that there is truth in our complaints.

their details are: the dental law partnership, alvaston house, middlewich road, nantwich, cheshire. cw 5 6pf. email, [email protected]. and dentallaw.co.uk.

i'm not throwing in the towel just yet and will look for other avenues to explore and if i have any luck i'll post back on here.

and another thing, I am pursuing making a complaint to my doctors surgery, I think we all should do that, if we haven't already. Even if it makes you feel uncomfortable, after all we're the victims here and the ones with holes and gaps where teeth once were. it's not your doctor that would be paying out the money it would be the surgery's insurance if you/we were successful.

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Reading these numerous histories of other patients with exactly the same problems I'm having is reassuring. Is there a class action suit started anywhere? I'm in Canada and would like to have this problem addressed. Has the manufacturer admitted any liability?
Pat

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Angela there are places that do affordable dentures. Also see what a Medicaid spend down would be if not eligible. Store medication can be used. I worked there for my local county. I spent over $15000 on crowns bc of accident n I have same issue where teeth are wrecked n wear partial bc I had 2 major surgeries on neck. Been on medication since 07 n in 2 yrs they got soft. Where do you live as state so I can find resources for you

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