New member looking for advice on diving with fillings

[WanderingJon]

Hi,

I'm Jon, new to the forum. I'm hoping to get some advice on teeth and fillings. I have a mouthful of amalgam and white fillings. I've been diving since 2011 and have 64 dives. I've never had a problem with 'tooth squeeze' and as far as I know diving has had no negative effects on my teeth. I'm considering doing my Divemaster and Instructor training and want to hear from anyone with any experience of diving with a lot of fillings. I've heard some horror stories (teeth exploding!) and read that instructors can suffer more due to increased time spent in shallower water. I'd appreciate any advice or experience that you may have.

Cheers.

Jon

 

[Addicted2H2O]

I don't exactly have fillings but I do have about 5 root canals & crowns. So I don't really feel any pain while diving. But I also dive a FFM so that could be part of it, too. I haven't been any deeper than about 40 ft (12M) in a normal mask & reg but so far I haven't had any failures or bad experiences with the oral modifications I have. I have a few less dives than you but I'm currently doing the online portion of the NASE Master Scuba Diver course as a prerequisite to Dive Master. Not sure if that helps or not, but there it is.

 

[CathyE]

I have about 250 dives, no unmodified teeth, several root canals/crowns and four implants.
My front tooth (root canal/crown) used to get a little loose after a dive trip but I now use a mouldable mouth piece. No other dental work has ever given me trouble.
Most of my diving has been between 40 and 80 feet with at least 2 or 3 a year going to 100/135 ft.

 

[iamrushman]

Howdy and welcome from southeast Florida USA.....If you haven't had any problems so far.... you shouldn't have any problems in the future....Disclaimer: I'm not a dentist, dental assistant or doctor.

 

[gr8jab]

Not that I'm a worldly person, but I've never heard of this happening. It isn't a common topic on Scubaboard. Maybe you don't know, but if something can possibly happen it will be routinely discussed here as if it is a common deadly occurrence. Some people go way overboard. I therefore assume it isn't a problem. A quick search found only a couple posts.

I also have LOTS of fillings, from 1970s to 2010s vintage tooth tech. Of all the things that I worry about, tooth squeeze isn't one of them.

However, that being said, if you google barodontalgia you can read all about it. The latest data from the 1960s high altitude testing showed occurrence rates were 0.3% (that's 3 out of 1000 people). This struck me as really high, but then considering the high altitude situations are extreme low pressure, minor cases become major pains. Considering modern 20th and 21st century dental care (both preventative and treatment), I'm guessing occurrence rates are now much lower than, say, ruptured ear drums.

I'm confused about the exact mechanism, and when the issue occurs (ascending or descending). It won't be a big deal if it occurs while descending (squeeze) because you just stop/ascend. But a reverse squeeze (which isn't logical) might trap you, unable to ascend. A reverse squeeze implies an open cavity that lets air in, but then can't escape when needed.

From what I read, I took away two important facts:

1. It can occur at normal pressures, just because of temperature changes. This means a few feet of water is likely enough to notice pain.
2. It is generally not caused by shoddy dental work, but rather an untreated dental disease. This means that you and I are probably no more likely than anyone else to have a problem.

 

[WanderingJon]

Thanks everyone for taking the time to reply. Your advice is very much appreciated.

gr8jab, good point about the number of posts on the forum.

I guess the only way to find out is to see how it goes!

Cheers.

Jon