I had a zirconia crown placed. Not only was the appointment itself a bit of a nightmare, but ever since the appointment I have had burning in my mouth. It reminded me a bit of when I was on chemo, only without the sores. My dentist said there are no allergies to zirconia so he doesn’t believe that is the problem. I’ve been to two different ENTs. The first one ruled out acid reflux, but could not figure out what was going on. The second one thought it might be burning mouth syndrome, but said we don’t know the cause of it. Is it possible they’re all wrong and this really is an allergy? I need more dental work, but am terrified to move forward without knowing what the cause of this problem is.
Evelyn
Dear Evelyn,
I don’t think it is wise of your dentist to say there are no zirconia allergies. The human body is very unique and even when something is very biocompatible, like zirconia, there could always be someone whose body doesn’t deal well with it. There was a dentist who wrote about some zirconia allergies, but while he posted about it, there is no documentation on the case itself. This makes me wonder if it is just something he heard about instead of witnessed.
You could go to an allergist to get checked for a zirconia allergy, but I am leaning toward agreeing with the second ENT that you are dealing with burning mouth syndrome. While it has been said there is no known cause for this, there have been clear signs that it is related to dental anxiety. Many patients who’ve experienced these symptoms also documented either having dental anxiety to begin with or a traumatic dental appointment that led to the anxiety. As you’d mentioned a traumatic appointment, this makes me think that would be the most likely cause for you.
The good news is that there is a solution to this. My suggestion is that you avail yourself of dental sedation for your needed dental work. I think your anxiety is going to be too high for simply using nitrous oxide. Instead, I’d like you to use oral conscious sedation. If your dentist does not offer that, then I would switch to someone who does.
You have needed dental work and you don’t want to end up with a dental emergency because of your past experiences. Using oral conscious sedation will relax you enough that you could even sleep through the appointment if you wanted to. It can completely change your life.
This blog is brought to you by Lexington, KY Dentist Dr. James E. Williams.