Amalgam filing removal when pregnant-worried about mercury exposure

I am sad top hear this is causing you such anxiety. Your dentist did this in an ethical and caring way. THERE IS NO RISK TO YOUR BABY. Forget this episode and enjoy your pregnancy.

Do not rely on google for advice in relation to this as every shyster in the anti-amalgam lobby group will give you very misleading advice.

If your doctor took the bloods he needs to explain to you exactly what they mean. But it is of no consequence.

lemonpink wrote: »

I am 20 week pregnant and had to get an amalgam filing removed last week due to bad decay

This is absolutely the most important point in your post. There was bad decay- ie: active disease- present in your mouth. Neither you nor the dentist had any choice *but* to remove& treat it. Realistically, you can't leave "bad decay" for another 4-5months without serious ramifications. I would urge you to also Google things such as sepsis, irreversible pulpitis, facial cellulitis, Ludwigs Angina....it's very important to consider what effect these things would have on you& your babys' health, and weigh up that risk also.
Rubber dam is used by endodontists worldwide when performing root canal treatment; it acts as a barrier to prevent the patient swallowing bleach....it's isolation credentials are well proven!
In general, for general peace of mind, dentists prefer to keep treatment (other than routine checkups& cleanings) to a minimum during pregnancy. Unfortunately, this is not always possible during an emergency situation, & leads to stress for all parties (not necessarily baby!).

lemonpink wrote: »

I was not aware of the controversy regarding mercury vapour exposure from amalgams until I researched the topic myself. My babies health is my priority.

I know many many female dentists who worked throughout their own pregnancy, in close proximity to amalgam, in small surgeries/confined spaces, handling amalgam, placing amalgam, removing amalgam... every single day over the 8 months of working during their own pregnancy.
Do female dentists not consider the health of their own babies at all?
I agree that I cannot add anything more to this thread, it is your choice to interpret the evidence however you wish.

lemonpink wrote: »

Dianthus, whats done is done. In your own opinion, should I be concerned about the mercury vapour exposure? I now you say that many pregnant female dentist work with amalgam everyday but why is there such controversy about amalgam removal in pregnancy and its apparently a big no no when pregnant. Is there truth and genuine evidence behind the debate or is it one of those scaremonger technique similar to the childhood vaccine debate. can you interpret my mercury blood level test result of 0.5 ug/l?

Hi Again,
To try and alleviate your fears again:
"In general, a blood level greater than 10 mcg/L indicates an unusual level of exposure for someone who does not regularly work with mercury"
from this link: http://labtestsonline.org/understanding/analytes/mercury/tab/test/
Please note: mcg/L is the same as ug/l....They both mean microgram.

As such you are 20 times lower in your blood mercury recording than should even begin to concern you.

I already advised you to talk to your GP WHO MADE THIS TEST AND IS OBLIGED TO EXPLAIN IT TO YOU. Is there a reason you cannot follow that simple advice or do you not trust your doctor or all the dentists that have given you advice here?

Finally there is controversy for many reasons but primarily mercury in high levels is toxic (like chlorine in our water or many other things you are exposed to daily like car and industrial fumes) and there are environmental concerns for cremation after we die.

There are unethical practitioners treating patients like you where the last concern is your health, it is their profit. Your dentist carried out the procedure ethically and you had no choice on the procedure realistically.

Again please go and enjoy your pregnancy, this is not an issue but it is understandable to be concerned.

I remember reading before that to exceed your environmental exposure to mercury you would need to have significantly more amalgam fillings than you have teeth!

When looking up stuff like this online you need to use reliable websites that use evidence based medicine!

lemonpink wrote: »

Thanks for your replies. My doctor is on holiday for another r week. His secretary gave me the results. This is why I don't understand the result.

Op
You're working yourself up over nothing. Most dentists don't use rubber dam for the procedure you described. The dentist has done nothing wrong. Ring them if you've a problem.if you've a higher than average blood reading for Mercury chances are it's coming from water/food sources. Chill out. Focus on eating as healthily as possible and get some exercise if you're concerned about the future health of your child. A number of dentists have come on here and basically reassured you that you've absolutely nothing to worry about......and guess what they're right!

Now just being Devils advocate and pretend that you've been intoxicated with enough Mercury to harm your unborn child....what are you going to do...have an abortion? Of course not. There's bugger all you can do. There's no anti Mercury antidote. Look at all the pregnant skangeroos outside any maternity hospital across the country puffing away. Yet the kids are fine! And there's evidence there linking smoking to all kinds of health problems.

You'd be better off reading "not on the label" by felicity Lawrence. It's quite interesting and you'll think a bit more about what you eat. Farmed fish, chicken from Asia etc....it ain't as healthy as we think!

I find it ironic in my own practice when smokers attend and want all their silver fillings changed because they think the fillings are poisoning them causing a myriad of symptoms.