Hello, my name is Anita. I am 67 years old, disabled, and I live by myself on a fixed income. I am raising money to pay for emergency dental surgery that I need to remove an infected dental implant.

Earlier this year, I lost a tooth and the dentist, Dr. G, discovered I had gum disease, which resulted in the teeth on either side needing to be pulled. I then met with a periodontist, Dr. M, for a dental implant to replace the three missing teeth.

Dr. M performed the first surgery in May to install the implant screw. This procedure went smoothly, and once the surgery site healed, the temporary teeth were placed.

The second surgery with Dr. M was on October 11th to complete the implant, and this is where problems started. Once the second procedure was complete, Dr. M immediately put the temporary teeth back in place before the surgery site was healed.

Shortly after this, I started having pain and bleeding. Upon follow-up with Dr. M, it was determined I had an infection. Dr. M did not remove the temporary teeth, and the teeth remained in place at the infection site with no further care instructions. Dr. M prescribed antibiotics to address the infection but wanted to immediately install the permanent teeth that connect to the implant instead of waiting for the infection to heal. This did not make sense to me at all; why would they not want to resolve the infection before putting in the permanent teeth?

At this point, it was time for a second opinion. I went to a different periodontist, Dr. J, on November 1st, and he took an x-ray which confirmed the infection in the area where the three teeth should be. I was still taking the 7-day antibiotic series prescribed by Dr. M. Dr. J indicated there is a high possibility that the infection is also located in the bone where the implant is.

After the 7-day antibiotics series was completed, I went back to Dr. J on November 11th, and it was determined the gum area is healing, but the infection is still present.

After a third visit with Dr. J on November 21st for follow-up, he checked the entire area, and there was improvement except for the actual implant location. At this point, the infection has gone to the bone, and because of this, the implant must be removed in order to remove the infection that cannot be cured simply with antibiotics.

The money raised will go directly towards expenses related to the surgery to remove the implant as well as the procedure to place a bridge in the area so that I can have those three teeth again.

Thank you for your generosity in donating to my medical fundraising campaign. Any amount is much appreciated. If you are unable to donate, please consider sharing this fundraiser with anyone you know.