I really don't know where you were told that surgery is a big risk for people with COPD. Certainly it's not like you are a perfectly healthy 30 year old, but the risks don't have to be as great as you seem to think. After all, if the risks were that great, there would never be a successful lung transplant done: those folks are the very sickest, often with lung function of less than 20%, using high flow O2 to maintain, and generally not very functional and those are done regularly with good results.

My guess is that the oral surgeon has had very little experience with people with COPD, or had a bad experience with one and is gun shy. In either case, I wouldn't let him work on me, even for one tooth. I'd find an oral surgeon who has worked with people with COPD and look for a anesthesiologist who's experienced, too. Once you have a team who know what they're doing and what to look for, then go ahead.

The number of teeth pulled at any one time depends on your and the oral surgeon. Generally there's no limit, but if the oral surgeon or your pulmonologist is concerned, they may do the surgery in smaller bites. You do need to talk with your pulmonologist and cardiac doc to determine how long you need to be off the warfarin prior to surgery. Best of luck!

Mel I hope it goes well for you. I desperately need dentist as my gums are shrinking and making my teeth loose and very sore mouth but its one of my big phobias going to the dentist that I really need to overcome.

109876at: It's clear that you, your pulmo and the surgeon have been in consultation regarding your potential surgery and if you're comfortable with their advice, then you should follow it. Your original post made it sound like surgery was always a big risk for anyone with COPD and that isn't true. It certainly may be true in individual cases, which is why I say to talk with the pulmonologist, the surgeon and the anesthesiologist to be sure they have had experience doing surgery on people with COPD and that they are comfortable doing it. If they're not, you need to figure out if they're simply inexperienced with COPD or if they've had lots of experience and aren't recommending it. There's a big difference!

You are right that you should always check.

My DDS says albuterol is bad for your teeth. I have to wait around 1/2 hour to brush either before or after use. I also have to rinse my mouth real good each time after use. Jean I was told with COPD if they put a pt. out for the surgery it is always a big risk because you may not wake again; I think this also may depend on the severity of the COPD The surgeon really did not want to work on me, and that was for one tooth. On another note, failure to rinse after use absolutely causes thrush. I rinse constantly and just got it again.