Q&A: Bone Fragments

Question: My mother had problems with bone fragments after teeth extraction. When they pulled her teeth, they damaged her jawbone resulting in problems with bone slivers and now suffers from TMJ and her jaw pops loudly and sometimes “locks” in place. She has had problems for years, but I am asking now because I think it would be wise to really find out what happened. Answer: This may have been the result of her taking Fosomax or any of the other medications women are being prescribed for bone density “concerns”. I had to have a tooth extracted last spring and the waiver I had to sign included a statement affirming that I had not been on any such medication for at least six months, since they have been shown to increase the risk of thigh and jaw fractures. So much for pharmaceuticals “fixing” problems proper nutrition could resolve! At any rate, such problems are significantly less likely in younger people. (The wisdom tooth extraction, though, is a consequence of long term changes in our diets. The too-small-jaw problem doesn’t exist in more primitive cultures with more raw food in the diets; one of my sons floored his military dentists by getting all four of his completely in!)