Dental Work- To do or not to do?
LO, my mother in-law, is 72. She was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer's type dementia, but she is already solidly in stage 5. She is living alone with us and a caregiver going to help, but it's become clear those days are numbered.
We recently took her for a dental exam after her avoiding the dentist for years. She had a cleaning which went well, and they did an x-ray and found 4 teeth in need of crowns. We trust this dentist, she treats the rest of our family.
Mother in law claims she has no associated pain, but we used to find orajel in her bathroom, and in other health areas she is not a reliable self reporter. (For example she has constipation issues and will tell us she is fine one day only for it to be an emergency a day or 2 later).
She, like most, hates dentists and does not understand why we're "making" her see all these doctors. (Between seeing docs to get her diagnosis and catching up on primary and dental care it has been a lot).
We're torn. Do we have the teeth treated even though it will be uncomfortable and maybe disorienting for her knowing she could live many years still and they could later cause pain?
Do we hold off until if/when the work is necessary because she is at a stage where it feels traumatic to her and there is no pain currently? Presumably they have already been damaged many years.
2 of the teeth are next to each other and can be done together, but still to treat all 4 is 6 appointments total.