Hiya Jack,
I din't5 have any RA either, and I've never had the white patches/strokes on my knuckles..so sorry no ideas.
I'm in a mes atm:-)
I don't seem to be able to communicate with dentists at all weel. My gum hurt..from the accident and the crown being vertically too long on the inside and too short on the outside. I went to 4 dentists who said nothing wrong, then an endodontists who wanted to root canal that tooth and the one in front.. it tested out light for the "cold" test, but hey thinking about it now..what would you expect with a cerec crwon that is thiack.. normal feeling of cold?
So I went to the dental clinic complaining of pain.. actually in the gum of the tooth behgind, but had no way of pointing, and asked if perhaps some antibiotics or a dressing of antiobitoic inside my tooth may hael calm the tooth down and save it. NOW i know its called a partial pulpotomy, but she did a puplectomy..ie took out the pulp and dug around loong for the roots with a piece of metal.. so now that tooth needs a root canal. That was 3 weeks ago, and that night my tooth "burnt"..even thru to my nowe and my nose had a little blood come out..so I'm in a bit of a panic actually and started on some Valium.. , wwhich seems to be helping.
My concern is the root tof that tooth must be open in some way, and been studying root canal the past 3 weeks. It costs over $200 for a consult with an endodontist mostly, and there doesnt seem to be any way I can just ask a few questions as to what they use. I know a couple of peopple who have damaged nerves in their face..so I want to be sure they dont use some of the stringer caustic stuff.. sigh. I think the root is close to the nerve from the numbness I had for 6 mths, hence my conscern.. other that that and some artitis setting in my neck and TMJ(jaw joint) after the accident, and perhaps in my lower back too, I'm getting there , SO .. Ihope to be able to get a jpb one day. I've given up on studying ,edicine now.. actually just today I've finally worked out I just don't have the brain anymore, but I'm not dead yet either!
Hope this didnt sound like a whinge though.
It's great reading your blog as a pick'me up sometimes, Thanks