Pfizer review: tetracycline staining of the teeth 169

Hi!
My name is Jeff, and I have suffered from the badly stained teeth caused from my mother being prescribed Tetracyline while I was in her womb in 1955-56. I was born in Ca. in May 1956. The stained teeth did not show up right away when I was two or three, but as my permanent teeth came in, they were all stained greyish-green. This condition caused me to be endlessly teased by the other kids throughout my elementary school years from 1962 to 1970. It bothered me so much that I tried to remove the stains by (are you all ready?) brushing my teeth with bleach, then Ajax and Comet cleansers; then the final effort: Scraping all my front teeth with new razor blades! Nothing helped, and all I did was to further damage and weaken my teeth. I brush and floss regularly what teeth I do have left. Almost all my back teeth are broken and crumbling. I want SOMEONE at Pfizer to TAKE RESPONSIBILITY for THEIR SCREWUP! Let's get together and start a class-action lawsuit against Pfizer. Somewhere there has to be an attorney who, like us, has stained teeth, and is mad as hell like us?
This side-effect tooth condition caused me to be introverted and overly self-conscious. I rarely smiled, making me seem unsociable and unfriendly. Needless to say, I was inhibited from seeking out employment where I had to be "smiling" or greeting others. I suffered in my personal life, too. Too embarrassed to go to my prom or out on a date. Psychologically, I was a mess. I simply decided to grow a long mustache to cover my teeth/mouth way back in 1973. I have had it for all these years! I had to pass up two promotions at a winery and another large US rubber company where workers were "discouraged" to have facial hair.
As far as relationships were concerned, the trick was to find a mate with the same stained teeth! Ha Ha!
I have not been able to afford the cosmetic procedures over the years, but I am faced with ugly, stained teeth and I have some decisions to make. I would still like to get them capped, etc. In this age, it seems as though more and more people who have been hurt or damaged by some medical product or procedure are finding a support group and/or an attorney who listen and take legal action against the offending company. Just look at all the lawsuits against the auto makers, food companies and DRUG companies.
What I (and probably everyone else) wants is to sue Pfizer and receive damages for the psychological loss of identity, self-confidence, and finally restitution for reimbursement and /or costs relating to all dental procedures to restore those damaged teeth to something more normal than the greenish grey color that so many people have suffered so long with.
Is there, or has there been any type of class-action lawsuit addressing the side-effects of Tetracycline? If ANYONE has ANYTHING legal on this subject, PLEASE email me at: jbbwineguy@yahoo.com
Thank you all!

I always wondered why those of us with high dental bills due to tetra teeth had no recourse. Having dark teeth has become especially difficult now, with the advent of tooth whitening. Others have teeth so unnaturally white that mine now look even worse in comparison. Studies have also shown that people with "bad teeth' are perceived as of a lower socioeconomic class. This is not right. Shame on pfizer.

I also suffered from ugly, gray stained teeth because of tetracycline I was given as a child in the 1960's. I felt ashamed, embarrassed, low self esteem, depressed, etc. as a result. In the 1980's I spent over $4, 000.00 on veneers and after a few months the gray began showing through! It wasn't possible to cover all of my teeth anyway and only resulted in more dental problems not to mention PAIN. It wasn't worth the COST. Despite my excellent dental hygiene, I have had to endure the PAIN and EXPENSE of fillings, crowns and implants as a direct result of tetracycline weakening my teeth. Now, at the age of 57 I have lost all of my teeth, enduring the PAIN and COST of having them pulled. I spent over $10, 000.00 to purchase dentures with implants in the hopes that they will be comfortable and stay in place. It has been a painful and costly ordeal for me because a pharmaceutical company cares more about making money than helping people. They should have to pay the consequences for their malpractice. God Bless you fellow sufferers.

Add my brother and I to this sad list. We too were given antibiotics as babies, in the late 1950's, that stained our adult teeth although I think in our case the drug was actually Erythromycin. We too have suffered all the attendant difficulties and indignities of having had such damaged teeth for over fifty years now. Count us as ready to join a lawsuit too. We should all have been compensated long ago.

Add my brother and I to this sad list. We were given antibiotics as babies, in the late 1950's, that stained our adult teeth although I think in our case the drug was actually Erythromycin. We too have suffered all the attendant difficulties and indignities of having had such damaged teeth throughout our lives. We would both love to join a law suit and certainly all of us who have been so severely affected for so many years deserve to be compensated. We should all have been compensated long ago.

This has haunted me my entire life. I have had people rudely say dont you brush your teeth?
Sometimes i tried to explain but when younger i could not explain properly this left me so self consciuos i never smiled unless i was around my family only! Even then i wouod often cover my mouth with my hand kind of like the shy demure little jaanese girls who do that and look so cute for me it wasnt cute it was sheer misery it kept me from so many things dating be ing asked to date even i think friendships with other girls my age they thought i was dirty though i bathed and brushed everyday
i would hear people whispering about me and my concentration became so bad that i wasnt focusing on schoool and therefore my grades suffered too i never tried out for any sort of sport or tried to join any groups because i felt really ugly and sadly despite knowing it isnt my fault i still do! I AM 46! Eventually i dd marry at 19 and my ex was pretty abusive about everything of course my teeth werent left out of his critcal remarks even though i explained and he pretended to understand i even overheard his mother say oh she is pretty but why she doesnt brush her teeth i will never understand! Imagine how humiliating that is? Yeah he saw me brush didnt matter though. My mother explained i was allergic to other anti biotics the doctor told her the medication could weaken my bones and teeth nothing was said about the staining i ran such high temperatures when i was young and had many throat troubles the only other solution was to let the infection go but nobody would do that to their baby toddler, young child, thankfully i grew out of te aloergy to other antibiotics by the time i was a teen too bad i got tonsilitus and strepp throat every year!

I think something should be done about this. Some sort of reimbursement for this. I was born in 1965 and have embarrassing stains on my front teeth all my life. Both my brother and sister have beautiful straight teeth and have never had to have braces. I would have the same teeth if mine were not stained so badly. I will be turning 50 this year. I am so sick and tired of having stained teeth. It has just been horrible. I have always been self conscious about it. It has caused so much anxiety. Just for this alone there should be compensation. I see all the young kids with beautiful teeth these days. It makes me jealous because I never had the opportunity to have beautiful teeth and a beautiful smile. I'm pissed!

Hi really interesting blog, never thought of asking the question before, but there are loads of us out there! so many common complaints, never smile with open mouth on photos, teased as kid, I have a great sense of humour but never laugh out loud...other side effects someone's listed match me too, i have irritable syndrome and had stomach problems for last 20 years...I'm 54 born in UK in 1961 - teeth badly stained but never realised so many other people out there too, really feel for everyone, it's been a tough break just to have some slight relief for a cough when we were kids :¬( In the UK we are notoriously bad with getting teeth fixed but mine are so straight - it's just the staining that has dogged me all these years!

I was born in 1959. I was given tetracycline when I was young for ear infections of which I had many. My teeth are a brownish gray color with ridges on top close to the gums. My dentist isn't sure if veneers will cover the color of my teeth. He feels the color may show though the veneers. I have two cousins who also have the problem of tetracycline stained and ridged teeth. I don't have the money it would take to make my smile decent. I've been looking for a site like and I'm haapy that I found it.

I was born early 70's and was a frequent tetracycline user when I was little. I had dark grey teeth full of cavity feelings, root canals, crowns, broken teeth etc. I spent thousands and thousands of money in the past on dentists and specialists yet still can't keep up with the teeth broken away one after another. This is becoming a my battle and is something I was hoping I could be reborn for. I remember when my daughter was at that "mean" early teen age, once I asked her to brush her teeth she said "so what? they could be like yours?" I'm lucky she is a very caring and loving person now and my husband said if he won lottery the first thing he wants to do with the money is to spending 10k or maybe 20k to have my teeth all fixed and replaced so that I don't have to suffer.

My sister and I have badly stained teeth and decaying teeth due to the use tetracycline . I'm am currently having work done on my teeth due to the colour and decay which makes me not want to smile.. My sisters teeth are in really poor condition also but presently cannot afford treatment. I am taking out finance to pay for meet treatment l feel some one should compensate for the damage created to what would of been healthy strong teeth.

Hi. I am 53 years old and have suffered discoloured teeth as a result of taking tetracycline as a toddler when I had bronchitis. My mother wasn't warned of the possible side effects. I have tried expensive tooth whitening which doesn't work because the discoloration is inside the teeth and not on the surface (so why did my dentist advise trying it - a cost of almost £1, ooo probably had something to do with it. I would seriously consider veneers but can't afford them. Unless you have tetracycline staining, or know someone with it, it must be very difficult to understand our angst. My worst moment was probably as a very self conscious teenager who needed a replacement crown on my front tooth. I took the unusual step of visiting a dentist outside my locality on recommendation of a friend. When I visited their lab technician he pulled out an array of crowns which he held against my teeth to get a colour match. He then laughed aloud in front of me and said that they didn't make crowns THAT dark. Do I think that teeth staining has affected me over the years? Be hard not to. If someone said they'd give me veneers, free of charge, aged 60 I'd still have them. Just a few years of feeling confident enough to smile and laugh in front of people and have my photo taken would be very confidence boosting. In the great scheme of things, we don't suffer from a life threatening condition and that's probably why most of us have put up with it in silence for all these years. But I'd still swap being tolerant for being more confident.

Hi. I'm 51y/o male who has had horrible tetracycline green stained teeth if I smike.
This is the visible half of my teeth . The other half of my teeth to gum line are dark grey. HORRENDOUS. My mother took tetracycline while breast feeding me. She felt horrible all of her life & took it to the grave with her, where I know she could finally rest over it.
I also have a mouth full of metal feelings, crowns, overlays, soft teeth, chipped & broken teeth etc. I am currently saving 3k to pay for teeth that broke away & the filling is just there on the top of what's left of my cavity filled base of a tooth. It's so painful, I'm on STRONG PAINKILLERS TO TALK.
I even have insurance & it's still 3k to fix the 3 broken teeth.
What I'd give to have decent teeth @ this point!

Hi, I am 57 y/o I was given tetracycline as a baby I have yellow teeth. It has been awful my whole life. What I would not give to have enough money to have white teeth once in my life. No one has any idea what a woman's life is like when she smiles, then someone says what happened to your teeth or you should not smoke. It really does something to your confidence. This huge company should pay.

I had no idea there are so many others who have teeth that are like mine due to tetracycline. I was born in 1956 and was prescribed tetracycline as a toddler. When in my mid 20's a dentist insisted that he could give me beautiful teeth using bonding in order to get rid of the grooves and yellow staining in my teeth. They were very nice looking until they began breaking off and cracking. Now at the age of 58, the yellow stains are still there and I have never really smiled without total embarrassment.

Is there an attorney out there that would be willing to take this case for all of us that have suffered for years? Some of us cant afford to have our teeth covered with veneers. They are very expensive. It makes us so sad. I am 56 years old and spent my whole life avoiding a smile. Helen in Saginaw

I too am a victim of Pfizer's tetracycline. Born in 1961 in a small Iowa town. Having to grow up and live with the shame and humiliation of all the horrible name calling, all the crud remarks, and all the awful stairs- to this day I do not smile - do not have many friends - and do not have much of a life. At 45 my teeth became very brittle and started chipping, causing me to have awesome headaches that never go away and can barely eat from the pain of my teeth. The nice folks at Pfizer need to buck up and admit to the horrible thing they have done to us all. I know they can't get our childhoods back - but they could give us a better further or at least get us to smile. Rita Tatum texasstardust@cableone.net

I too am a victim of Pfizer's tetracycline Born in 1964 was given this awful drug to treat Asthma. I too have endured a lifetime of misery not being able to smile when at school. And ongoing dental treatment I think what we all should do is just everyone of us affected by this drug should bombard every radio / TV station. / Newspapers with letters and emails etc . And also a crowds of us turn up at the Pfizer's headquarters . Keep talking about it until it comes to a point where they have to sit up and take notice. Our lives have been ruined by Tetracycline we need direct action! otherwise we will keep being ignorded by them.
gotudor42@yahoo.co.uk

As a child, around 7, I suffered from scarlet fever one year. I am deadly allergic to penicillin and was administered tetracycline as an alternative. Within 3 days my teeth started to change colors and shortly later were completely greyish in color.
Such drug not only stained my teeth permanently but also caused a enamel deficiency as well.
Every time I ate fruit or anything else which had acidic acid I was in extreme pain for days to come due to the lack of enamel which was left on the surface of my teeth due to the side effects of tetracycline.
Since I was born I always had perfectly aligned teeth and ALWAYS brushed and flossed my teeth.

At the age of about 42 my teeth started to literally crack, chip and start to break apart requiring to be completely removed due to such issues.
Sadly as it is this side effect is also hereditary as my youngest daughter suffers from enamel deficiency and has to rinse with fluoride treatment every day for the rest of her natural life.

Whether we like it or not we were guinea pigs.
They should pay!

I feel the same, my whole life has been destroyed by this horrible drug, I am 43 years old and I still suffer the embarrassment.

jella2212@gmail.com

How sad. Get a life.

My name is Steven Tapiz I'm 42 years old & I have had stained teeth for most of my life due to tetracycline . I want Pfizer to fix & repair my teeth as well as compensate me for a lifetime of pain & suffering . Pfizer needs to be held accountable .

I am 50 years old and in the same tetra boat as the rest of you. I was too young to remember my first hassle because of my teeth, but my aunt told me about it later. My Kindergarten teacher sent me home with a toothbrush and toothpaste one day. My mother marched to school the next day and tore the teacher a new one. I went to a different school for 1st through 4th grade and I remember having to explain my teeth a few times, but otherwise having few problems. That all changed when we moved to a snooty suburb of Chicago and I was enrolled in a catholic school. 5th through 8th grade were the worst. I was bullied and teased constantly by the rich brats and even some teachers. No matter how many times I explained it, everyone thought I could just brush it off if I wanted to. I dreaded going to school and never smiled. No one would use the drinking fountain after me, I had to go last to sip the wine at mass, and was voted "most like to never be in a toothpaste commercial" in 8th grade. The friends I had lived in the neighborhood and went to the public school. They didn't care about my teeth at all. In high school I got veneers and when I was 21 I got the front 6 capped, but I never developed a natural smile. In fact, I reflexively stifle an urge to smile to this day. People that don't know me think I'm a grump. I will gladly join any action against Pfizer.

I was born in 1963 and had tetracycline treatments at a very young age. At age six I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis and spent over a year in treatment for this condition. My teeth were extremely stained and brittle growing up, and I never have smiled for the camera because I was so self-conscious about my teeth. I have also had severe anxiety issues, including OCD issues and wonder if these were also caused by the tetracycline. My teeth have been a train wreck all my life and found this post because I was searching for answers. I wish there was a law firm brave enough to stand up for all of us who were affected by this life-altering condition

Me too. Given the drug tetracycline when I was a very young child, early 1960s. My parents had no idea what it was doing to my teeth. I have spent thousands already, but the dental work doesn't last long. It time again, for I have no enamel on my front teeth. I can't smile right now. Sad.

Tetracycline not only stains teeth, it dwarfs teeth from coming in, (23 teeth came out in my mouth and some are still baby teeth, all with crowns on them of course. It shortens bone growth in legs, arms and neck, and causes diabetes! Life is hell, and then you get breast cancer, all brought on from the onslaught of diabetes brought on from 5 years of tetracycline 3 times a day FOR ACNE TREATMENT!...It is pathetic that a drug manufacturer and doctor could do that to a 13-18 yr old child and get away with it. LIfe is hell and then you die. :-(

I too, was given this drug in the mid 60's. My adult teeth came through grey. Was teased through school, kids said i didnt clean my teeth which really hurt. I remember my mother crying, whilst brushing my teeth because i had been so upset that particular day at school as a boy refused to sit next to me because my teeth were rotton.
When i was 16 i was fortunate enough, so to speak, to have my top six teeth crowned. I had to go to see a guy, think he was from NHS and he agreed this was affecting me emotionally. NHS paid for these six teeth. I didnt realise the upkeep involved though. Thirty six years later most of my back teeth are broken and two of my crowned teeth are now loose. I envy people with good teeth and always in the back of my mind i wonder how my life would have been had my teeth been white naturally.
My two sons have beautiful teeth due to me nagging them to clean them, elec tooth brushes and regular visits to the dentist. Both had braces and can appreciate how lucky they are to have such good teeth after hearing my stories connected to my issues regarding my teeth
Its sad that we only have one life and have struggled every day with this disfigurement. People have said in the past "post crowns" that they never noticed my lower teeth as i had pretty eyes and that was their main focus. Compensation should be given but i doubt now after all these years it will.

My name is Tammy Hatcher Brown and I took the drug tetrocycline in the 1960's due to medical illness. Then, their were no information given that this would be a terrible discoloration of permanent teeth. I have always been made fun of all thru my life and I hate to smile and feel so embarrassed and depressed. This has put me in a terrible depression and gave me very low self esteem all of my life. I feel that Pfizer should compensate me for pain and suffering and almost mental breakdown due to having terrible discolored teeth! I can not afford dental work to have white teeth. Estimate I received is around $15, 000. This is all that I have ever really wanted and dreamed about, and that is to have a nice smile. This has caused me a great hardship thru the years being bullied and made fun of and called grey teeth. It has edffected my personal relationships to feeling so insecure and unattractive that I have had bad

I too suffer from tetracycline stained teeth. I would love to have some financial assistance to pay for veneers if there is nothing else to be done. I was given the drug repeatedly from the mid 60's to sometime in the 70's. That was the preferred antibiotic from my childhood family practice Doctor. I'm certain that he would not have prescribed tetracycline had he known of the emotional pain that his prescriptions has brought into my life. I'm was raised in Ventura County California and I know my brother and I both have the staining and we can't be alone.
Thanks,
Bobby Wiegman
Huntington Beach California

My name is Brian and I was given Tetra in the mid-60s by GW MD of Eau Claire WI (now deceased). Everything you've all written-- I experienced. Shame, ridicule, ZERO social life, heck I even chose to NOT have children because of this. Every time I went to the doc as a kid he would pull my cheeks open and look at my teeth like I was a horse. Never did anything but I'm sure he knew. I also know my parents were afraid to sue because he was a DOCTOR (gasp) and they were mere people. This was directly from my mom before she passed. It haunted her as much as me.

I was finally able to get a bridge for my uppers at the age of 25 but am now going through the veneer process ($8, 000) at age 51. I'd be EXTREMELY interested in participating in your class action if its still being investigated! I love you my brothers and sisters! I still weep from our pain.

In 1963 I also was given Tetracycline when I was 2 years old and it stripped away all my enamel, leaving me with a shameful smile for the balance of my life. Every day I'm reminded of a society where money is more important than people. Why should Pfizer care that people have suffered using their product? I'm sure they all have great teeth and health insurance. Lucky them.

I came across this blog by accident and it made me feel as if finally, I am not alone. I have severe staining from Tetracycline as I am sure many of you do, and the emotional and physical pain I have had to endure through my life has almost been unbearable. The fact that a company as large and profitable as this one, has not made some kind of restitution is appalling. I am not looking for any handout or monetary gain, but the least they should do is reimburse us for all the money we have had to pay out in dental procedures or provide us, free of charge, and dental solution for what they inflicted upon us.

I too have teeth stained by the drug Tetracycline, As a child I had my tonsils taken out and got very ill, I was like 7 years old in 1968. My brother's and sister all have beautiful white teeth.. I would love to have my teeth whitened I know that I will never be able to afford this. I also was told by my dentist that it was impossible unless I had veneers or some type of covering put on them. All my life I was teased about the color of my teeth and told that my teeth where fake, Its so unfair that the pain and ridicule we have gone through because of this drug Tetracycline...

I agree whilst I would imagine it is hard to quantify how much "pain and suffering "has been caused it is interesting that a common theme is " the child who wouldn't smile". I clearly remember looking through my school photographs and up to the age of 7-8 I have a wide toothy or gappy smile. Then as my adult teeth came through with a band of brown across every single tooth I developed what my mother called my 'Mona lisa ' smile and if the photographer managed to get me to crack a grin then I wouldn't let my mother buy the photo as I didn't want to look at it.If a case was brought I would be happy to simply have my smile fixed. I have brothers with perfect teeth and I am certain my teeth could have looked like theirs but with a growing family I know I will never have the funds to fix my truly British smile

My mother would take me to the local clinic and i would get shot up with this crappy drug. All my other brothers had beautiful, white teeth. I often got teased. I would get called Ol' Yella

Well how's this for some news...they are still prescribing Tetracycline to INFANTS! My baby was only 10 days old when his doctor prescribed this to him when he had a urinary tract infection! Not only did he prescribe my baby this, but put him on it prophylactically! Now at 8 he is riddled with all kinds of problems! I want to sue! Is there anything we can do?

Tetracyline stains ruined my life as well. If the injustice happened in today's world, these pharmo companies would have already paid billions...if taking a pill turned your kids teeth brown today, the whole damn world would be outraged...lawyers unlimited. So what do we have to do to hold the pharmo's accountable? Even though it ruined my life, I don't want millions, just enough to fix my teeth for god's sake. They owe us that. They owe us more, but a nice smile has ALWAYS gone a long way. I understand and sympathize with each and every one of you. We've been robbed of a lot more than white teeth. What about the sales job you didn't get, or the promotion because you couldn't speak in front a large crowd, or the smile you did not return from accross a crowded room. Its just so very f'd up. Lets band together and do something.
bgawlik1@yahoo.com

My mother and her 2 sisters all have tetracycline stains on their teeth, if anything happen of this, please let me know and I will make them aware.

Thanks,
ryan.kull219@gmail.com

The email address of the person initiating the lawsuit is no longer in use and no mail can be delivered to it. I too have had my life literally destroyed as a result of being prescribed this vile drug. I was born in 1964 and was started on tetracycline in 1965, and I have suffered my whole life with incredibly ugly teeth. This company absolutely must pay for what it did to my life. I've never been able to marry or have children because of this horridy medical malady, and the psychological damage has been intnese, massive, and enduring.
The person who started this complaint included an email address: sunshine_consumer@bigstring.com. Unfortunately this address in no longer functional. If you want to get in touch with me just email me at:

mynewemail86@yahoo.com

And we can talk.

I, along with my Brother and Sister, were victims of this as well. I have spent a lifetime of people thinking I'm not a very friendly person because I don't smile much. I was trained at a very early age to avoid smiling after enduring much teasing and harassment. I am now 48 and it sure would be nice at some point to know what it is like to have a beautiful white smile, but unfortunately I don't have $10 0r $12 thousand dollars hanging around for crowns.