Well, I managed I think to make it 20 years, maybe 21 or 22, between visits to the dentist and when I did get there I needed two extractions (one of a tooth that had long ago crumbled away - perhaps surprisingly, it never caused me any pain at all), a root canal treatment and a minor filling. Not too bad a total, I thought. Took about 3 visits to get the lot sorted out and, to his everlasting credit, the dentist didn't even offer the hint of a raised eyebrow at the length of time it had been since I last saw one of his colleagues.