I had dentists put off dealing with my rotten tooth for an amazingly long time. Several visits, over months, of cleaning all the other teeth, then NOT cleaning that one lest they irritate it (as if I wasn’t both used to pain there and on cocainoids at the moment), and then an appointment to pull it in a few more weeks. Bizarre.
I used to work for a dentist. (Full disclosure: she’s also my sister-in-law.) In her practice, this would be pretty unusual, but it’s not unheard of. We had a woman come in in really terrible shape after just a couple of years without a dental visit. She needed four separate appointments at 2 hours each to get the deep cleaning. (At least in her case, the appointments could have been quicker if they hadn’t cared about her comfort.) She felt much better after she’d had it done, and was pleased with the work. She’s the worst case I ever heard of while I worked there. It is possible that you’re an unusual case like her, and that’s why several people took a look at you.
It’s also possible that they’re trying to use up your insurance and don’t care how. I’m sure dentists like that do exist.
If they don’t give you your x-rays or mail them immediately to another dentist of your choice, raise the roof. They’re your x-rays. You paid for them. There is NO reason for you to have them redone.
I’ve never met a dentist, in the past twenty years anyhow, that would send x-rays to another dentist. In that same timeframe, I’ve never had a dentist ask for x-rays from another dental office, such as the general dentist, after being informed of their existence. Most dentists don’t seem concerned in the least about excessive radiation from x-rays. In the most techie dental office in town, they didn’t bother with placing a body shield for my x-rays. In the dental surgeon’s office, likewise, until I requested it and they gave me a weird look like no one had ever complained about it before. And I asked them why they couldn’t use very recent x-rays from my general dentist including the pano, and they said they would be no good.
In 2008, I had xrays and a cleaning, and they were happy to give me my xrays. The conversation went like this:
“Can I have my xrays?”
“Sure” (hands over xrays in a nice protective plastic folder).
Second opinions before engaging in massive amounts of work are always appropriate. So, go ahead.
I have terrible teeth. I’ve had a deep cleaning, at a peridontist, and it sure didn’t last 7 hours. However, a couple of cavities and a couple of replacement crowns in one year also sounds odd. Even with my bad teeth I only get a cavity every few years, and I think I’ve had a crown replaced once. That might be the sign of problems, or maybe not the best home care. (I have a full arsenal of dental implements I use fairly often.)
Some teeth are bad. We learned that our daughter’s mouth was a mess before she left the delivery room. It is fixed now, but not after massive surgery - some of her teeth were growing sideways.
But it looks like no one gave you the big picture, just a bunch of procedures and price tags. You should go back - for free- to consult on what is going on in your mouth. That will also help you evaluate the second opinion better.
In defense of dentists, mine never recommends weird and expensive stuff. I know exactly why anything is done, and he gives an option for cheaper but less attractive crowns versus more expensive ones. And less care is not better. In NJ we went to a friend and neighbor, and she was too wimpy at recommending treatment. I would have been better off with a bit more aggressive care.
Exactly. A friend of mine is a dentist and he makes enough to have a nice home in a decent neighborhood, a four year old Toyota Camry and occasional vacations to Hawaii. He’s one of a handful of dentists in the state of Kansas to take Medicaid. He prefers it because, first - they don’t make him run through as many hoops as for-profit insurance companies, and second - he can genuinely make people’s lives better. He volunteers for Free Clinics where he spends all day doing extractions.
I had been going to a dentist for a while. I stopped for two reasons. 1) He was the best friend of my sister’s boyfriend. When it went bad it became uncomfortable to go there. 2) He was very expensive. He has a brand new facility with ten exam rooms, a big staff and every single fancy new piece of equipment on Earth.
Just went to a new dentist. Older, very experienced. Told me I had a perfect set of teeth and he would not make much money off of me. He said I had some nice work done and I told him who did it. He told me a story about a family that he treats. The father stopped coming and later told him that he started going to this other dentist because he was in his plan. My old dentist told him that he needed $6000 worth of work to include replacing all of his old fillings. My current dentist agreed to look at him free of charge and found he has one filling that needs to be replaced for about $150. I had my suspicions about him before I heard this. Sounds like you visited someone like my old dentist.
My conversation went like this:
“Can you send my x-rays to [another dental office]?”
“Sure. Fill out this form and bring it back.”
[I completed form and brought it back.]
Later, at the other dental office:
“What do you think of the x-rays?”
“What x-rays?”
“You didn’t receive any x-rays from [my dental office]?”
“No, we did not. Did you request they send them here?”
“Yes.”
“Huh, well, looks like we never got them.”
My conversation with another dental office, regarding already having dental x-rays done recently by my main dental office:
“I just had a full set of x-rays done about a half year ago including a pano. Can you obtain those x-rays?”
“Not really. We prefer not to use x-rays from other offices because they don’t have them in the format we use.”
A couple of things to give you all the bigger picture of my teeth. gums, and general overall health of my dental work. I really have not had many problems with my teeth at all until about 4 years ago, when a lower molar lost a battle with a Corn Nut. (who invented those things, anyway?) Anyway, that broken tooth showed a few underlying problems, and a root canal was required. As I never had a tooth break like that, it wasn’t hard to sell me on the idea. The guy that did my root canal did a fantastic job, but the guy who made my crown did not. The crown was too high, and I had to go in a number of times to have the thing shaved down. It never did get right, I just grew tired of going into his office.
The molar that was hitting this one was the next to crack. This was the result of a filling falling out (the filling was around since I was about 10), and when the dentist drilled it out, he said there wasn’t much tooth left to put a new filling in (and while he was drilling the tooth, he cracked it). Crown number 2.
Note, the guy who dealt with my first broken tooth and the guy who dealt with the filling were the same guy, not a good decision on my part, but I was in emergency mode, and new to the area. Surprisingly, he could see me right away on both occasions! He was a nice enough guy, but he didn’t instill confidence in me in his abilities. The fact that he never got my crown right made me seek out another dentist.
Anyway, I hope this all made sense. The point of all this was that before this, my teeth and dental health wasn’t an issue. That doesn’t mean that it hasn’t become one, but I don’t want to over-react either.
Anyway to find out what if any work a dentist does on his free time? volunteering at a clinic is a good indication of his priorities.
Indeed.
I have not had a follow up phone call since visiting the dentist with options. I think I’m moving in a different direction,
I’ll update this thread for those that have been following it. I have to ask for the xrays, and get a second opinion, which will be interesting to say the least.