The Lemon Fool

I am with a dental practice which does NHS and private work. The old dentist has retired and there now seem to be three practices operating from the same building.

The old dentist saw me once a year and said 'your teeth are good'. And that was that.

The new dentist wanted to X-ray my teeth (impossible as it turns out: I need to work on my gag reflexes). He did an examination and said my teeth had the enamel erosion of someone twice my age, giving the impression my teeth were very bad. He said I must be in pain - I'm not. He pointed to the yellower parts of my teeth as signs of enamel erosion, yet I attribute it to black coffee because I recall the staining comes off after the hygienist does a clean.

I was always told I had good teeth and I have no fillings (I believe 90% of adults do based on England-only data) either. He suggested considering various items of potential dental work (such as capping teeth) running to hundreds of pounds. When I asked if it was really necessary or urgent, he didn't really press the point as it was my decision. I have also been asked to switch my appointments to six monthly, rather than annually. This, of course, doubles the annual appointment cost. I'm a little cynical about what is going on.

Thoughts?

Best wishes


Mark.

Hmmmm..... nuff said?

(get a second opinion).

edit : and if it turns out he is a bying lastard report him!

There is a lot of demand for so-called cosmetic dentistry these days. i.e. work that is not medically required but makes your teeth look better or straighter in some way. People are self-conscious about their smiles often, especially if their teeth are crooked or discoloured. There has been a large increase in adults getting orthodontics where it used to be only children.

It is possible that younger, newer dentists see their job rather differently than the old practice of just fixing problems when they arise. There is more emphasis on prevention and appearance now.

Even so this dentist seems aggressive. Maybe he has a boat payment due?

Regular exams only need to be annual, but cleanings should be 2 to 4 times a year, I have always been advised.

ADrunkenMarcus wrote:I am with a dental practice which does NHS and private work. The old dentist has retired and there now seem to be three practices operating from the same building.

The old dentist saw me once a year and said 'your teeth are good'. And that was that.

The new dentist wanted to X-ray my teeth (impossible as it turns out: I need to work on my gag reflexes). He did an examination and said my teeth had the enamel erosion of someone twice my age, giving the impression my teeth were very bad. He said I must be in pain - I'm not. He pointed to the yellower parts of my teeth as signs of enamel erosion, yet I attribute it to black coffee because I recall the staining comes off after the hygienist does a clean.

I was always told I had good teeth and I have no fillings (I believe 90% of adults do based on England-only data) either. He suggested considering various items of potential dental work (such as capping teeth) running to hundreds of pounds. When I asked if it was really necessary or urgent, he didn't really press the point as it was my decision. I have also been asked to switch my appointments to six monthly, rather than annually. This, of course, doubles the annual appointment cost. I'm a little cynical about what is going on.

Personally I have a dental check up twice yearly and visit the dental hygienist four times a year. As you get older you are more susceptible to dental problems; erosion of enamel facilitates cavities/decay, gum recession (which is irreversible) can leads to pain. I'm surprised your old dentist never did X rays as they can reveal problems a simple examination can't. To be honest, the £19.27 a month this costs me seems small change in comparison to the consequences of dental problems it may prevent...

I've nothing against preventative check ups and so forth. I did feel that his comments on my teeth generally were a complete contradiction to the previous dentist, though.

Best wishes

Mark.

ADrunkenMarcus wrote:I've nothing against preventative check ups and so forth. I did feel that his comments on my teeth generally were a complete contradiction to the previous dentist, though.

Best wishes

Mark.

Sounds as if that is so, so what are you going to do abut it is the question surely? Only you can answer that though.

Dod

Dod101 wrote:Sounds as if that is so, so what are you going to do abut it

Procrastinate!