psb182

if he looks into you mouth and nothing is wrong then he makes no money......get a second or third opinion

psb182

[

Here in New Jersey you have to sign a school form to say that they have consulted an orthodontist - and you have to give the details - at the time they turn High school age! I think it is some State law which is imposed if you send your kids to a public school... [/QUOTE]




I am no lawyer but I belive that if not illegal it must be borderline illegal......who are they to say you MUST see an orthodontist

Eskimo

It must be where you live Bob. I work in the Dental idustry and can assure you that we sell more braces here than anywhere in the world. In fact over 50% of all Ortho cases are treated in the US. My daughter would be an out-cast at school without braces. As of this year you cant get them on the NHS for asthetic reasons.

My view is bias towards CA but I believe the majority of people here have incredible teeth - too white and too broad an arch but still good. I know whiteness does not equate to health but straight teeth - do - easier to brush better aligned roots etc

As for cost Ortho is similar to the UK and so is dental. Here though there is a lot more "premedative" ie if it looks a bit dodgy then they cap / pull/ crown the bugger anyway - a English friend of mine was quoted 16k to put his teeth right here (he is dental technician in the UK) would have cost him the same in the UK but the Dentist would have done half the work !!

and finally my dentist in the UK was called Dr Payne and his partner Dr Pullum

Rockgurl

The first dentist I had in London buggered up my teeth. He kept doing repeat root treatments on them and then kept telling me to come back a month later. This happened about 5 times until I got fed up with it and went elsewhere by which time I needed the tooth pulled. I had an implant done at Whitecross Dental Clinic by a brilliant dentist who was experienced in dentistry but was training to do implants at the London Implant Center. I was offered a deal to do it for £1500 when it would normally cost £3000, and he did it under supervision of the professor and I had to have some students sit in and watch. It was well worth it and they did a splendid job. I've never had a problem with it and it feels just like my own tooth.

I will need some work done soon and I've been dreading it. I have good dental insurance through my job, and apparently the University Hospital that I work at has the number one dental school and clinic in the country, so it looks like I'll be getting treated at my own facility when my insurance kicks in. I hope that a University Hospital will have a lower quota of money hungry bastards working for it (or am I just naive?)

BritGuyTN

EXACTLY my thought

BritGuyTN

most likely the US is trying to fleece you - i've decided to put my foot down and cancel my wisdom tooth removal, that was the next procedure after my 8 fillings

Lizzi

A cautionary tale:

I had regular check ups in the UK, no problems etc. I have nice straight teeth much like all the americans pay to have round here . Got to the dentists here and was presented with a $4,500 list of work to be done. Foolishly, I was somewhat entranced by the thought that dentistry was superior in the US, so agreed to have the first item done, a crown, which the dentist said was urgent. I was so unsure it really needed to be done that I was questioning it right up to the last minute, anyway I had it done, but hey, when he removed the filing guess what, it didn't need a crown after all, apparently it needed a veneer I think it was called.
Anyway the upshot was that the insurance refused to pay for it, saying it was unneccessary work, and I should have just had a filling, which is what I had there in the first place. It took me $900 to realise that there was a major con situatuation going on, and it took me over a year to start to look for another dentist I would have confidence in.
And guess what, on the first visit to the new dentist, how much work do you think I needed doing on my teeth? Yep, you guessed it. None.

Celtic_Angel

well i for one certainly DID need to have my wisdom teeth removed , guess it just depends on how big your mouth is

Bob

that's a good one

Bob

Only ever seen 'em on adults over here...as for the NHS....you only generally get them when your teeth are fecked up anyway...

Yosser

Don't be so certain of the schools though Bob, just came back from Baylor, bastards trying to shaft me down there as well, now I have to go for "crown lengthing" some oral surgery or some bollocks like that. about a month ago they told me that an old root canal needed re-doing (I only had that done a year ago by a dentist that graduated from Baylor) but was told that the student I was seeing was not quailified cause they had to drill into it from the side and that I had to pay another $400 for that lovely privilage....told them to hold their horses on that little expedition as I was well and truly pissed off

Bob

That's to bad...the other problem with dental schools...bloomin' holiday times and there closed...but they are good and cheap for a checkup and a clean at least

NC Penguin

Funny that a thread on dentists is currently running.

I just visited the dentist earlier today. This is the second dentist I've seen in the US.

The first was a personal recommendation of a friend. He and his wife insisted he was a great dentist, etc. After going there for 3 appointments over about 16 months I'm not convinced.

1) he only works one day a week (he's a professor of dentistry at UNC the rest of the time)
2) his practice is not conveniently located for me (other side of town, 25 mins drive there. Maybe 30 mins on the way back if I don't get lost)
3) he put in a filling that promptly fell out after a day or so. Not too impressed about that especially for a dentist of great experience (he must be in his 60s).
4) don't like the way how most of my visits are spent waiting in the dentist's chair while he's working on multiple patients

However, the new dentist I'm seeing is fine at the moment because:

1) she's about 5 mins from where I live
2) two colleagues go/have gone to her and are satisfied
3) the hygeinist who worked on me did an amazing thorough job of cleaning my teeth
4) I didn't spend any time idle in the dentist's chair
5) the dentist works four days a week and takes appointments as early as 7.00am!

Like the first dentist I saw, she's out of network but I don't mind. I just want a good dentist.

The fun bit is to come. This second dentist has spotted decay in one tooth that the first dentist also identified. I've signed a consent form to allow the first dentist to transfer "bite wings" x-rays to the new, second dentist. I wonder how long it will take for the second dentist to receive the x-rays.

I have an appointment for a filling in two weeks time...




NC Penguin

neil

I've decided I really like my new dentist too. They're really friendly (especially when compared to my last one), and tell me and show me everything they're doing. They pointed out a cracked filling that needs replacing that I'm sure my last dentist wouldn't have bothered with, but I'm still dubious about their suggestion to take out my wisdom teeth (I'm going to refuse that one for now at least). Even though I'm spending a bit out of pocket on this dentist it still compares for what you get charged for a dentist visit in the UK now anyway so it's not that big a deal (although I know it would be if I didn't have insurance).

NC Penguin

Another thing about dentists and other providers of services. Does anyone wonder about some of the questions on the forms one has to complete before treatment/service begins?

When registering with the new dentist, I was asked to provide answers to the following questions (amongst many others):

Employer name
Employer address
Job title
Length of service with this employer

This was also required about my spouse too.

I didn't answer any of the above except the employer's name and address. I asked how information about my job title and service length with the employer relates to the treatment. The lady on reception couldn't answer. Therefore, I assume it has none and so I did not provide that information.

If someone at the dentist could explain how that information is relevant to my treatment or dental insurance, I would provide the information. As far as I'm concerned, it is not at all relevant so I did not provide any more information than necessary.

For goodness sake, I'm not applying to work there!




NC Penguin