I think my dentist is cheating me.

[slycedbred]

So the guy was recommended through a family friend. Been going to him for a couple of years now. I've always been a little sketched out that every time I go to him I seem to have a cavity, no matter how well I take care of my teeth. The first time I went to him, I swear he put sealant on a tooth that I had JUST gotten sealed...Anyways, fast forward two years and here I am sitting in that damn chair again...He's always been really ****** when it came to cleaning my teeth (aka, he always stabbed my gums), so I was happy to have a new (and good looking) dental hygienist doing it this time. I was quickly dissappointed to find that either she wasn't interested in talking or was simply not interesting. Anyways, my dentist comes in after this woman cleans my teeth (quite well and without the stabbing of my gums) and takes a look at my teeth for about 3 minutes. He promptly declares that I have 5 cavities. The woman has a clear look of surprise on her face.

From here, they start using bullshit dentist lingo right in front of me as if I don't understand them...The woman believes I have just one cavity, while my dentist insists that I have 5. Anyways, they take it to the xrays and from I can tell, dark spots represent cavities. They argue about some faint spotting here and there and she re-xrays my teeth. The picture comes out even clearer and she again argues that I have nothing wrong, save for the one tooth and he argues that I do. Finally, he agrees with her and concludes "o well, start treatment anyways". I was thinking that treatment meant that he was going to tell me to keep real good care of my teeth. Nope, despite agreeing with the woman, he decided that he wants to treat me for non existent cavities. They ask for me to schedule a time for an appointment and I say I'll get back to them.

Needless to say, I won't be getting back to them. It's also important to note that my wisdom teeth are coming in completely fucked up. By this I mean a tooth growing on top of another tooth. And not only that, the extra teeth are actually ******* up my previously near-perfect tooth alignment. And finally, my tongue is now somehow too wide for my mouth and there's a ring of tooth impressions all around it from me unconsciously biting on it. I think I'm starting to have a ******* lisp here! Anyways, I thought that ****** would at least mention my wisdom teeth...Not a thing! After telling my friend about it, this guy apparently he got sued for malpractice while pulling someone's teeth.

Wtf is going on? Am I getting really screwed by my own dentist? Can I do anything about it to stop him from ******* other people over? Honestly, even if the cavity thing isn't a big deal, how come he didn't even mention my teeth at all?

 

[tiecollector]

Get a second opinion, definitely sounds shady. If he is bullshitting you, probe his colon with that explorer thing.

 

[KBW]

I had a guy just like that...always said I had a cavity or two and I brush after every meal when I can and floss daily. I went to him once and the hygienist said my teeth/gums were in great condition and that she could tell I take care of them and then the guy told me I had three cavities...I was like WTF so I went to my buddies dad here near my school and he was like I can tell you don't have any but we'll do an x-ray anyway and sure enough I had zero cavities. They make a lot of money off of the fillings and even though my insurance pays it all I'd rather not have fillings were healthy bone used to be.

 

[Nantucket Red]

Report him to the Tooth Fairy.

How do the tags for this thread relate to the subject matter, anyway?

 

[slycedbred]

Originally Posted by Nantucket Red

Report him to the Tooth Fairy.

How do the tags for this thread relate to the subject matter, anyway?

Perhaps because he's dirty, a douchebag, and persian

 

[gnatty8]

Not sure this is all that uncommon unfortunately. Dentists need to drive Porsches too you know. I went 10 years with zero cavities. Get my teeth cleaned twice a year, brush 3 X a day, floss once a day and use anti-cavity mouthwash. I don't eat sweets, no sugar in coffee, nothing but diet soda.

All of a sudden I move and have to get a new dentist. She promptly finds 2 cavities. In the last four years she has filled over 12 cavities. On my last visit she sets me up for 3 more bringing my total to over 15 in 4 years!!

I am no dentist and too busy to get second opinion, so I haven't argued. Am I suspicious? Sure. But with the advent of mouthwashes, toothpaste technology and overall good dental hygiene, dentistry is not a growth industry. IMO, they are treating "cavities" much more aggressively now, zapping anything that looks suspicious. Just my 2 cents.

I am moving to a new city soon, so will be curious to see how many cavities I have at my next visit. Specifically, I'll be curious to see if the new dentist "sees" the 3 cavities she identified on my last visit.

In your case, I would get a second opinion. There seem to be a lot of, let's call them over-aggressive treaters out there.

 

[SoCal2NYC]

Originally Posted by slycedbred

. I was quickly dissappointed to find that either she wasn't interested in talking or was simply not interesting.

So while she is sitting there with instruments in your mouth cleaning your teeth you are trying to hit on her and keep up a conversation?

 

[slycedbred]

Originally Posted by SoCal2NYC

So while she is sitting there with instruments in your mouth cleaning your teeth you are trying to hit on her and keep up a conversation?

Does your dentist work in silence?

I've never had one like that so it weirded me out.

 

[SoCal2NYC]

Originally Posted by slycedbred

Does your dentist work in silence?

I've never had one like that so it weirded me out.

Umm I much prefer that so I can somewhat doze off.

Is this common that peope should be chatty while having their teeth cleaned?

 

[distinctive]

Is his name Crentist?

 

[edmorel]

You're dentist is screwing you (and luckily for you it's financially and not the Seinfeld he's putting his pants back on while you are waking up from the anesthesia screwing you). And gets thos wisdom teeth out pronto. It will hurt like hell, but you should get a ton of Vicodin prescribed and you don't want to leave those puppies in there as they will rot the teeth they are growing under and you'll get all sorts of bacteria and ****.

 

[tiecollector]

Originally Posted by edmorel

You're dentist is screwing you (and luckily for you it's financially and not the Seinfeld he's putting his pants back on while you are waking up from the anesthesia screwing you). And gets thos wisdom teeth out pronto. It will hurt like hell, but you should get a ton of Vicodin prescribed and you don't want to leave those puppies in there as they will rot the teeth they are growing under and you'll get all sorts of bacteria and ****.

Haha! I remember that Seinfeld episode.
"I can't remember if I was tucked or not."
"How can you not know?".
"I don't know, sometimes I tuck! I think I was tucked!".

Perhaps this is really a sartorial episode about the Polo shirt.

Dentists are shady. Also, those fillings are crazy, if you take the filling and rub it with your hand, it is enough to make a toxic vapor come off.

http://v.mercola.com/blogs/public_bl...----26401.aspx

 

[rxcats]

I had a dentist in Oakland (briefly) who "found" several cavities and a tooth that needed a root canel. I was in my late 20's at the time and had never had any problems with cavities before. About year or so later I moved into the city (SF) and changed dentists; no more cavities! I think the need for dental procedures is often subjective and depends on your dentists lifestyle as well as your dental insurance or willingness to pay for dental procedures.

 

[emptym]

+1 on the second opinion and the quick wisdom teeth treatment. Something similar happened to me. I was in grad school and insurance didn't cover dental, so since there was debate about the cavity I decided to wait. 4 years and 2 dentists later I still haven't had any cavities found even when I've asked specifically about the tooth in question. Due to your wisdom teeth problem though, I wouldn't wait if I were you.

 

[Dewey]

Look in the yellow pages for a "scaredy cat" dentist. Not that you are a "scaredy cat" - rather that it has been my experience that such people are far less aggressive when it comes to drilling holes and pouring concrete.