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Archives for June 2018

Cheated by an Affordable Dentist?

Posted on June 30, 2018 by iowasmiles.

I had a cavity. I knew exactly what was wrong but didn’t have money to deal with it. A month later, it started feeling weird so I knew I had to force the issue and find care even though I was broke. I called around letting them know exactly what I needed to get their prices. I planned on going to the dentist with the best deal. One dentist I called assured me he’d be the cheapest. In fact, he was almost $110 under every other practice I called. I was thrilled. That was under what I’d hoped for. I scheduled the appointment right away. Once I was in the chair, the whole thing changed. He said my cavity was way too large for the treatment he quoted me for and I needed a dental crown. That was way more money than I planned. I left without the crown, feeling cheated. Is he right? Do I need the crown or did he lure me there with a low price he’d never follow through on?

Cathy

Dear Cathy,

A dollar sign hatching out of an egg

It would be impossible for me to tell whether or not you needed a crown without seeing your x-rays. But, I’m not surprised you don’t trust him. When you price shop and someone comes in way under everybody else, you’d have to wonder why he is so much cheaper than the other dentists. One thing I hope to help patients to understand is that cheap doesn’t always mean affordable.

Often they’re cheaper because their materials are cheaper and don’t hold up. Or, they’re not very good dentists and have trouble retaining patients in their practice.

All that being said, it’s possible the dentist was perfectly correct in his diagnosis. You mentioned you’d had the cavity for a month and you’d begun to feel it. While some cavities take a while to get serious, others can suddenly take off out of nowhere. If it spread, you’d need a dental crown. In fact, you may be quite lucky this hasn’t turned into a dental emergency, costing you a tooth.

If you think a crown is expensive, wait until you see how much a dental implant costs to replace your tooth.

Finding an affordable Dentist You Can Trust

You don’t want cheap. You want legitimately affordable dentists. They won’t undercut other dentists, though they may have slightly lower fees. Many will have an in-house payment plan to allow you to spread out your costs. Even if they don’t do an in-house plan, almost all will work through Care Credit. It’s a medical credit card which has low and no interest payment plans.

Other times, if you don’t have insurance, they’ll give you a discount for paying in cash.

If you’re still not sure you trust the diagnosis, you can always get a second opinion. As you’re trying to save money, I’m sure you aren’t keen on paying another dentist, but you can bring the x-rays from the first dentist and just have them look at that. It will significantly bring down the cost of your appointment.

This blog is brought to you by Dr. Raymond Bolt.

Filed Under: Affordable Dentist Tagged With: affordable versus cheap dentistry, Auburn Affordable Dentist, Auburn dentist, cavities, dental crowns, dental emergencies, dental implants, second opinions, tooth loss

Dentist Wants Me to Remove Wisdom Teeth?

Posted on June 15, 2018 by iowasmiles.

I have partially impacted wisdom teeth. They honestly don’t bother me, but my dentist keeps nagging me about having them removed. If they’re not bothering me, why should I remove them? My dentist before college never worried about them.

Kevin

Dear Kevin,

When it comes to whether or not to extract your wisdom teeth, there are a lot of factors involved. Here are just a few considerations:

  • The type of impaction
  • The age of the patient
  • The likelihood of a problem in the future

The safest age to remove wisdom teeth is in the late teens to early twenties. That has to do with the pliability of the teeth and the lack of thickness at the end of the root. As you age, the teeth aren’t as pliable and there is an increased chance of complications.

image of a partially impacted wisdom tooth

If you were in your 40s with fully impacted wisdom teeth, I’d say the risks outweigh the benefits. However, you said you have partially impacted teeth. Look at the image above. You can see this tooth is partially impacted, meaning there is part of the tooth that broke through and another part still under the gums.

This becomes a prime source of bacteria getting trapped. It’s just a matter of time before this blows up into an infection and you’re forced to remove it.

It’s much safer to plan your wisdom tooth removal than it is to have an emergency choose for you. I’m guessing your dentist feels the same way and that’s why he’s encouraging you to get this removed.

Why Didn’t Your Last Dentist Mention This?

There are a couple of reasons your previous dentist didn’t mention this. You said it was your dentist before college, so I’m assuming you’re rather young still. It could have been that they hadn’t erupted yet and your old dentist thought there was a possibility, based on the x-rays that they’d fully erupt.

If he thought they come in fine, there’d be no reason for him to suggest you’d need them removed.

However, a second option is negligence. If your wisdom teeth were partially impacted at the time you were under his care and he didn’t mention extraction, I’d say he was doing you a huge disservice.

At some point, these will cause an infection. Best to take care of it early.

This blog is brought to you by Auburn Dentist Dr. Raymond Bolt.

Filed Under: Auburn AL Dentist Tagged With: dental emergency, Dentists in Auburn, Dr. Raymond Bolt, emergency dentist, impacted wisdom teeth, partially impacted wisdom teeth, when do you remove wisdom teeth, wisdom teeth

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