Do you think dentists are educated crooks?

[Scanner]

I think looking at an x-ray film of a person's mouth should be pretty cut and dried when it comes to things like whether or not there's an actual cavity in a tooth.

Well, I'm not a dentist but I don't think it's cut and dry.

I have had my dentist just say, "It's an etch in the enamel. . .I'll keep an eye on it."

Another dentist could have called that "etch" a "cavity." And being in the healthcare field confers very little advantage. Other than understanding radiographic physics concepts better than the average Joe, I rely totally on my dentist's call on the matter (and I think I have a good one); I can't look into my mouth and know if something needs work.

I guess it's a matter of degree and aggressiveness on the part of the dentist.

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

No, flavor, I don't think dentists are educated crooks. I don't think many people do think that about either their own dentist or dentists in general. I think dentists are generally respected and greatly appreciated, even when people personally are fearful of dental procedures.

[disneysteve]

The same criticism could be levied at my own profession, chiropractic - inconsistent diagnoses and recommendations.

Same for physicians. I can't tell you how many times a new patient has come to me and when I've reviewed their prior treatment and the medications they were on, I thought to myself, "What the heck was this other doctor thinking?" My treatment recommendations were very different than those of the patients' previous doctors.

Medicine, dentistry, chiropractic are often said to be an art as much as a science. It isn't like following a cookbook. It isn't cut and dry. There is a lot of room for interpretation.

[Snowgirl]

Remind me not to go to a dentist in Canada.

Respectfully, I'm not sure the situation is very different than in the U.S.

I think it might be easy to find fault in every health care practitioner, like Scanner and Steve mentioned. In my friendship circle, I have a few young dentists, and most are very competent, ethical and dedicated. Sure, they know people who graduated with them that border on over-treatment, but that's not the majority. My own dentist (not one of those friends) is very careful and not treatment happy. Over the last 4 years, between my boyfriend and I, he repaired only one cavity, after "watching it" over 3 visits. I feel I'm into very competent hands.

I know someone whose dentist wanted to redo some old cavity work. She refused, thinking he was in for money, and discontinued further visits. 2-3 years later, one of these old repairs had given up (unbeknownst to her), and resulted in an emergency visit and a root canal. Cost a bunch!

[Gruntina]

Interesting... I would like to share the opposite view with my dental experience.

2 years ago, I went to a dentist to get my 6 month check-up/teeth cleaning. I was informed that I needed to get my wisdom teeth pulled out that they were abscessed. I did not do anything to get them removed because they did not hurt or bother me in anyway.

The next check-up I transferred to a different dentist which is an Onsite dental. I work for a large corporate in Silicon Valley where there are several corporate around and they share benefits for their employees by agreeing to services like Onsite Dental where they come to your company's parking lot in a large RV with dental machines set-up. Pretty cool for me as it saves me so much time especially when I have 2 hours daily commute from home and work. After getting my teeth cleaned, the dentist says I need to get my wisdom teeth removed before they affect the other teeth. I never got around to getting them removed because I had other medical needs that were higher priority at that time. I made another appointment with the same Onsite Dental. I ended up getting a different dentist that day because my dentist was pulled at the last minute for a military project. This dentist mentions she sees some abscess issues with my wisdom teeth.

Each of these times, I never mentioned my wisdom teeth or any issues relating with them. I am now convince but strangely I am starting to feel some pressure pains and headaches that feels tied to the pains in my roots area lately. Its going to be a focus for me this year to get them all removed.

[lovcom]

I think most dentists are crooks. But this is also true for real-estate agents, loan processors, mechanics, programmers, lawyers, everyone. I think most people are crooks, so lets not just pick on dentists ;-)

The dentist I have is great, and I don't think he is a crook, but others I've used in the past were.

[JanH]

We've had one that wasn't quite honest we don't think and one that we didn't go back to because we weren't sure he was experienced enough yet because of a treatment we had. My parents have had mixed results with dentists also. The one we have now is quite awesome. He is a bit expensive, but he has been rated very high in our state. And he is personable and caring. I had more problems with one of his hygenists and now that he has a second one, I just switched to her instead. It was more of a personality thing. She said a couple of unnecessarily unpleasant things to one of my children. I do know of one that we avoid because friends have said that he proposed things that were not needed. They knew it because they had just moved here right after having all their dental work checked out before moving. I have to admit, I have a nervousness when trying out a new dentist because of experiences. But, so far we've been blessed with the one we have. I am cautious about new dentists, doctors, etc., unless they come highly recommended by people. I have had a few wrong turns and some awesome professionals both.

[disneysteve]

I am cautious about new dentists, doctors, etc., unless they come highly recommended by people. I have had a few wrong turns and some awesome professionals both.

I agree. Unfortunately, in today's world, more and more people pick their doctors and dentists by looking in the provider book they get from their insurance company. They find someone conveniently located with a name they can pronounce and off they go. That's simply no way to select a health care provider.

Talk to friends, neighbors, relatives, coworkers. Get recommendations of who to see (and who to avoid). Then check if the recommended doctors accept your insurance.

[asmom]

I wouldn't say that they are all crooks but they seem to have more than their share.

Unfortunately, our luck with finding decent dentists has been astonishingly bad. My husband went to one dentist who told him he had 15 cavities. He got a second and third opinion from two more who found: 0. I had the same experience. After going to this one dentist for a round of "deep cleaning and scaling" after I got my braces off, they did X-rays and found 12cavities. Now how is that possible when I was getting my teeth cleaned every 3 months, brush and flossing 3 times a day(or more) and drinking flouridated water? I don't think so. Sure enough, two more dentist found 0 cavities. Over the years, we have both had similar experiences with other dentists. If we try to go in for a routine examination and cleaning, they were certain to find some more work that needed to be done and it was always above and beyond what the insurance would pay.

And let's not forget the expensive extras they try to push on you like those electric toothbrushes. After they act like your teeth are the worst they've ever seen, they try to sell you this electric toothbrush which they claim are essential for your dental health. I found out from my sister-in-law who was working at a dentists' office that this particular toothbrush only costs ~$20 but at least 4 different dentists were pushing them for over $100. I understand the need to make a profit but a 400% markup is a bit much. It also seems unethical to me. It's like a medical physician promoting a brand of vitamins that he gets a cut from the sale of, all the while telling you that they are essential for your health.


Fortunately, they aren't all bad. I have found a wonderful dentist who I intend to stay with no matter what happens with my insurance. But finding her was like running a gauntlet.

[PrincessPerky]

I agree. Unfortunately, in today's world, more and more people pick their doctors and dentists by looking in the provider book they get from their insurance company. They find someone conveniently located with a name they can pronounce and off they go. That's simply no way to select a health care provider.

Talk to friends, neighbors, relatives, coworkers. Get recommendations of who to see (and who to avoid). Then check if the recommended doctors accept your insurance.

When we had our first kid we picked our OB that way, and our Ped...there was no other way to pick, we were new in the area, and all the recomended Docs were not in our plan...except the ped an hour away..we thought that was a bit rough for a ped visit.

We were fine with the OB, but terribly wrong about the Ped, we only had one visit with them and that was MORE than we ever wanted to do again..so we drove an hour away for about 3 years...then the Ped moved closer to us! except she moved to join a group practice...which I dislike a lot.

When we finally went to a dentist, we picked him the same way...because no one we knew liked their dentist! We picked good though (great in fact) toss in a little prayer before you toss your dart at the book..it might work! (our ped dentist did come recommended though, and we agree he is nice)

[jodi]

I like my dentist so much that I keep going to her, even though she does not participate with my insurance, so I end up paying for at least half the visits myself (it would be covered in full if I went to a participating provider). Some things are worth a little more - like a dentist you trust.

Gruntina: My dentist told me for years to get my wisdom teeth out (every visit, in fact), but when I went for the oral surgeon consult, he told me not to worry about it if they weren't bothering me. What I didn't know then (and really wish I had) is that it gets a LOT harder to take them out the older you get. I just got mine out this year at age 29 when one impacted tooth started to break sideways through my gums. I had three full impactions and one partial - and a very rough recovery (about a month total, including lots of painkillers and even muscle relaxers). In contrast, my 17 year old nephew had his out a few weeks after me and was fine after one weekend. If your dentist is telling you to get them out, I would do it ASAP!

[moneybags]

After seeing several dentists that I did not trust, I went to my current dentist. At the 1st visit, she pointed out some old fillings that would need to be replaced eventually. Eventually ended up being years later. This is the only dentist I have ever trusted. We have since moved 30 miles away. I changed all my other drs - eye dr, pediatrician, etc., but I still go back to this dentist.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

I hate dentists. And in the US I took my x-rays to 2 other dentists after the original dentist wanted to put on 4 crowns on my teeth. I got none done, decided to go to a 3rd dentist. And the other three couldn't agree or disagree.

[threebeansalad]

I don't think dentists are educated crooks, but I did have a bad experience with one.

Basically, I was 25 years old and had beautiful, cavity / filling free teeth. I think the dentist sensed I was naive but cared about my teeth and would pay for anything he said I needed to keep my teeth healthy. He told me I had gum disease and needed a deep cleaning and expensive prescription mouth wash that I could only buy from him. When i said I wanted to see if my pharmacy could get it for me so I could use my excellent prescription drug benefits he balked. He also tried to sell me on teeth whitening.

I fell for everything but the teeth whitening. When I moved and went to a new dentist, they said I had no signs of gum disease and had perfectly health gums / teeth.

[flavor]

There are good and bad dentists out there. But finding
a good one is like finding a needle in a hay stack. In
the last 7 years, I've gone through 6 dentists, and they
all have done a poor job. One dentist, while working an a
molar, accidentally damaged the neighboring molar. So,
both had to be done. Another dentist purposely gave me
an open margin crown, so that tooth lasted about 4.5 years.
Another so called professional, implanted a tooth which was
not an implant material, leading to bone loss. Do you know
how much it cost me to have that grafted? Many dentists
have told my husband to have his 25 year old silver fillings
replaced. They said mercury was leaking. None of them were
able to explain how they came to that conclusion. He's never
had any problems with any of them, and has never had a deep
cleaning, just regular 6 month cleanings. Too bad his old
dentist is no longer around. He did a heck of a job.
I had one tooth with a porcelain crown that lasted almost
20 years. How can the recent work not last more than 5?
I brush all my teeth the same.

Do you think every dentist graduated on top of his class? Some
of them barely graduated. Is it any wonder why their diagnoses
defer so much?

Why is it that some dentists are "lazy" dentists, who don't
want to do anything about a problem, until it gets big?
(this cavity is really small, we'll keep an eye on it, they
say) Even a large cavity, with a little elbow grease can be
saved. But dentists don't make a ton of money from fillings.
Crowns cost more, and a referral for a root canal can bring in
a referral fee.

Why is it that a dentist's staff is a money making machine? High
productivity can bring in tons of money for all to be shared.
Great bonuses are very welcome. Next time you're in the dental
chair, and the dentist is making a diagnosis, look at the assistant.
Is she looking at the ground, looking away, or walking away?

Ever wonder about all the certificates the dentist has proudly hung
on the wall in his office. Most of them were obtained through an
"Advanced Dentistry Weekend" course. Dentists can become certified
in root canal, implant, etc, all in one weekend. Dentistry is
generally not life threatening, so the doors are open for all kinds
of experiments, at the cost of the patient.

That’s all.