Dentist Question & Story - Any Dentists Around In The Forum?

[TheMoneyShot]

So I changed dentists about 4 years ago. Went to this new place. I get my teeth cleaned and X-rays etc. 6 months later I show the dentist my retainer. I had ortho work done when I was 15-17 years old. I'm 36 years old now. And I said hey doc... can you check my retainer... it doesn't fit like it use to. The dentist says... you don't even need that anymore... your teeth won't shift or move. Now keep in mind this dental office is basically a 2 dentist team. 1 guy does Ortho... the other dentist does not. The one I'm seeing doesn't have an ortho background. (But I didn't know this at the time.) So I threw my retainer out. I mean... what else am I suppose to do with it??

So, I went to get my teeth cleaned last week. Now keep in mind it's been 4 years since I threw out my retainer. I noticed my front tooth shifting. They do a teeth mold... whatever the hell you call it and pictures. I told him... you guys told me to throw out my retainer... now look what happened. He didn't really respond to my statement. Looked at me like I was stupid. He goes... make an appointment at a further date... I'll have an answer for what we should do.

So, today is the day... I'm minutes away from seeing him. I've heard rumors he's the kind of guy to push that Invisalign system on everyone. Starts around $1,000. Why should I pay for something that technically isn't my fault. If I bring in a retainer to your office... it doesn't fit properly... why didn't you say... ok... we can offer you a new one at a set price that's custom to the fit of your mouth because you've aged. No, they didn't even offer that to me. So again... we're moments away of seeing what this dentist has to offer?

Last time I was there... I had a cleaning... X-rays... a mold done. I didn't pay my bill. If he comes back saying a huge amount for braces... for one tooth. I'm walking out... not paying a dollar. That's how business is done in America. My parents spent a lot of money to correct an issue... and these guys screwed me over. It's such a shame. Any posters here with kids... never never never throw out a retainer because some dentist told you to. They are suppose to protect you from further damage... and yet they produced more damage. Unreal.

[onemoregoal]

u didnt go for 4 years?

[JMon]

My wife has one and her dentist told her to wear it once a week to bed for life

[Ghenghis Kahn]

can't answer your question about your retainer but never get your teeth cleaned by a dentist.

they don't teach the dentist the proper cleaning methods at dental school.

always get your teeth cleaned by a dental hygienist.

also, try to get it cleaned every 6 months.

and floss daily... my girl's a dental hygienist and she gives me this info.

as for invisalign, it's a pain in the ass. i've heard you have to have it on for 23 hours a day for a year or longer.

you're virtually wearing a mouthpiece for the whole day.

[tb1984]

http://forum.sbrforum.com/saloon/1962508-anyone-have-dental-problems-dr-bbr-will-help.html

Bbr is a dentist. Just PM him...

[TheMoneyShot]

u didnt go for 4 years?

I was typing fast... didn't have time to get all the details. I've been going to this dentist for 4 years now. I just noticed the other day the tooth was moving. Kill 2 birds with one stone... it was time for a cleaning... so while I made my cleaning appointment... I told the receptionist about my situation so it's noted.


UPDATE

Come to find out... my appointment today was a consultation for braces and/or to fix the problem. Also, the same dentist who does Ortho was the same guy "on record" who told me to throw out my retainer. Total price to fix the problem... $1,575.00

I guess I won't be coming to see him anymore. It's people like this that make the world what it is. Why on earth would you tell someone to throw out a retainer if it doesn't fit??? What a complete C sucker. Should of just kept the damn retainer in my mouth on my own instinct. I was afraid it would of made it worse. Everyone out to make $$$$$ off of you. Greedy bastards.

[a4u2fear]

You're 36. I'd say let the teeth move, especially if it's the bottom teeth

[gauchojake]

Anti Dentite!

Dentists and vets are the biggest scams ever. When you find a good one, keep em. Most are out to fleece you.

[TheMoneyShot]

You're 36. I'd say let the teeth move, especially if it's the bottom teeth

Good point... I'm considering that. Its the top front tooth. You can barely notice... but it's shifting and quite possibly could shift more. I'm just upset that this dentist would tell me to throw a retainer out. I trusted what he said.

His assistant which claimed she's been in the industry for 20+ years... said she never heard of any patient needing to wear a retainer for lifetime? I said... you mean to tell me people are dumb enough not to protect their investment? They just spent $3,000+ and don't want to protect their investment? She tried to defend him... but she came up short. It's all good.... just another F up in life.

[Footballtime]

you think you got ******? I have a story, my youngest daughter has been going to same ortho for the past 2 years.. 2 years ago i sit down with the guy and he tells me what she needs and for how long, I agree and tell him ill pay him 2300 at 1st visit and the rest within 6 months. He says no problem, she will need these braces for 3-4 years i say ok....6 months later ortho is pais in full 4600.00... coupke years go by and all seems to be going well, then 1 night i open the newspaper to read it and he is indicted for like 150 counts of over charging medicaid patiants or some shit, Im like wow... Next visit all is cool and he seems like all is good, 2 months ago i open the newspaper again and headline story is ortho shut down by state, for improper cleaning of equipment and no idea when this guy is opening again, and also anyone that has been a patiant there should be checked for hepatitis 1,2,and 3, and also an hiv test. Im like what the penetrate, i know have to tell my 16 year old daughter she has to go for these tests and the whole story on why she has to go... 500 dollar doctor bill later, my daughter is finr, but now i need another ortho, cause this guy is still shutdown.. Bring my daughter to a new ortho, he says yeah i think the state had it out for the other ortho, but it looks like he was doing a great job... Im like great, this shouldnt cost me much more money with this new ortho...Ha ha boy was i wrong, get some paperwork in the mail about 1 month ago and he says yeah its like 3600 more dollars, i call the office and i ask him to look it over again and see if he can do a little better, or i may have to get another opinion...He says ill look if over and give you a call in am, im like ok cool... ?D?ude calls back and says we can do the total work for 3100.00 dollars, and once again half upfront, and the remainder paid within 6 months....I agree and so now my daughters smile is going to cost me almost 8 grand total.....If the original ortho ever opens back up, im going down to get some money back, or grab the prick by the neck...I have already looked up where he lives, i am not a happy camper... TMS, they are all crooks bro....

[FrozenMAN]

who throws out a retainer...you're teeth are ALWAYS prone to moving dude. I wear mine every night as I grind my teeth a lot. Already chewed through the thin plastic retainer and up to the heavier plastic now and it works. My teeth are near perfect too and never had braces but wear retainer as you'll keep your current teeth locations and nothing will shift

[FrozenMAN]

this is why dentistry is the biggest rip off and you MUST go to a dentist that you 10000000% trust and wont penetrate you over with unnecessary things. I'm lucky with my guy as he's a family friend for many years

[a4u2fear]

Well, dentistry is tough. My best friend is one. He said, if you've been going to the same dentist forever they know how much it's moving and whether it's a big deal or not. If you suddenly go to a new one they don't know the prior history and might think its a big deal

[bigballa]

crazy shit money....if it aint banging women its trouble with a dentist......you need a reality show bro...hopefully you can get it sorted, surely you can just get a new retainer and it will correct itself back over time?

[TheMoneyShot]

you think you got ******? I have a story, my youngest daughter has been going to same ortho for the past 2 years.. 2 years ago i sit down with the guy and he tells me what she needs and for how long, I agree and tell him ill pay him 2300 at 1st visit and the rest within 6 months. He says no problem, she will need these braces for 3-4 years i say ok....6 months later ortho is pais in full 4600.00... coupke years go by and all seems to be going well, then 1 night i open the newspaper to read it and he is indicted for like 150 counts of over charging medicaid patiants or some shit, Im like wow... Next visit all is cool and he seems like all is good, 2 months ago i open the newspaper again and headline story is ortho shut down by state, for improper cleaning of equipment and no idea when this guy is opening again, and also anyone that has been a patiant there should be checked for hepatitis 1,2,and 3, and also an hiv test. Im like what the penetrate, i know have to tell my 16 year old daughter she has to go for these tests and the whole story on why she has to go... 500 dollar doctor bill later, my daughter is finr, but now i need another ortho, cause this guy is still shutdown.. Bring my daughter to a new ortho, he says yeah i think the state had it out for the other ortho, but it looks like he was doing a great job... Im like great, this shouldnt cost me much more money with this new ortho...Ha ha boy was i wrong, get some paperwork in the mail about 1 month ago and he says yeah its like 3600 more dollars, i call the office and i ask him to look it over again and see if he can do a little better, or i may have to get another opinion...He says ill look if over and give you a call in am, im like ok cool... ?D?ude calls back and says we can do the total work for 3100.00 dollars, and once again half upfront, and the remainder paid within 6 months....I agree and so now my daughters smile is going to cost me almost 8 grand total.....If the original ortho ever opens back up, im going down to get some money back, or grab the prick by the neck...I have already looked up where he lives, i am not a happy camper... TMS, they are all crooks bro....

Wow FB! I just had an opportunity to read your story. I'm truly sorry man. g-damn. I'm glad your daughter is safe. Unreal the situation you were in. Kinda still are. I've also realized that a dentist can still perform orthodontics on patients... but he doesn't need a special "clause" in his title for orthodontia. I just found out that my dentist doesn't even have a special title who recommended me throwing out my retainer. I'm looking at Michigan Law... trying to study this entire mess.

crazy shit money....if it aint banging women its trouble with a dentist......you need a reality show bro...hopefully you can get it sorted, surely you can just get a new retainer and it will correct itself back over time?

I thought the same thing. But every time I bring that to his attention... he doesn't agree with my statement. They want more and more money. I'm sure there's a device that could do that... but he doesn't want to go that route. That's ok though... on Monday I'm walking in and getting my dental file and leaving that place. By law... you've paid for all material... and it's yours to keep at anytime. Only the dental office may keep copies. All originals are yours. That's only if you decide on never coming back. Once I gather all my material... and other quotes to fix my issue... I'm going to sue him Up to $3,000 in small claims court. That's the max out of the city he does business in. That's fine with me. It's all I want. Just some justice. I hope this works.

[TheMoneyShot]

The past weeks... the dentist and I came to an agreement. $600 for the retainer (which I get to keep for life) and treatment. $75.00 every 30 days until the problem is corrected. He estimates it could take 180 days. I told him... let's go a little quicker. K? Ever since the issue... he's been a lot nicer to me... in fact the entire dentist office is nicer. You can kind of tell when it's a fake nice... or genuine. And everyone is pretty nice about everything. I don't know if I would of won in court? It was a 50/50 chance... even though I felt like I had all the evidence I needed. So to correct the issue... The original quote I listed in the thread was $1,575.00 but that was an error it was just over $1,800. I figured this was a fair deal. What do you guys think?

[Bostongambler]

Did I just watch a video of a dude talking about his retainer? Yes, I believe I did. Ok, carry on and good luck.

[slambam]

Seems like a decent deal, I doubt you would won in court. The retainer didn't fit, maybe the doc legit thought they wouldn't move so wanted to save you $$ on a new retainer?

Invisalign is the shit BTW, whoever said it's a pain in the ass - it only is if you let it be. I was 22 when I got it, the doc wasn't sure he wanted to give them to me cause a lot of younger people don't like wearing them enough. I flat out told him I'm spending almost $5k of my own money on this, I'm gonna make sure it works. He was impressed w/ how good I was w/ them. You gotta wear it 22 hrs/day, but really the only time you ever need it out is when you eat and you can't really tell they're in when your wearing them - so I had no problem. Honestly, it's probably the best money I've ever spent. I was always self conscious about my teeth, now they're perfect, and it got me to cut out some bad habits that I've never really done since - biting nails, snacking on junk food. Plus, it was basically like a mouth guard when playing basketball.

[freeVICK]

Always opt for the permanent retainer (the metal bar) on the bottom teeth

[TheMoneyShot]

Thanks for the post Slambam.

Wanted to give an update.

Well I thought this was going to be easy. But... this is kind of turning into a disaster. First of all... I'm almost 6 months complete with wearing this "appliance" that my dentist likes to call it. It's sort of like a retainer but he claims he can make it move individual teeth.

Here's my issues right now. He's trying to twist the front tooth and center it with the other front tooth. It's slightly crooked... people have told me that it's not even noticeable... but whatever. So while he's trying to twist the tooth into place... he needs some sort of leverage from another area... right? So 2 teeth on the other side of my mouth (the 2 teeth just past your front tooth) are now bent inward. I'm so fukking pissed. In my last appointment... I told the dentist... didn't I clearly tell you back in August... I didn't want any other teeth shifting to fix the front tooth. He assured me... no other teeth would move. Why doesn't a damn dentist admit when it's not working! When I clearly point out an area of concern... he says... there is no issue. Then he said... I want you to know... when we are all through with this... you're going to need some "bonding" done with the front teeth. And what does this mean??? It tells me that he can't center it! He wants to sand down the bottom of the top front teeth so they are perfectly straight. What I don't understand... when I had ortho done in high school... my dentist never sanded anything down. Everything looked perfectly fine.

So far.... I've paid $600 down for the retainer/appliance. $75 for each month after that... $150 for 2 months. For some reason... I haven't been charged since then... back in September. I know it's a computer error.... but I'm not saying anything. I probably owe about $300 more now... but I'm not paying anymore until I see results.

I went to another dentist for a 2nd opinion about a week ago... had one of those teeth cleaning specials for $69 with all the X-rays included etc. They claim I have 5 cavities. 1 of which needs to be filled immediately. Oddly enough... it's all the far back ones... left, right, top left, top right. Weird. Regardless... this dentist isn't even an Ortho specialist... but she claims she could fix the problem with SUPER FAST INVISALIGN (which is the 10 tray version) for $3,000. It's just a "hot shot" dentistry office. Don't understand why one dentist office claims I have zero cavities and one dentist office claims I have 5? Weird.

So... I don't know what I want to do? Also, wearing this retainer has caused me about 3 sore throats. Yep, it's hard to keep these things clean. It's been one real pain in the ass. I guess the lesson is... don't ever throw away your retainer.

Also, my dentist had to adjust my appliance/retainer once already... said he had to attach something to it? He had a top mouth piece for me to snap in until the retainer came back. This piece looked just like Invisalign. He told me it wasn't though. Man that thing was tight. When I snapped it in... I was scared pulling it out of my mouth. Had to pry it off with my fingernails. I might just use that damn piece at night time for awhile if I decide to quit going to this guy?

What a complete waste of time. I hate when a dentist tells you... everything is fine.. blah blah blah... no the sh#$ isn't fine. What the hell are they examining when they look at your teeth??? They can't see cosmetic issues??? WTF?

[Boner_18]

Dude. Get an attorney. Seriously. This sounds like an open and shut payday.

[scumbag]

i don't get why people get braces when young. it seems pretty risky

in high school my teeth were perfectly straight. at some point after graduation, my wisdom teeth came in. and crowded my top teeth, bottoms were fine for whatever reason, wide enough jaw to accommodate i guess.

im 31 and i've rarely been to the dentist as an adult. maybe 5 times. not one ever said shit about the wisdom teeth crowding thing.

i found some new dentist, who im super happy with. he fixed one cavity, had the broad clean all the nasty shit off my teeth, then scheduled me for the wisdom teeth removal (which wasnt bad at all). he was also very understanding of my concerns about getting 'shot up' enough. normally i go to some fck, tell them im 6'4'' 260 and need waaaaaay more than some average broad. then ill end up interrupting them several times throughout the process to shoot me up again. because of absurd pain. this guy acknowledged that its based of size and gave me an adequate dose, zero pain.

so now i've been considering getting some braces of some sort, invisalign, whatever. but it kind of seems faggy to worry about having some movie star smile. my teeth are strong, white, good gums, etc. im just not sure i give enough of a shit about something so shallow to spend thousands of dollars on something cosmetic, considering i get enough women as is. wtf is the point of some perfect smile?

plus ive got these big fat ****** lips that kind of shield my teeth when i smile. and they aren't that crooked to start. so i dont think im going to follow through on it.

anyways, good dentist is clutch. glad i found one. if anyone lives in vegas pm me for reco.

[Humpdadirt]

The last time I went I had to be sedated. When I woke up my pants were around my ankles. Is that bad?

[boomer62]

So I changed dentists about 4 years ago. Went to this new place. I get my teeth cleaned and X-rays etc. 6 months later I show the dentist my retainer. I had ortho work done when I was 15-17 years old. I'm 36 years old now. And I said hey doc... can you check my retainer... it doesn't fit like it use to. The dentist says... you don't even need that anymore... your teeth won't shift or move. Now keep in mind this dental office is basically a 2 dentist team. 1 guy does Ortho... the other dentist does not. The one I'm seeing doesn't have an ortho background. (But I didn't know this at the time.) So I threw my retainer out. I mean... what else am I suppose to do with it??

So, I went to get my teeth cleaned last week. Now keep in mind it's been 4 years since I threw out my retainer. I noticed my front tooth shifting. They do a teeth mold... whatever the hell you call it and pictures. I told him... you guys told me to throw out my retainer... now look what happened. He didn't really respond to my statement. Looked at me like I was stupid. He goes... make an appointment at a further date... I'll have an answer for what we should do.

So, today is the day... I'm minutes away from seeing him. I've heard rumors he's the kind of guy to push that Invisalign system on everyone. Starts around $1,000. Why should I pay for something that technically isn't my fault. If I bring in a retainer to your office... it doesn't fit properly... why didn't you say... ok... we can offer you a new one at a set price that's custom to the fit of your mouth because you've aged. No, they didn't even offer that to me. So again... we're moments away of seeing what this dentist has to offer?

Last time I was there... I had a cleaning... X-rays... a mold done. I didn't pay my bill. If he comes back saying a huge amount for braces... for one tooth. I'm walking out... not paying a dollar. That's how business is done in America. My parents spent a lot of money to correct an issue... and these guys screwed me over. It's such a shame. Any posters here with kids... never never never throw out a retainer because some dentist told you to. They are suppose to protect you from further damage... and yet they produced more damage. Unreal.

You had braces when you were a teenager to correct your bite. Now20 fuking years later ,you expect to be wearing the same retainer. Lol How were you screwed over? If you want your teeth straight it is a selective and cosmetic procedure. Invasalign is a new procedure where you wear clear brackets that help straighten partially crooked teeth as opposed to traditional ortho with metal bands and typically over 5k which you had done as a teenager

[boomer62]

Good point... I'm considering that. Its the top front tooth. You can barely notice... but it's shifting and quite possibly could shift more. I'm just upset that this dentist would tell me to throw a retainer out. I trusted what he said.

His assistant which claimed she's been in the industry for 20+ years... said she never heard of any patient needing to wear a retainer for lifetime? I said... you mean to tell me people are dumb enough not to protect their investment? They just spent $3,000+ and don't want to protect their investment? She tried to defend him... but she came up short. It's all good.... just another F up in life.

She is correct

[boomer62]

Thanks for the post Slambam.

Wanted to give an update.

Well I thought this was going to be easy. But... this is kind of turning into a disaster. First of all... I'm almost 6 months complete with wearing this "appliance" that my dentist likes to call it. It's sort of like a retainer but he claims he can make it move individual teeth.

Here's my issues right now. He's trying to twist the front tooth and center it with the other front tooth. It's slightly crooked... people have told me that it's not even noticeable... but whatever. So while he's trying to twist the tooth into place... he needs some sort of leverage from another area... right? So 2 teeth on the other side of my mouth (the 2 teeth just past your front tooth) are now bent inward. I'm so fukking pissed. In my last appointment... I told the dentist... didn't I clearly tell you back in August... I didn't want any other teeth shifting to fix the front tooth. He assured me... no other teeth would move. Why doesn't a damn dentist admit when it's not working! When I clearly point out an area of concern... he says... there is no issue. Then he said... I want you to know... when we are all through with this... you're going to need some "bonding" done with the front teeth. And what does this mean??? It tells me that he can't center it! He wants to sand down the bottom of the top front teeth so they are perfectly straight. What I don't understand... when I had ortho done in high school... my dentist never sanded anything down. Everything looked perfectly fine.

So far.... I've paid $600 down for the retainer/appliance. $75 for each month after that... $150 for 2 months. For some reason... I haven't been charged since then... back in September. I know it's a computer error.... but I'm not saying anything. I probably owe about $300 more now... but I'm not paying anymore until I see results.

I went to another dentist for a 2nd opinion about a week ago... had one of those teeth cleaning specials for $69 with all the X-rays included etc. They claim I have 5 cavities. 1 of which needs to be filled immediately. Oddly enough... it's all the far back ones... left, right, top left, top right. Weird. Regardless... this dentist isn't even an Ortho specialist... but she claims she could fix the problem with SUPER FAST INVISALIGN (which is the 10 tray version) for $3,000. It's just a "hot shot" dentistry office. Don't understand why one dentist office claims I have zero cavities and one dentist office claims I have 5? Weird.

So... I don't know what I want to do? Also, wearing this retainer has caused me about 3 sore throats. Yep, it's hard to keep these things clean. It's been one real pain in the ass. I guess the lesson is... don't ever throw away your retainer.

Also, my dentist had to adjust my appliance/retainer once already... said he had to attach something to it? He had a top mouth piece for me to snap in until the retainer came back. This piece looked just like Invisalign. He told me it wasn't though. Man that thing was tight. When I snapped it in... I was scared pulling it out of my mouth. Had to pry it off with my fingernails. I might just use that damn piece at night time for awhile if I decide to quit going to this guy?

What a complete waste of time. I hate when a dentist tells you... everything is fine.. blah blah blah... no the sh#$ isn't fine. What the hell are they examining when they look at your teeth??? They can't see cosmetic issues??? WTF?

Not to be a ball buster, but from your past posting on here I can see you being a very difficult outspoken patient and hard to please. With that said, you chose to go this route and even after everyone has told you that you couldn't notice anything. it's like having cosmetic surgery on your face and then not liking the results. You should have waited. Now,you can have your teeth bonded to correct the problem, more $$$. As for cavities, yes food gets stuck in back teeth from improper cleaning and flossing and can be also caused especially from wearing an appliance. The diagnose of cavities also depends on frequency of X-rays and the type, they now have digital imaging and the type of dental office you go too. And BTW, a dentist is a professional who gets fees based on procedures that are dictated by the insurance companies(most are exactly within a certain range) Also, they are just like any other professional,Accountants,Lawyers, etc. Some are better then others.
You had no lawsuit, nothing done wrong. From your info, I would have not done Invasalign. And no I'm not a dentist.