Baton Rouge Dentist

Archives for January 2017

Is It Okay to Go to a Different Dentist for Affordable Dental Implants?

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I’ve been wanting dental implants for a couple of years now. My dentist does them, but they’re a little out of my price range. I’ve been calling around. Most dentists are about the same price, except one dentist across town. He’s a good deal more affordable than anyone else. I feel like I’d be cheating on my dentist by going somewhere else, but I sure like the idea of saving that kind of money. Do you think my dentist will understand?

Sammie L. – Ohio

Sammie,

You’re not really cheating on your dentist. And I’m certain your dentist would understand your desire to save money. I just want you to check out a couple of things first.

  1. Make sure the dentist is quoting you the right price. Because there is such a price difference, I’d check to make sure you’re talking about the same procedure. He may have quoted you the price for mini-implants if you mentioned you’re looking for affordable dental implants. That isn’t the same procedure as traditional dental implants.
  2. Find out if he’s a brand new dentist. That could be why his prices are so much lower. He may need to draw patients in. While dental implants have a high success rate, it is still an advanced procedure. I’m not sure I’d recommend going to a new dentist.

Have you talked to your dentist about the situation? He might be able to work something out with you.

This blog is brought to you by Dr. Ryan Perry.

Emergency Dentist Said the Wrong Tooth Needed to be Fixed

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I have some pretty severe tooth pain in one of my teeth. I know exactly which tooth hurts. I went to an emergency dentist because I don’t have a dentist of my own. He told me that it’s a tooth next to the one I showed him which has the problem. I can tell exactly which tooth hurts. Could he be just trying to get me to fix an extra tooth to get more money?  I didn’t let him move forward because I wanted to make sure he wasn’t cheating me first, but I’m still hurting. Now I feel like the appointment was wasted.

Bobby R. – Denver

Bobby,

I don’t even know which dentist you went to, but I can tell you with almost complete certainty that the emergency dentist isn’t trying to trick you. I don’t know if you’ve ever heard the phrase “referred pain”, but that’s likely what you’re experiencing. That’s when you feel pain in one part of your body, but it’s actually coming from a different part of your body.

It sounds like the dentist wanted to work on the source of the pain and not just the tooth you thought was hurting. I know this is a new dentist for you, so you hadn’t built up trust, but in the long run he was trying to not only do the right thing for you, but his actions would save you money.

He could have appeased you and just worked on the tooth that hurt you and said you also had another tooth that needs help, charging you double. He didn’t.

However, if you’re still not sure and want a second opinion, I’m going to make a suggestion that you don’t tell the second dentist who you went to and what their diagnosis was. Just tell him you have a toothache, tell him where, and leave him to make his diagnosis. If he comes to the same conclusion as the other dentist, you’ll know you’re on the right track.

What I don’t want you to do is put off getting treatment. This is likely a tooth infection and it will spread. I’m not saying this is you, but sometimes when a patient is putting off care even while in pain, it is actually because they have dental anxiety. If that happens to be you, be aware that sedation dentistry is an option. It will give you a pain-free dental experience.

This blog is brought to you by Dr. Ryan Perry.