Baton Rouge Dentist

Problems with ClearChoice

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A ClearChoice representative did a presentation at our senior center, and I was really impressed. I made an appointment for a consultation at a ClearChoice Dental Implant Center. I came away from that appointment really confused! Maybe you can help make things more understandable.

The representative I spoke with at the clinic said that they would want to remove all of my upper teeth. I have two dental implants that were done by my previous dentist (he retired) and a dental bridge that I am completely happy with. At most I think I would need two dental implants in my upper arch. If I do it their way, I am throwing away thousands of dollars I already spent!

They were really pushing hard to book the surgery at that consultation appointment, which just put me off. I don’t like to be rushed! They just seemed to have an all or nothing approach that did not take into consideration my individual circumstances at all. I did schedule another appointment with them, but am thinking about cancelling it. They spent way more time explaining the financing options than they did the details of the procedure itself! Basically it was, “Oh, we’ll just remove everything and do implants, and here are all the options to pay for it…”

Is this typical? So much of what you read indicates that they are the top of the line in dental implants, but their approach was a real turn-off.

Camilla in San Francisco, CA

Dear Camilla,

A trend in emerging in letters we receive about prospective ClearChoice patients. The treatment plan is almost always “extract all the remaining teeth and do all-on-four dental implants”. Almost every letter also mirrors yours in the discomfort with the level of sales pressure put on in the initial appointments, and the feelings of being rushed into treatment.

These reports make ClearChoice sound like they are not as focused on health care provision as they are on marketing. That is unfortunate. As everyone knows, there is never a “one size fits all” approach to medical or dental treatment. A second opinion on your case would definitely be in order. Can you still contact your retired dentist? If you are happy with the work he or she did, they may have excellent recommendations about who you should see now.

Support for this blog post is provided by the dental office of Baton Rouge dentist Dr. Perry.

Should my 20 year old daughter have all her teeth pulled?

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I really need some advice for how to guide my 20 year old daughter. She is a recovering addict, and I find that it is hard to get compassionate advice when people think you’ve brought your troubles upon yourself. She is trying really hard to turn her life around.

Her teeth have been completely ruined by the drug use. The dentist at the clinic wants to pull all her teeth and then fit her with dentures.

She is 20. Isn’t there some other way? The dentist wants to pull the teeth and fit the dentures all in one visit, which I was not going to allow in any case. This is just another example of the inhumane treatment recovering addicts encounter from medical professionals.

My daughter is in a lot of pain from her teeth, and I recognize that something has to be done, but I just keep hoping there is some other alternative.

Please help us.

Anne in Key West, FL

Dear Anne,

It is so sad when we hear stories like this. Everyone deserves a second chance, and compassion.

We are also not in favor of this treatment plan at all. Twenty is absolutely much too young to get all of her teeth pulled, especially when you understand the long term implications of this. When you lose a tooth, the bone at the site of the lost tooth begins to be re-absorbed into the jaw almost immediately. If you lose ALL your teeth, there is nothing preventing your jaw bones from becoming thin and brittle. Over time, the thinning bones make it impossible for the patient to wear any kind of denture at all. This condition is called facial collapse. It is tough enough to deal with in a person who is 80, but your daughter would be suffering this in her 40s. Treatment at that point involves expensive surgery for bone grafts and dental implants.

Almost certainly at least some of her teeth can be saved. Those teeth will help preserve the bone of her jaws and slow the process of re-absorption. Then partial dentures (which can be fairly reasonable, cost-wise) can be anchored on those remaining teeth to provide a more stable result. In the worst case scenario none of her teeth can be salvaged, at which point I would strongly recommend considering mini-implants to anchor a full denture. Even two implants per jawbone will help.

Many of us can only imagine how difficult the path you’ve walked is. Your compassion and love for your daughter are obvious in your desire to get her good dental care. We wish you the best of luck in this endeavor.

This blog post provided courtesy of the office of Baton Rouge dentist Dr. Perry.

Injured top and bottom front teeth

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Three weeks ago I took a bad fall, and now all of my front teeth – top and bottom – are turning black. Something feels like it is broken or jammed up near my nose. Could it be a broken root?

What I am wondering is whether or not I should see a dentist or a doctor? What will they do about this kind of injury, and is this going to be really expensive? I have good medical insurance, but no dental coverage. If my teeth are dead, will they have to be pulled and replaced with dental implants? Is it possible just to cover up the dead teeth with porcelain veneers?

Thanks for your help with this.

Randy in Lake Odessa

Dear Randy,

Your teeth will need root canal treatments. When a tooth turns black after an injury, it means that the nerve tissue inside the tooth has died. Possibly you have cracked the roots of your teeth. If that is the case, the teeth are not salvageable and must be removed and replaced with dental implants.

The darkened teeth will probably need porcelain crowns after treatment. There is a method of bleaching darkened teeth from the inside, but many dentists do not know how to do that procedure.

Were your teeth displaced in the accident? You don’t mention that they were, so for the purposes of this post, we’ll assume that they are all in the correct places. The “broken root” up near your nose is concerning, especially since something like that should have been addressed as soon as possible after your accident.

All of this treatment should be done by a highly skilled cosmetic dentist, which may not be the answer you were hoping for in terms of insurance coverage. As to how much the entire treatment will cost, it depends on whether or not the teeth can be saved. Root canals are a few hundred dollars each, and porcelain crowns are usually around two thousand, depending on what part of the country you are in. Dental implants are more than that.

I am afraid this will indeed be quite expensive, but our last bit of advice is to find a very talented cosmetic dentist to help you. Do not price shop for this kind of treatment. Best of luck.

This blog posted courtesy of Baton Rouge dentist Dr. Perry.

Dental implants through ClearChoice

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I am writing to tell you about an experience I had through ClearChoice, and to see if in your opinion the treatment recommendations were sound.

I recently had an appointment at a Clear Choice clinic, which I made through a representative they sent to the senior center I belong to. I had all my teeth extracted a year ago, and have been trying to come up with the best option for treatment, as I HATE wearing full dentures. The ClearChoice people I met were just so nice, I thought that they could really help me, and when they told me about how dental implants look and feel like your natural teeth I was really excited to check it out.

Well, what a disappointment! I went in, and they assured me that I was an ideal candidate for the procedure, except for the part where I don’t have more than $50,000 laying around to get the work done! They tried to talk me into looking at different financing options, but I just had to leave. I could not even believe how much the cost was! After all, I already have all my teeth extracted! When I mentioned this, and asked about why it did not reduce the price, I was informed that tooth extractions are done for free when you are getting implants done with them

What a bunch of flim flam artists! I am not naive enough to think that it does not cost them anything to extract people’s teeth, especially not since I remember very well how much it cost me to have that done.

I recently went to another dentist and received a much lower quote on what it would cost to have this done. I know from reading other articles that it is a bad idea to “price shop” for dental implants, but this doctor’s credentials were impeccable, and he showed me pictures of his successful cases. I really want this done, and can afford to do it with the lower priced doctor.

I guess I just wrote to vent, and to ask how in the world ClearChoice can get away with charging those kind of prices. They are more than 40% higher than the quote I received from my current dentist. How can that be?

Meredith in Ludington, MI

Dear Meredith,

We are sorry to hear about your negative experience! While ClearChoice has a reputation for doing top of the line work using only the best materials, unfortunately they are also known to charge top of the line prices using aggressive sales tactics.

If you have thoroughly vetted your current dentist’s credentials and seen examples of previous successful cases, you should be able to go forward with treatment in confidence. As you have discovered, dental implants are the ideal treatment for missing teeth.

Baton Rouge Dentist Dr. Perry’s office provides this blog as a courtesy.

Can I wait to get a dental implant?

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I have a tooth that has to come out. I’ve seen two different dentists (my regular dentist and a endodontist) and they both say that it can’t be saved, because there is decay below the gumline. I don’t have any kind of dental insurance, and I’d like to wait a while to save up the cost for the dental implant. Is there a limit on how long I can wait to get this procedure done?

Lily in Ann Arbor

Dear Lily,

If possible, you should not delay this any longer than is necessary for the socket to heal from the infection. The reason for this is that as soon as a tooth is removed, the teeth that surround it begin to move to close the gap, and the opposing tooth (the corresponding tooth in the opposite jaw) will begin to super-erupt to meet a tooth that is no longer there. These are all natural tooth movements that happen because our teeth shift to”touch their neighbors” when a tooth is removed.

These movements can cause changes in your bite that can result in serious problems. Headaches and TMJ disorders can result, and the longer the situation continues, the more lengthy and expensive the healing process will be.

As soon as your socket is healed, you should get the root form for the dental implant placed. This will probably take several weeks to heal, so in the meantime, you will need some kind of temporary denture appliance such as a dental flipper to keep the surrounding teeth from shifting. Think of it as a sort of dental placeholder.

Baton Rouge dentist Dr. Perry supports this blog as a source of clear, accurate dental information.

What kind of dental insurance should I get so they cover dental implants?

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I’ve been wearing upper dentures for many years now, and they just don’t seem to fit anymore. They are really uncomfortable, and I have sores all the time. My dentist says that I need to get dental implants, but there is no way I can afford that on  my own. I’m on a fixed income. I could afford monthly payments, but my dentist says I have to have the whole amount up front.

My question is what kind of dental insurance will pay for dental implants? The monthly premiums would be manageable, if I could find a kind that would cover the implants. So far, all of the companies I have talked to will not cover any portion of dental implants, or really much of anything at all.

Kevin from Columbus

Dear Kevin,

You will not find a dental insurance company that will cover dental implants. This makes sense, if you think about it from the point of view of the dental insurance company. They would not stay in business long if they routinely sold policies to people and then paid for benefits worth many times the value of the policy. The best dental insurance policies are usually available through employers, and what they are really doing is purchasing a group discount for their employees. This is paid for with pre-tax dollars, and is considered a benefit of employment. Even policies through employers will not pay for dental implants, though.

Have a candid conversation with your dentist about how you can get this done in a manner you can afford. He may be able to find a way to work with you on a payment plan, or could find a lending agency that will work with you.

You say you have been wearing dentures for many years. This may mean that you will also need a procedure called bone grafting to build up the bone of your jaw before your jaw bone itself will be strong enough to support the root forms of the implants. When all of your teeth are removed, your body will reabsorb the bone of your jaw, making it impossible to wear dentures or support a root form. This leads to a condition called facial collapse, which can be very expensive to correct when dentures are no longer a possibility.

Though it is too late for you, we’ll use this chance to urge other readers to try to save their teeth whenever possible. It may seem tempting, if you’ve suffered years of trouble with your teeth, to just get them all pulled and go to dentures, but this is never the best solution. If there is no alternative, even getting mini-implants to support a denture is a better option to help maintain the integrity of your jaw bone. Even a few small implants can slow and even stop the bone loss that can lead to facial collapse.

This informative blog is posted courtesy of Baton Rouge dentist Dr. Ryan Perry.