What To Expect From A Second Opinion

In our dental practice we get phone calls all the time from prospective patients wanting a second opinion on dental work, or costs associated with dental treatment. We love these calls! We are happy to have patients come to our office for a second opinion!

There is no cost associated with this type of appointment. It is best if the prospective patient can bring in x-rays taken at their former office. If not, we are happy to take the x-rays at no cost as well.

Sometimes patients are just looking to save money on their dental treatment. This is not always the best way to go. Typically, offices that have higher fees, use a higher quality lab and the dentist has been trained extensively beyond his or her four years of dental school.

Many patients bring a copy of a dental treatment plan. Sometimes that is helpful to make sure that the former dentist is planning the same treatment, or if not, maybe there is a better treatment plan that can be presented. Our fees are not the lowest in the area, but they are not the highest either. We use quality materials and very high quality labs to make our crowns, veneers, dentures, implant crowns, bridges, etc.

We also receive calls from patients who are told by other dentists that they need to lose a tooth and they do not want to lose that tooth. This is not always easy since we want to save all teeth. Unfortunately, due to extensive decay below the level of the bone, advanced periodontal disease and root fractures, many teeth cannot be saved. The good news is that we have many options to replace missing teeth, not just a “one fits all” solution. Some solutions are less expensive than others. We can usually give you two or three options of how to replace a missing tooth or teeth.

Other times we get calls from patients for second opinions on whether or not they have gum disease and what can be done to treat it. We can usually treat gum disease non-surgically in our office. Other times we need to refer patients to a periodontist if the disease is more advanced. Lastly, patients come to our office to “check us out.” They have been to an office that is not as state of the art as our office or as clean as they would like a dental office to be. Others do not feel comfortable with another dentist that they had seen to discuss their dental needs. We take the time to get to know our patients and make them feel like a guest here. Give us a call so we can discuss your dental needs!