We had an interesting visit today from a patient I will call Barbara. It upset me quite a bit and I wanted to share the experience with you so you know some of the things going on out there.
She had a bridge replacing her four front teeth, anchored by the canine teeth. The bridge had become loose. She ended up consulting with an oral surgeon.
This oral surgeon had recommended that Barbara have all her remaining teeth extracted and dental implants placed. He then gave her a coupon good for several hundred dollars toward his fees.
When I examined her, the teeth looked basically sound. Barbara appears to have several reasonable options, none of which involve the extracting of any teeth. She could have crowns the two teeth that were anchoring the bridge and dental implants to replace the four missing teeth. Or, she could have a new dental bridge made. Or, if her budget is tight, it appeared that she could get by temporarily by having me simply clean up the old bridge and re-cement it.
I worry about how many people would trust in a treatment plan like this and go ahead with extracting all their teeth. It’s difficult for me to imagine a dentist trying to do this to a patient, knowing how much damage it would cause. And then, the idea of placing dental implants with no restorative plan in place – I shudder to think of it. There is no way for the surgeon to know where to position the dental implants without a thorough restorative workup and the involvement of a restorative dentist. I have seen cases like this done with implants placed and no restorative plan, and the implants had to all be removed, the bone allowed to heal, and new implants placed.
My advice to patients? Beware of dentists who try to push you into one treatment plan, without giving you a menu of choices. Beware of “special deals,” and discounts if you “act now.” These are pressure sales techniques that have no place in health care.