Dentist checkup
Discussion
My wife has decided that now's a good time to see a dentist now she gets free NHS dental care. So she went to the local place to us and got a check up. Turns out according to them; she needs 5 fillings.
Now given she hasn't complained about tooth ache; I can't help but wonder if they're trying one on.
Am I being overly cynical or worth getting a checkout at another dentist - 5 fillings out of nowhere seems a lot to me...
Now given she hasn't complained about tooth ache; I can't help but wonder if they're trying one on.
Am I being overly cynical or worth getting a checkout at another dentist - 5 fillings out of nowhere seems a lot to me...
trickywoo said:
A friend of mine had holes in a couple of teeth big enough to get fruit pips stuck in. Didn't hurt a bit.
If in doubt buy a dental mirror and a good torch and have a look yourself. Its pretty obvious if the tooth is damaged emough to need filling promptly.
Yip...how hard can it be...polyfilla workd wonders!!!!!If in doubt buy a dental mirror and a good torch and have a look yourself. Its pretty obvious if the tooth is damaged emough to need filling promptly.
no it doesnt BTW.
MacGee said:
trickywoo said:
A friend of mine had holes in a couple of teeth big enough to get fruit pips stuck in. Didn't hurt a bit.
If in doubt buy a dental mirror and a good torch and have a look yourself. Its pretty obvious if the tooth is damaged emough to need filling promptly.
Yip...how hard can it be...polyfilla workd wonders!!!!!If in doubt buy a dental mirror and a good torch and have a look yourself. Its pretty obvious if the tooth is damaged emough to need filling promptly.
no it doesnt BTW.
Can't speak for your wife's case (with no radiographs) but a cavity between teeth which looks like this on a radiograph:
is sometimes invisible to a dentist looking in the mouth with a dental lamp and mirror, let alone someone staring in a bathroom mirror or even using a hand mirror.
Edited by Driller on Thursday 18th November 17:27
Pretty obvious,gee makes me wonder what my five years of uni were for!
Obviously its better to restore before thongs hurt, which in 90% then would require root therapy.
Also the way the new system works it is more profitable to do less treatment per band, ie one filling not six.so on the contray a bent dentist would only do a few of those fillings especially if she is excempt from paying.all this doesn't apply in Scotland though.
I empathise with people lack of trust but if people could listen to what I like to think as the majority of good dentists,most people could avoid extensive/expensive treatments.
I am mostly nhs so I understand the system inside out, it is more economical to have a mouth like a bomb site - not fair i know, we don't like it much either!!
Obviously its better to restore before thongs hurt, which in 90% then would require root therapy.
Also the way the new system works it is more profitable to do less treatment per band, ie one filling not six.so on the contray a bent dentist would only do a few of those fillings especially if she is excempt from paying.all this doesn't apply in Scotland though.
I empathise with people lack of trust but if people could listen to what I like to think as the majority of good dentists,most people could avoid extensive/expensive treatments.
I am mostly nhs so I understand the system inside out, it is more economical to have a mouth like a bomb site - not fair i know, we don't like it much either!!
To be honest; the main reason why I'm sceptical of dentists is partly due to a dentist trying it on and attempting to do work on me without discussing it in the first place - 5 years on and multiple checkups later (after refusing to do the work) I've not had to have any of the work he insisted done.
Rach* you can save the rolleyes - just because she's not paying for the work, it doesn't mean that the dentist is doing it for free.
As I don't know how the charging system works - I was wondering if it's a case of 5 fillings = 5 * fixed charges to the NHS. Thus in the interest of the dentist to do work rather than leave things be.
However from what pauldavies85 is saying; it isn't the case that doing multiple treatments is more profitable than a single treatment.
Of course if her teeth really are that bad - I wonder what's lurking beyond the surface problems... She's not willing to have xrays atm due to pregnancy.
Thanks for the replies.
Rach* you can save the rolleyes - just because she's not paying for the work, it doesn't mean that the dentist is doing it for free.
As I don't know how the charging system works - I was wondering if it's a case of 5 fillings = 5 * fixed charges to the NHS. Thus in the interest of the dentist to do work rather than leave things be.
However from what pauldavies85 is saying; it isn't the case that doing multiple treatments is more profitable than a single treatment.
Of course if her teeth really are that bad - I wonder what's lurking beyond the surface problems... She's not willing to have xrays atm due to pregnancy.
Thanks for the replies.
its free on NHs if she ticks the appropriate boxes. Without xrays I wouldnt do 5 fills on a neew patient. Best to wait until baby born. Also cant do amalgams on pregnants. So maybe fills are so small that white ones can be placed.
My gut feeling is that this is the case. Small enamel decy which can easily fixed without too much trauma. If the dentist was conning you...why choose 5 teeth rather than the minimum..ie ONE.
My gut feeling is that this is the case. Small enamel decy which can easily fixed without too much trauma. If the dentist was conning you...why choose 5 teeth rather than the minimum..ie ONE.
Here we go again...
If I were your wife I would try a few dentists out and see which one you trust most- yes if you see 5 dentists you'll get 5 opinions, but listen to them and see which one you get on with best.
Dentistry is not black and white, some dentists, for example may watch a very small bit of decay (and teach you how to stop the decay getting any worse) some may think it prudent to put a little filling in.
Statistics show us that the more frequently you change dentists, the more fillings you end up with!
If I were your wife I would try a few dentists out and see which one you trust most- yes if you see 5 dentists you'll get 5 opinions, but listen to them and see which one you get on with best.
Dentistry is not black and white, some dentists, for example may watch a very small bit of decay (and teach you how to stop the decay getting any worse) some may think it prudent to put a little filling in.
Statistics show us that the more frequently you change dentists, the more fillings you end up with!
Cupramax said:
ShadownINja said:
squicky said:
I can't help but wonder if they're trying one on.
If she's on the NHS, then it costs her a fixed £46, so she could get the entire mouth done. 
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