r/Dentists

The dentist did not obtain a pre authorization and submitted a letter stating that the procedure was necessary and submitted x-rays as well. The insurance company denied the claim. I appealed it. The dentist did not.

I’m just a patient - this involved a ‘three surface’ filling (whatever that is). As a patient, there is no way I would know what is or is not necessary. I’m just sitting in the dentist’s chair thinking he’s just giving me a basic filling.

The dentist did not appeal the denial but I did, though what more could I say other than see the dentist’s letter and the x-rays. The dentist is not exactly friendly and so I feel like he may have just done a procedure I didn’t need.

This doesn’t seem fair to me as I’m the o e who would’ve on the hook for this ‘necessary’ or ‘unnecessary’ procedure. What recourse do I have?

The insurer is GEHA.

Thanks

Saw a dentist today and the appointment went great until the end. She noticed that I grind my teeth (Ive done this since I was young) and started asking me sleep apnea questions.

-Do you snore? Occasionally but when I do it’s pretty mild.

-Morning headaches? Occasional sinus headaches.

-Daytime sleepiness? Yeah but I have a new baby so it’s to be expected.

-No one has ever witnessed me stop breathing, I’m not waking up gasping for air. I’m not obese, but I still have baby weight.

She started really pushing me to get a sleep study, to which I eventually agreed. When I told her that I would get a referral from my PCM she got kind of pushy about some online eval program they use.

Do you guys get kickbacks or something or am I just being paranoid?

Dental assistants, how often do you actually remember your patients?

I started my first dental assistant job about 6 months ago in a relatively big city, and one thing I constantly struggle with is remembering patients when they come back. A lot of the time I won’t fully remember them until I check their chart/history and then it clicks.

I’m curious how common that is. Do you usually remember faces, personalities, and past conversations? What makes a patient memorable to you, whether in a good way or bad way?

I’m mostly hoping to hear from other dental assistants since you’re juggling so many patients, but dentists feel free to chime in too if you want!

I'm a software developer who spent the last 6 months

building scheduling software specifically for dental

practices. Most booking tools are generic — Appointly

is built dentist-first with pre-loaded appointment

types, automated reminders, and a calendar designed

for how dental practices actually run.

I'm looking for 3 independent practices to try it

completely free for 1 year in exchange for honest

feedback. Not looking for fake positive reviews —

if it doesn't work for your practice I want to

know why.

Here's what it looks like: https://appointly.cloud

DM me if interested or ask questions below.

Happy to answer anything.

i’ve had a toothache not only on my cracked tooth but the ones surrounding it as well. it is currently 2am and i can not sleep. the last time i went to the dentist was in september and the crack was very small and it has since kept breaking off. i am embarrassed and also scared to go back to the dentist mainly due to the cost of how much it may be. i had been fine for the past couple months but now i have extreme pain in several teeth and it is unbearable. last time they said i need a root canal but that’s when the tooth crack was smaller. do you think it would be the same or will the tooth need to be extracted ? how much might it cost ? also any pan relieving advice? i’ve taken 4 tylenols and this pain won’t go away.

Recently started doing GBR and I feel like it takes forever. A recent case took nearly 3 hours. How long is it taking you guys?

My patients are awake, typically nitrous and maybe an anxiolytic, which probably doesn’t help the procedure time.

I have back to back patients, staff issues and insurance heades. Social media always ends up being the thing nobody has time for but everyone knows matters. Do you have someone in-hours doing it? Did you hire an agency?

Hi

I had a question regarding professional boundaries between dentists and patients. I got myself in a situation where I fear I may have crossed a boundary and would like to get a dentist's perspective.

If you’re a dental professional and care to share your opinion, I would appreciate it if you could DM me for a private conversion.

Thanks!

Edit: Thank you to everyone who did reach out! Your insights have been very helpful :)

Hi everyone,

I’m currently taking a diploma course and my instructor asked us to get either a Kerr SuperCap system or a Garrison kit (SlickBands/Tofflemire style) for deep margin elevation (DME).

I understand that Garrison tends to be more expensive, but I’m wondering from real clinical experience:

Which system do you find more predictable for deep margin elevation?

Do you notice a significant difference in marginal seal and adaptation?

Is the higher cost of Garrison actually justified in daily practice, or can Kerr perform just as well?

I’ve used traditional Tofflemire before, but not specifically for DME cases, so I’d really appreciate hearing your preferences and why.

Thanks in advance!

Got light enamel erosion at 21 years old but have no cavities or a single filling.

I managed to get my diet under control so my erosion is stable for a year now.

So i just want to know Whats worse? A cavity (or filling) or stabilized enamel erosion?

Idk if this makes sense, I'm just thinking out loud, but if a dentist lets say hired two associates, could he theoretically live in a LOCL country and rake in 60k a year without work? (50k because im trying to calculate the some overhead, assuming the practice is already paid off).

One of my relatives has been suggested to undergo RCT and get the X-Ray (for 1 tooth) before the treatment for the final decision.

While reading online, I landed on multiple posts on this sub where doctors mention getting a CBCT machine in their clinic. Also many posts recommend getting CBCT beforehand as it provides a more clear image and can help diagnose any complications beforehand.

I was wondering if getting a CBCT would be a good choice but at the same point I'm worried about the radiation.

Hello

I had an implant fail and had the top tooth part taken off years ago. I now occasionally get an aching jaw and want to get the pole removed.

I was advised that bone grafting would be good to do during the removal, but I wanted to know if I know I’m not getting another implant, do I need the bone grafting?

Hey everyone,

I’ve noticed quite a few operatory lights with integrated cameras being showcased at dental expos lately, and I’m curious about real-world interest beyond the showroom.

For those of you who’ve seen or tried them:

Would you actually consider buying one for your practice?

Does it genuinely improve your workflow, or does it feel unnecessary compared to intraoral cameras?

What would make you choose this over your current setup?

If you decided not to buy — what held you back? (cost, usability, positioning, image quality, etc.)

Trying to figure out if this is something dentists truly want, or if it’s more of an “interesting but not essential” kind of product.

Would love to hear your honest thoughts.

I've recently visited my dentist and was told I needed to get my bottom two removed because one is partially erupted, and the other one is getting close to erupting. They said it was best to remove them because it would be hard to clean the gaps in the gums where the teeth are, and they could eventually get infected.

My only issue is that I have no pain yet with them, and was always told to wait till you're in pain before you remove them. I've never experienced anything but cleanings so far, no cavities, root canals, fillings, etc.

So, the entire thought of doing the wisdom tooth removal gives me massive anxiety. They told me I could do the IV sedation or the oral sedation. I am leaning more towards oral since it's cheaper and I've never had any sedation, etc yet.

If anyone could give me advice on when to get them removed, the pros and cons of the oral sedation and what they experienced would be amazing! So worried I'm going to hear and feel them remove the teeth, it makes me not want to go and do it.