Caring, Professional, but Costly...
I went to Dr. Larsen for several years, after having some VERY bad experiences with a couple of other local dentists. His office is very modern and clean, and his staff are very courteous and professional. Getting your teeth cleaned and a normal checkup leaves you feeling that you got very good service for your money.
Dr. Larsen himself is a bit more of a transitory figure in the office of course, arriving for a quick check of x-rays and a hands-on examination for cavities and potential problems at the end of each appointment. I found him caring and straightforward. I also found his rates for anything BUT a standard exam and a cleaning to be a bit on the high side. They offer a cash discount for those without insurance which came in handy, and they toss in the usual bag of "freebies" when you leave.
His prices for dental work such as fixing cavities and crowns is about 20% more than you might get by calling around -- but he does a solid job. I was lucky to have a dentist as a friend of the family who would give me a second opinion when Dr. Larsen recommended crowns or extensive work, and with other family connections getting me crowns at cost, I typically save about 40% from what Dr. Larsen would charge.
He completely updated his computer system a couple of years ago, which gives him in-depth profiles of each tooth, an in mouth camera, and I suppose a much better idea of what dental work you're likely to need. I was shocked when after years of finding nothing more than an occasional pit to smooth out, he suddenly announced that I needed several crowns immediately. Again, this was my first visit with his new system, so I'm sure he had new and better data to judge what I needed in his opinion and given his approach to dentistry. Some dentists are more proactive than others, while my "family friend" dentist takes more of a "wait and see" attitude.
I checked with the family friend for a second opinion, and while he concurred that I might need a couple of crowns in the next few years, he wouldn't recommend anywhere near the number Dr. Larsen did. Keep in mind Dr. Larsen quoted me a cost of nearly $5000 for all those crowns too!
So at my next visit for a cleaning at Dr. Larsen's office, I mentioned this to the dental hygienist who did my cleaning, and quipped "Is he trying to pay off his expensive new system a quickly as possible?" (At the prior visit another hygienist had bragged about its cost.) Evidently my comments were passed along, since when Dr. Larsen arrived at the end of my appointment, instead of checking for pits or cavities he simply said that he felt he'd always dealt honestly with me and that if I'd lost faith in him I should find another dentist, then walked out. I'm sure that from his perspective he felt he was right. It basically came down to a difference of opinion: proactive verses "wait and see" dentistry.
So now I go to my "family friend" dentist, and I'm happy to report that I haven't needed any of those crowns yet. Dr. Larsen is very caring and does good work, but my experience shows that he occasionally recommends noncritical work and he charges more than some other dentists. If you have dental insurance, he's probably your guy and I have no qualms about the quality of his work. But if you're living on a tight budget and pay every dime out of pocket, you may want to find someone who's a bit less proactive. read more