My wife lost a front tooth in a cheerleading accident more than 20 years ago. The tooth was saved using a permanent bonded retainer. A small wire secured behind her front teeth. Which has successfully remained in place for more than two decades. Over the years, multiple dentists have advised her that she may eventually need an implant, but that she should preserve the existing tooth for as long as reasonably possible.
Occasionally, the bonding on the retainer comes loose and simply needs to be reattached. That is why we initially visited Dr. Heresi.
What should have been a relatively straightforward repair and routine cleaning turned into an approximately four-hour appointment dominated by repeated pressure to replace the tooth with an implant. We made it very clear that we understood an implant may eventually be necessary, but we were not prepared to make that decision yet. Despite this, the subject continued to be pushed to the point that the experience felt less like receiving dental care and more like sitting through a high-pressure sales presentation.
More concerning, the retainer was not rebonded in the same manner that had successfully held it in place for years. Rather than securing the wire to the necessary teeth, it was bonded only at the outer tooth, leaving a substantial unsupported section. Predictably, the repair failed approximately one month later while eating chips and salsa. We felt that the repair was intentionally made this way to force into coming back and deciding to have the implant procedure. That is just our feeling.
We reluctantly returned to have it repaired again. Almost immediately, Hugo resumed pushing the implant despite our repeatedly stating that we were not interested in pursuing one at this time. He repeatedly interrupted and spoke over us while insisting that repairing the retainer was merely a "temporary solution." Considering that this "temporary solution" has preserved my wife's tooth for approximately 23 years, we found that characterization particularly frustrating.
The conversation became so uncomfortable that we gathered our belongings and were prepared to leave without having the tooth repaired.
They also wanted to take another set of X-rays despite having taken X-rays at our appointment only a month earlier. We repeatedly declined. This wasn't a financial issue. We have dental insurance. We simply did not want additional procedures that had not been adequately justified to us.
Eventually, the dentist came in and handled the situation much differently. She was calm, kind and professional, and she apologized for not properly securing the retainer during the previous visit. We appreciated her acknowledging that the original repair had not been performed correctly, and she then repaired it appropriately.
Unfortunately, the experience didn't end there. At checkout, we were initially told we would be charged for the visit and the X-rays. Even though we had refused the X-rays and they were never taken.
Our issue is not that an implant was recommended. We understand that my wife may eventually need one, and we appreciate a dentist explaining treatment options and making professional recommendations. Our issue is what happened after we declined that recommendation.
Patients should be able to say, "I understand your recommendation, but I don't want to proceed with that treatment right now," and have that decision respected. A recommendation should not turn into a prolonged sales pitch, particularly when the patient is seeking a different reasonable course of treatment.
Based on our experience, we cannot recommend this practice. Dental care requires an enormous amount of trust, and patients should feel that treatment recommendations are being made primarily with their health, comfort and wishes in mind, not feel pressured into expensive procedures they have repeatedly declined.
I would suggest looking elsewhere for dental care. read more
