Switching a dentist after getting xrays/cleaning, how does your next dentist determine anything?

My dentist is a crook. I just moved back home from out of state and had to get a new dentist. My whole family has been going to the same guy for a year. My mom said this is the only dentist she has EVER gone over her max for in her entire life. I went to him anyways.





I just got done with my appointment. He says I have 8 cavities. I'm no dentist, but this is BS. I've never had a cavity in my life. I had my last checkup a year ago and didn't have one cavity.





Bottom line, this guy is a crook and I want to go to someone else. But, if I do, how will my new dentist be able to determine anything? Will I have to pay out of my pocket for new xrays/etc. if I switch?

Switching a dentist after getting xrays/cleaning, how does your next dentist determine anything?
When you switch dentists you go to old dentist and ask the receptionist to forward a copy of your x-rays and dental records to your new dentist. You may have pay a fee for the copies of the records but then they are all at your new dentist. I am wondering why you think you can't get 8 cavities in a years time? This is not unreasonable and if you have seen your dentist at 6 months like you are supposed to maybe you wouldn't have 8 cavities now as they would have caught some of them sooner.
Reply:He might just take new x-rays. Chances are if your old dentist is a crook like you say, they won't willingly hand over your x-rays. And legally, they don't have to. You can ask them nicely though. But, if you have to get new x-rays it's not that bad. There's really not much radiation from it. I had to switch dentists too, and my dentist didn't even charge me for more x-rays, since my insurance had already been billed that year for x-rays (only allowed 1 set of x-rays a year).





But also, when you move to a different location, it's possible to get cavities (different eating habits, no fluoride in water, etc). I never had cavities, and then when I moved off to college, I got 5 during my freshman year. It can happen, but if you don't trust him, get a second opinion.
Reply:They will examine your teeth with their eyes, and their little pick. Xrays aren't necessary.
Reply:Get copies of your records transferred to the new dentist. The actual physical record (including written records, charts, reports and x-rays) is the dentist's work product and therefore his/her property. However, you are entitled to the information contained in these records. With proper authorization, the dentist may make copies of the records and x-rays and then forward them to you or another office. They will usually charge you for the service of copying the records and duplicating the x-rays.





Eight cavities in a year is not unheard of. Most of them are probably small.
Reply:You should call your old dentist and get copies of your x-rays and your files. The files are actually yours anyways.
Reply:Most likely you will (have to pay for new exam/xrays ect).......Unless you can convince your current dentist to release/transfer your records.......say for instance, you were moving away or something (wink)





Even though they are "your" dental records %26amp; you had to pay for them.......They (actually) belong to the dentist.





It sux but.........Good Luck!
Reply:Even if you did have to pay it would be worth it to get out of the clutches of that crooked dentist.





I switched dentists earlier this year. The new dentist had an assistant call up the first dentist and say that they had a mutual client and asked if, as a professional courtesy, they could send a copy of the x-rays. The new one did not mention that I was never going back to the old one merely that I was having some specialized work done at their office.
Reply:You admit that you are no dentist, yet you call him a crook just because you don't believe you have 8 cavities??? Just because you never had one before, DOES NOT mean that you don't know. And if you do, you are at fault, not him. Why does he have to be a crook, just because you don't believe him? It will be really funny if you go to another dentist and get told the same thing.





I have seen patients develop cavities in the time between their last appointment. Maybe your old dentist didn't find them.





It just really amazes me how people with no real dental knowledge are so quick to call a dentist a crook or a scammer, when they just simply don't believe what he tells them. Don't be so quick to assume he is a crook, when he may be completely right.





If you go to a new dentist, you can request a copy of your x-rays from this dentist, however he has the legal right to charge you to duplicate them. This is a guildline set forth by most state dental boards. If you refuse to pay for them, he doesn't have to give them to you, and yes you would have to pay at the next dentist you go to. In regards to what another answerer told you, that the records belong to you, NO THEY DON't. They belong to the dentist who took them, and I can promise you that if you look up your states guildlines, you will see this for yourself. In my state, legally a dentist must keep the originals for 7 yrs. and they do have the legal right to charge for any duplicates they make. Whenever I have a patient tell me "but they belong to me", I know the exact link to my states dental board website, that shows them that the records in fact do not belong to them.





I am just curious though, are you going to just keep going dentist to dentist, until you find one who will tell you what you want to hear, or are you eventually going to accept that you have cavities and need to get them fixed???








******How does it make me feel? why should it make me feel anything? They're your teeth. If you want to take this "friend of the families" opinion, then go ahead. But I can tell you, you go to 10 different dentists and you will get 10 different overall recommendations. Whose right? Whose wrong? Most people would take the majority vote and go with that. Only having 2 dentists isn't a majority, it is a difference of opinion. You could go to a 3rd dentist and he might tell you that you have 4 cavities. Every dentist has their own opinion of when a tooth needs to be filled. I have seen dentists call a cavity stain in deep grooves, simply because the decay doesn't show up on an x-ray yet. Does that mean that it isn't decay? No, they just are more concervative and don't want to fill it yet. Other dentists will see any tiny speck of decay, and say the tooth needs a filling. Neither one is wrong, they just have a different way of diagnosing. You first dentist may be absolutely right in saying you have 8 areas of decay, though they may be small right now. He may be more pro-active and want to fill them before they get larger, where the other guy may say that they could be remineralized with fluoride or wouldn't grow any larger if you brush really well. Doesn't mean the first guy is a crook, just because he isn't as concervative as the next.





You can take my advice or leave it. Either way, they're your teeth and if they were to all fall out one day it wouldn't make a difference to me. I just hate to see someone call a dentist a crook, simply because they don't want to believe what they are being told or aren't being told what they want to hear. That is exactly what your initial comments sound like you are doing. This guy didn't tell you what you wanted to hear, so you assume he is a crook. That is just really sad to stereotype a dentist like that , with no real proof, besides your own opinion and that of a "family friend dentist".
Reply:I think Ms dental cowgirl is right on the money! Whether to fill a tooth with slight issues or just keep an eye on it is up the dentist. If he knew your history he could make a better judgment, but dentists are human. My opinion-get the fillings. With the amount of fluoride we get nowadays, if there is any indication on X ray that there may be decay, fill it! Our enamel is so strong because of all of the fluoride it's tough to see the decay through it. But once decay gets through, it will mushroom when it hits the softer part of the tooth. I'd also be careful who you call a crook!

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