Harassed by dentist?

[Anotherdayanotherusername]

I've long acknowledged I have the sort of teeth that make lots of plaque/tartar. A dentist once told me it's not my fault, it's just the way some people are. I tried to manage it by regular hygienist visits and following their advice. I figured my teeth were OK as dentist never seemed concerned and my gums never bled which I know is a sign of gum disease.

Then two years ago I started seeing a different dentist at the practice and suddenly I have the worst teeth in the world! She said I had gum disease, bone loss and she was "very concerned". I was told I needed expensive root planing treatment or surgery but no point doing yet as gum disease needed to be bought under control first so needed close monitoring. Mortified, I stepped up my dental routine, bought a water flosser but it was never good enough.

I then couldn't see the dentist for 9 months but did see the hygienist a couple of times in that period who seemed happy with what I was doing.

Had an appointment with the dentist a few weeks ago which I was dreading, expecting the usual telling off. To my surprise she seemed happy with my teeth, didn't even mention gum disease and sent me on my way saying "see you in 6 months". However, I later received a call from the surgery saying the dentist needed me to come back "to check something". As I needed to take time off work, it's some distance and they couldn't do the same time as my next hygienist appointment, I refused to make an appointment unless they told me why. Dentist phoned back to say it was because she forgot to check my gum disease and although my gums looked fine she wanted to double check. I said I was happy to wait until my next check up but she said she wasn't.

Since then the surgery keep calling me to schedule the appointment and I'm either fobbing them off or not answering as it's really inconvenient!

AIBU? Is this dentist being overdramatic or scared of getting sued perhaps??

Just move to another dentist and don't take her calls. If she does manage to get through to you then log everything in case you need to report her for harassment. You can always make an excuse like you have moved to a dentist near your work for convenience.

BPE is just a general scan of gum health. If any areas are a 3 or 4 then a full 6 point chart should be done, which is what , I imagine , the dentist has called the OP in to do. The BPE will already have been done in all likelyhood.

I would answer the phone if they call and ask them if they think it's perfectly ok for a dentist to "forget" to check a patient's gums? That it doesn't sound very professional and it will wait until the next check up.

Yes I know but the hygienist is qualified to do a full pocket chart so why can’t it wait until then

Because unless the hygienist is happy to do independent prescribing any treatment plan or referral will have to be done by the dentist .

A dentist checks around 50 different things on a check up , including doing a BPE (basic periodontal examination) which gives a general idea of gum health.

If this gives a score of 3 or 4 then a 6 point pocket chart , which takes a seperate appointment and takes a long time , should be done. With all the writing up, investigations etc it can be easy to forget to make the patient an appointment to come back for the 6 point check . This is why records are reviewed so things are picked up that are easy to miss.

Op maybe it’s worth asking then if the hygienist is happy to do the full pocket chart and any perio treatment required without a treatment plan from your dentist. If not then you will probably need to pop back in for a pocket chart (although if it’s nhs I would be surprised if the dentist did this due to the time it takes)

Presumably mine must've satisfied the BPE at my recent appointment or she would've said so at the time? She admitted my gums looked fine at the appointment but it was only when reviewing my notes she remembered there was a gum disease concern previously.

I would change dentist. Wouldn’t trust this one.

I would go for a second opinion have you got a private dentist nearby you can go to

@Lollygaggle Thank you, interesting. I'm sure I read that the bacteria in mouth plaque, gum disease or decay or something like that are the same as found in the joints of rheumatoid arthritis sufferers. Isn't there a link with Alzheimer's too?

It's interesting the number of people who wouldn't trust a professional who realised they had made a mistake and immediately contacted the patient with a plan to rectify that...
I mean,in an ideal world no-one would even get anything wrong but in RL it happens.
The lesson here for professionals seems to be that people would be happier if they just let any mistakes ride.
Weird.

You are right , it’s because gum disease is an inflammatory disease it would appear to be associated with many other health problems .

It’s why it’s astounding that a clinician who has gone over and double checked records and therefore wants to be more thorough in the monitoring of the OPs gum disease is subject to so much opprobrium when in any other sphere of healthcare they would be applauded for being so thorough.

Thank you , you have restored my confidence in , at least, some of the general public .

I’d be looking to change dentist, either within your current practice or going elsewhere.

Block the number, go to a difference practice and leave them an honest review on Google.

Can I ask why?

OP has gum disease , they are being treated for it , the dentist wants to do further checks to see how the gum disease is progressing . The treatment is following best practice ie initial therapy to improve cleaning and gum health before assessing whether root planing , gum surgery etc is necessary. OP knows they have had problems in past controlling the amount of tartar in their mouth.

Surgery has contacted to make appointment for further checks as soon as , on reviewing records , they realised more measurements needed to be taken . OP has not asked them not to contact , just put them off.

Gum disease is often a silent disease and often picked up too late to stop damage.

In what way has dentist acted to justify not only leaving but trying to destroy their business through reviews?

One dentist is constantly trying to upsell expensive treatment, the other forgets half the examination. Then they harass her constantly calling to make another appointment. They sound unprofessional and a bit shit. If you don't want bad reviews, don't be shit.

I'd really recommend an Emmi-Dent toothbrush. It's really good for removing plaque without scrubbing. They're on Amazon.

Well said 👍

The dentist diagnosed gum disease two years ago. They said OP may need root planing etc but needed to improve cleaning and gum health first. so monitoring and improving gum health for two years before proceeding with further treatment is hardly upselling treatment . Root planing etc is standard treatment for gum disease that has not responded to initial therapy. OP has not had this treatment recommended yet , they were just warned they might need it.

The same dentist did a check up which routinely checks between 25 and 50 different things . As a result of double checking the OPs records they realised they needed to do an additional check which is time consuming and would have needed another appointment any way.

If any other health professional reviewed records and then contacted a patient for a needed health check would you call that harassment? OP has not asked not to be contacted so as far as the practice is concerned there is an outstanding health check that should not wait that needs to be scheduled.

Works really well for me. My teeth are whiter and my gums stopped bleeding

Glad for you , but OP has diagnosed gum disease and stopping what they are doing to oil pull or even adding 20 minutes a day of oil pulling has no scientific basis quackwatch.org/ncahf/digest24/24-33/

I've was diagnosed with gum disease many many years ago. My dentist explained it can be genetic and not just down to how you brush

he said he could refer me to many expensive treatment centres but no one could keep on top of it better than the hygienist so recommended 2 * 3 months appointment then 6 monthly afterward. My gums have gone from 4's to 0's in this time but some problems to flare up which we work on

my dentist always just probed the gum once whilst my hygienist does front back and side readings

don’t listen to the upselling dentist

Don’t listen to the dentist who has not even told OP yet they need further treatment , just warned them two years ago they might?

Dont listen to the dentist who has spent years studying dentistry , has seen the OP for the past few years , has clinically examined them and seen their x rays , gum scores, plaque scores and bleeding scores?

Dont listen to the dentist who appears to be following the best practice as advised by the British periodontal society and specialist periodontists (gum disease specialists)? https://www.bsperio.org.uk/assets/downloads/SM3003_BSP_Layperson_Flowchart_Mobile_14_SCREEN_READY_With_URLs.pdf

Undiagnosed and untreated gum disease is the number one reason a U.K. dentist will be sued. It’s the number one reason a U.K. person will lose their teeth. It is implicated in diabetes, heart disease , miscarriages etc , but don’t listen to the person who has trained years to diagnose and treat it. Would you advise that with any other health problem?