Private dental checkup contradicts NHS checkup

Guest2

Guest2

Guest2

Soldato
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6 May 2009
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Around 6 weeks ago I had a checkup with my NHS dentist i’ve been going to for years.

They said I had mild gum disease and needed 3 fillings, plus a scale and polish. One of the fillings has been replaced twice already and is slightly chipped on a corner.
I booked in the two appointments and paid the £70.70.

I decided to book a private appointment (new patient consultation) locally at a cost of £60 to see what they say.

I had appointment today. My teeth were xrayed (which ive only had once ever with nhs) They said my gums are fine and don’t need any fillings based on the checkup and xrays but did recommend a scale and polish.

I told them about the nhs recommendations and asked for the consultation notes and xrays to be forwarded to me.

Needless to say im not going to have 3 fillings but will have the scale and polish. Can I claim back the £44.90 as the 3 fillings are not needed?

Guess it pays to double check before going ahead with work. Also, don’t pay up front like I did - lesson learned!
 
I suspect there may be an element of personal opinion, one dentist might look at a filling (especially if they've been monitoring it for years) and say "yeah that probably needs replacing" and another might not, especially if it's got a bit of damage to it.

Our local one has been pretty good for the last 20 years, but he also does things like x-rays on a semi regular basis (every few years) to help keep track of things.
 
Interestingly I had 3 fillings in my molars when I was about 17. They all, over time, fell out. Those teeth since then have never needed a replacement filling. There are no records of me having them but one dentist could see evidence left on one of the teeth that they had been filled. Weird!
 
VincentHanna said:
I get x-rayed every 2 years at my dentist which does NHS and private work.

Yours sounds a bit **** to be honest!
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It used to be owned by one guy but he retired a few years ago and it seems to have gone downhill since.
One if the fillings i have has needed to be replaced twice. First it was too high so has to have some taken off, then it cracked so had to have it removed and put back in.
 
Always go for another opinion. Ask for your x-rays.
Once they start drilling, it will end up being expensive.
Stay way from sugar, brush your teeth and floss and you should be all good.
 
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Guest2 said:
Clearly didnt read the thread at all.
Nhs dentist said I need 3 fillings
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I should have quoted, my reply was to Vincent.

I personally wouldn't use the NHS if I could realistically afford a private consultation and treatment. If I couldn't afford private treatment I'd sure as hell find the money for a couple of private consultations before having any semi or fully major "things" done.
 
Chris Wilson said:
Why would you voluntarily have teeth and jaws x-rayed if there was no apparent issue with them?
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Because the dentist can't see inside your teeth, and even the best dentist can't see all of the surface of your teeth, so it's the only way for them to know the state of them where they can't see from a visual inspection.

It's pretty much standard to try and catch things like cavities before they start causing you pain, or to catch a potential abscess before it gets to the point where it's a problem. The amount of radiation from a dental x-ray is tiny and it's very highly focussed (it's only got to pass through a few mm of flesh and at most half an inch of bone in a very small area).
It can also I believe help catch things like a filling starting to fail/work loose.
 
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Werewolf said:
I suspect there may be an element of personal opinion, one dentist might look at a filling (especially if they've been monitoring it for years) and say "yeah that probably needs replacing" and another might not, especially if it's got a bit of damage to it.
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like he said there is a subjective part to fillings -

did the OP specifically tell the private dentist what the nhs had recommended and ask their opinion,
there is a fine line between erosion on the enamel, and some kind of precautionary filling is warranted, and, we can wait and see what happens,
and then one day you bite onto a stone, or large piece of salt crystal, in my situation, and the tooth is fragmented because without a filling it was structurally weak.
 
Dis86 said:
Interestingly I had 3 fillings in my molars when I was about 17. They all, over time, fell out. Those teeth since then have never needed a replacement filling. There are no records of me having them but one dentist could see evidence left on one of the teeth that they had been filled. Weird!
Click to expand...
Aliens took them out when they probed you.
 
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