Importance of General Dentistry

A few years ago I had a lovely patient come into our Bryn Mawr dental office. She had been a patient for several years. She said that she had been saving up money and was ready to get Invisalign.

She had a consultation with an orthodontist and they decided that she could achieve the look she wanted through Clear Aligner Therapy, which is the same as Invisalign.

She found out that I had been doing Invisalign and other products for over 20 years and trusted me to do the work. When I asked her what result she wanted I offered an alternative treatment. Within the half-hour consultation that we had, I made some minor shape changes on a few of her teeth and added a little bonding to 2 other teeth.

BAM!

Results achieved instantly.

She didn’t have to wear aligners for months and it cost less than 15% of the ortho treatment and it was painless, even without any shots!

There are other advantages of utilizing a general dentist that does all phases of dentistry.

Last week I had a patient come into our Bryn Mawr dental office with a toothache. After taking an Xray we found evidence of a cavity under a crown he had placed on the tooth many years ago. I told him that it was very likely that the tooth would need to have a root canal done.

Now, many group practices with restorative dentists and various specialists all stay in their lanes. The patient would likely have to find time in the endodontist’s schedule and live with the discomfort and liability until they could reschedule, which can be weeks.

Instead, we started the particularly tricky root canal. Since we had the extra time, I asked him if he wanted to keep charging on. He gave me the thumbs up.

Not only did we successfully finish the root cana,l we built the tooth up, took the digital scans (we don’t do impressions any more) and put a temporary on the tooth.

I saved him weeks in treatment, hours in the chair and was able to get him stabilized immediately.

This is likely not the case in many larger group practices, or if the patient went to a specialist right-off-the-bat.

In all fairness, there are many root canals that I refer out. There is a massive need for these talented specialists for lots of situations demanding their expertise.

The point is that having a great relationship with a trusted general or family dentist in Bryn Mawr or your neighborhood is usually going to be your best bet for the right treatment.

I can recount experiences where patients went to other specialists of different disciplines in dentistry that recommended their services.

Imagine you had a back ache and went to a chiropractor, massage therapist, personal trainer, or a Pilates instructor. They know of many people whose lives were made better by the treatment they performed for them.

Whereas these professionals all perform great services it is likely that one of them might be best in each situation.

Think of a general dentist that has earned your trust as the best advocate to quarterback your treatment.

If you have any dental concerns and are not sure about some treatment you are considering we happily offer complimentary consultations to explain all of your options to you.

Just give Joanne a call at our Bryn Mawr family dental practice, Dillon Family Dentistry, 610-525-5497.