Newman Ferrara partner -- Jeffrey M. Norton -- was interviewed for this Fox 5 News piece on "aggressive" dentistry.
Unnecessary, aggressive dental diagnoses on the rise
In recent years there has been an increase in the number of corporate-run dental offices around the country where the emphasis is often on profit over personalized care.
"Maybe they came in because they had a toothache and maybe needed a filling, they walk out with a two or three thousand dollar treatment plan," said Brian Cohen, a New York-based attorney representing 11 clients who have filed a class action lawsuit against a major dental chain. The suit alleges that the clinics practice unlawful corporate medicine.
"They lure patients in with promises of free X-rays and exams and the quicker they can get them out of the dental chair to the sales chair, the better," said Jeffrey Norton, co-counsel on the lawsuit.
The allegations in their case are extreme examples of a trend toward aggressive diagnoses and treatments that many longtime dentists say they're seeing more frequently.
Dr. Jeffrey Camm, a pediatric dentist, coined the practice "creative diagnosis.
"I think some of this is profit driven: 'I can do it, the insurance will cover it, nobody's watching...let's go and they do it'," said Camm.
Camm, who has practiced dentistry in Tacoma, Washington for 34 years, drew attention with an editorial he wrote for the American Dental Association's Website last year. He said he wrote it after hearing from many patients who aged out of his clinic and were told by new dentists that they needed intensive dental work. Camm says the work recommended by the new dentists wasn't necessarily warranted.
In one case, a former patient of Camm was told as many as 16 cavities needed to be filled. But Camm says he consulted with other dentists and they all agreed only a couple of the teeth needed work.
"There standard joke is: the best way to have cavities in your mouth is to change dentists. Well actually it used to be a joke, I don't think it's a joke anymore, i think it's serious," Camm said.
While sometimes aggressive diagnoses are driven by profit, that's not always the case.
"Dentistry is not only a science, there's also an art to it," said Dr. Mark Wolff, the Associate Dean at the NYU College of Dentistry and the chair of the Department of Cariology and Comprehensive Care there. "So as we look to diagnose what is tooth decay, it's not uncommon for one dentist to think this meets the threshold of needing treatment and another dentist to think it still can be observed or managed non-surgically."
Wolff says if you are unsure of your dentist's diagnosis, don't be afraid to speak up.
"The first thing a patient should always do is feel free to ask the dentist or dental hygenist who is working on them: Why? How? Show me," Wolff said.
And Wolff says if after that you are still not satisfied, go elsewhere for another opinion.
"Every every dentist should be comfortable seeing you go to another dentist to get a second opinion," he said.
Wolff also says a key to managing your oral health is to stick with the same dentist, if possible. That way he or she can monitor changes in your mouth over time.