Hi Jack Sprat,

Perhaps I can help you.......I'm in the dental industry.....over 30 years. It is very unfortunate that the majority of the public continues to be terribly misinformed about their teeth and how to keep them healthy. I think the information you were given was accurate but definitely not presented to you very well. I think I can offer you some insight based on what you have written here...... hopefully it will be helpful to you.

First of all, it is true that the bacteria in our mouths travels to other areas of our body. The mouth is literally the opening to our digestive immune system. So if there is a chronic build up of bacteria below or above the gumline, it is going into our immune system which can negatively affect any of our major organs.

The plaque that accumulates along the gumline, is the same plaque that clogs our arteries. Since the mouth and immune system are so intricately connected, it is wise to have the plaque below the gumline removed at best 2times a years by a hygienist. On a daily basis we need to brush gently, but thoroughly twice a day and floss gently but thoroughly once a day. Brushing or flossing more than that is truly unnecessary and could actually cause some gum recession. It is also important to brush and floss properly. Did the hygienist show you how to do those things?

It sounds like you do not have your teeth professionally cleaned very often and because you brush so frequently, you think you are not building up plaque and tartar. Your xrays showed you have bone loss which means that you are building up bacteria under the gumline and would benefit from more frequent professional cleanings.

The procedure that the hygienist performed is called a Full Mouth Debridement. This is a rough scaling of the entire mouth to remove the heavy tartar/calculus buildup. This is done to remove the above the gumline tartar so that the tartar below the gumline can be gotten to at a later time. The tartar itself is actually very irritating to the gum tissue. So the idea in doing this procedure is to cause the least amount of trauma to the already irritated gum tissue. That's why you need subsequent visits to complete the removal of the tartar below the gumline. It is also very difficult to determine how many visits this will take until the gum tissue heals a little after the full debridement. Generally it is 2 to 4 more visits. It is also impossible for a dentist or hygienist to initially know how difficult it will be to remove your tartar because in some people, it comes off easily and in others it is very tenacious. It sounds like you will have areas that the tartar comes off easy and other spots where is will be a bit more difficult.

The average fee for a Full Mouth Debridement is $250.00 to $400.00 depending on how "tenacious" the tartar is to remove. You did not get ripped off at $260.00. Root planing per quadrant averages $250 to $400 per quad. So the estimate of $1300 for 5 appointments is completely reasonable in the scheme of things.

With regard to the antibacterial rinse....... this rinse is totally meant to protect you. Google periodontal disease and bacteria under the gumline. You will see that the information they gave you is correct. However, many of the rinsing agents are full of chemicals. If they use a product called Closys or one called Tooth and Gum Care, it would behoove you to go back and buy some. Both of these have great antibacterial agents in them that will not cause any adverse affects. Products like Listerine or any of the other OTC rinses that contain alcohol will actually harm the tissue and dry up the saliva making us more prone to tooth decay. So I would avoid the alcohol based ones at all cost.

With regard to your last paragraph......<<I told this story to my mom and best friend who both told me the dental industry, like any other service industry, is hurting because people don't go to the dentist every six months anymore, so they're using scare tactics to get people in the chair. I seriously don't know what to do! I do not have the money but am afraid to lose my teeth! but they look and feel FINE!!! can anyone advise?>>

The dental industry is definitely being affected by this economical meltdown. However, it is unethical to deliberately scare someone into the dental chair and provide unnecessary dental care. Does it happen........ yes it sure does! But only by those dentists that practice that sort of dentistry as a living in good times and in bad. I'm sure there are some offices that have increased their fees because their volume of patients are down and others who have reduced their hours to maintain a realistic production level to keep their business afloat.

From what you have described in your post...... you were informed in an unprofessional manner of what the findings were on your xrays. But you were not ripped off.

Let me know if this post has helped to clarify some things for you. In case you think I replied to your post in defense of dental profession........feel free to read some of my previous posts to other members....... I'm in this business long enough to know what goes on and rarely come do I ever feel the need to defend what they do.

I hope you are going to follow through with the other appointments!

Bryanna