Do not go here. When I was new to the area, I chose Advanced Dental Care because it was convenient (walking distance to my apartment and offered Saturday appointments).
I thought this place was okay at first. There was a hygienist I really liked (who no longer works there). I've never had any dental issues and I figured the teeth cleaning services were comparable to other dentists. Although I was put off by a comment made by Dr. Khagani that people in my profession make the worst dental patients, I liked the hygienist well enough that I came back more than once.
But eventually, I began to dread dental visits there. Seemed they were always accusing me of not flossing enough and finding various problems. First I needed a deep cleaning because I had gingivitis and I was at risk to have bone loss and have my teeth fall out. This frightened me into dropping $70 on the deep cleaning. I figured the deep cleaning wouldn't hurt and I was too lazy to find a new dentist.
After the good hygienist left, they hired a new hygienist that I was less than pleased with. The first time she cleaned my teeth, it was a total blood bath. I'm not perfect - I occasionally skip a flossing - but I take good care of my teeth. She definitely stabbed a fold of skin in between my top middle teeth that was still heavily bleeding long after I walked home. She also did not squirt enough water in my mouth after polishing my teeth. I thought it was a joke when she asked how it felt when I still had toothpaste completely coating the roof of my mouth. She also made me nervous my teeth were going to break since she was scraping them VERY hard. I figured maybe she was new to the dental profession and gave her the benefit of the doubt.
But my last visit made it clear it was my last visit. I was really pleased with the cleaning at first, it seemed to go well (minus some roof of the mouth toothpaste that wasn't washed away again). It was over quickly, I wasn't bleeding everywhere. I was happy for a second, but my happiness quickly turned to anger and horror.
The dentist (it was not Dr. Khagani. I believe it was Patel but I honestly don't remember. I just know she was not Dr. K.) comes in and casually announces that I have two cavities that showed on my X-rays before but they didn't do anything before because they were small. Now they were bigger and so it was best to fill them. She just wanted to open up my tooth to get a better look at it.
I'm sorry, WHAT?! Over several visits, I was never told I had a cavity (or two cavities). I was never showed my X-rays. I brush with an electronic toothbrush, floss, and use mouth wash. I had no sensitivity in my teeth, so I was very shocked and confused. But the dentist didn't even seem sympathetic. Instead, she became argumentative and seemed like a pushy salesperson moreso than a dental professional.
Instead of addressing my legitimate concerns, she seemed like she just wanted to get me to shut up and set my filling appointment and leave. I just had a really bad feeling in the pit of my stomach and just felt anger welling up inside of me. If I had cavities before, why didn't they tell me. Isn't that unethical?! I had so many thoughts running through my head. I did ask several questions but I did not feel they were answered. I also felt that the dentist was acting like was I was being unreasonable for being upset. Rather than cause a scene, I internalized my anger and booked an appointment for the filling; I just wanted to get out and get away from that place and never return. So I walked home and couldn't help it; I cried a little bit when I got home.
I felt taken advantage of, lied to.
I decided to get a second opinion. Going to another dentist made me realize what I was missing all along and how stupid I was for giving Advanced Dental Care my business. And funny thing, in my second opinion the dentist FOUND NO SIGNS OF TOOTH DECAY WHATSOEVER. Granted, the second dentist did explain that some dentists are more aggressive than others, etc. But she listened to me, she treated me with respect. In other words, she was a true professional. She even showed me on an x-ray the difference between a cavity and a watch area and showed me how tooth decay was visible on an x-ray. She even took a picture of the inside of my mouth & showed me. Imagine that - a thorough and trustworthy professional. Sort of what I look for in a dentist...
Bottom line, I'm never returning to Advanced Dental Care and would not recommend this office to anyone. Even if I had needed fillings, the way they treated me made me not trust them. The whole encounter just seemed suuuuuuper shady. Like, does the dentist even have a valid license? Things I wonder.... read more