please avoid this place if you can. I went for dental cleaning and there was hardly any proper check that was done. on top of that - they have been doing all sort of mistakes when filing for claim on their end. please avoid! read more

Well I will leave a bad review also since I had a bad experience. I went to see her for tooth pain. Claimed I needed a root canal. Which was absolutely shocking since I had no filings in my mouth. Put me on antibiotics. Offered me a prescription for Vicodin. (Ummm wasn't that bad!) I go back in a couple of weeks to start the process of a root canal. Not sure exactly what she used to numb me because I was out of it! Anyway she starts drilling. Then says she doesn't think I need a root canal. Then asks me what should she do?!? Also like it was her first day. I told her she was the one with the degree. So then she fills the hole she created. After this I am very skeptical and don't return. However I got a bill for what my insurance didn't cover. I refused to pay it since I never needed the work to begin with. Threatened to send me to a collection agency. So just be aware. Be very aware. Not professional. read more

The receptionist told me I cannot use my insurance to cover my dental service and I paid $175 dollars out of pocket. She is in-network doctor and the dental service is ordinary teeth cleaning. I should not be responsible for the bill. The receptionist explain that I changed my PCD to Schmeler recently, and I cannot be covered until 11/1/2014. I never heard of this rule. They did not explain this to me when I register. read more

Dr. Schmeler made a deep cleaning and a full complement of cosmetic procedures -- something I was NOT looking forward to experiencing -- pass by quickly and comfortably. My recent experiences as a new patient were, by far, the best dental visits I've ever had. Thank you Dr. Schmeler and to Louetta for giving me back my smile! read more

This place is the worst ever. She billed me and my insurance company. She is a crook and so are the people who work there. I took her to court and she didn't show up for the hearing. Aetna dropped her as a provider and she is under investigation at the State Board. Do your investigation before going to this quack. The only good reviews she has anywhere are from the people who work for her. She must have ordered them to write them. That is pretty desperate read more

So I don't know about the actual work of this dentist to be honest with you. I had an appointment with her and I ran late. The response and reaction that I got from her receptionist was quite rude. For a place that is called "Shadyside Smiles" you see anything but a smile. I tried to explain to her that I am out of the state, traveled a long way and leaving town tomorrow, but she was not even listening. The fact that I drove as far as I did and was treated like that was discouraging enough that I did not want to go back. If she was just a bit nicer I would have gone back given that I was the one who was late and at fault to begin with. On a separate note, I asked her if I can skip the exam (since I was late) and just do the cleaning in which she replied Dr. is late for her appointment and already needed to be at her appointment. That left me with the question of how short of an appointment did they schedule me for? Were they planning to do the X-Ray, consulting and cleaning in half an hour? I have been to many dentists around the country but never in my life I have had an exam, x-ray, new patient consultation and cleaning done in half an hour. So now I am sort of happy that it did not work out because i doubt she could have done a thorough job in half an hour and be on time for her next appointment. read more

My experience with Dr. Schmeler was decent, but not much more. The people in the office were nice but not particularly welcoming. When I left, I felt that my teeth were clean, but that I had not had a real dental check-up. I am nothing of a dental expert, but these things made me skeptical: * When my previous dentist sent my dental x-rays and forgot to include the date of the x-rays, Dr. Schmeler said she didn't know when they were taken, and did not check with my previous dentist to see if I needed new ones. * I walked out of the office half an hour after walking in. I have never had a dentist appointment that short, so it makes me wonder how rigorous a cleaning and check-up I received. *I have TMJ and wear a splint at night to ease the teeth-grinding. Dr. Schmeler took one brief glance at the splint and told me I would need a new one ($800!). I went to another dentist this week for a second opinion, and left with only $80 worth of adjustments to my current splint--and he took a whole hour to discuss my dental history and ensure the splint adjustments were correct. Overall, this was not my worst dental experience, but I cannot recommend Dr. Schmeler's office, either. read more

I went to this dentist three times - twice for cleanings and once to get fillings. The dentistry is mediocre (I got much better cleanings from my previous dentist who is out of state, and the shots for my fillings were more unpleasant than usual), but the horrible treatment by both the dentist and the staff made me never go back (and I never will). When I got the fillings, the office manager couldn't read my insurance benefits correctly and told me that only inlays were covered, so they switched procedures at the last moment (after I was already numb). She was incorrect, and I had to pay out of pocket for a more expensive procedure. When I discovered this and called the office, she just got angry on the phone and essentially hung up on me. I called trying to speak with the dentist, and she would only meet with me to discuss the issue if I paid an $80 consultation fee for her time. Absolutely horrible treatment on all accounts... read more

The staff was completely helpful and courteous, the visit went smoothly, not much of a wait at all, and Dr. Schmeler was just awesome..knowledgeable, gentle, put me completely at ease. I can't recommend highly enough. read more

I used to go to this dentist for my checkups. I got along well with her until one day she pulled out my X-ray images and told me I had two cavities that needed to be fixed immediately. I had a few reasons for concern: 1) I have no history of cavities. 2) I was totally asymptomatic, which didn't jive with her urgency. 3) She insisted that one of the teeth with a cavity was not going to be covered by my insurance, but I should really get composite in it anyway ($400 out of pocket). 4) She made the mistake of showing me the x-rays. I use x-rays images daily at work and could see no evidence of cavities (or differences of any matter) between the teeth she indicated and the contralateral teeth. So I walked. It took me another 3 months before my insurance was willing to cover another bi-annual checkup, which made me nervous, but the flags were significant enough that I felt it was worthwhile. I didn't tell my next dentist anything, but he took his own images and concluded that there was absolutely nothing wrong in my mouth, apart from my 3-month old tendency of brushing too hard. Thanks Dr. Schmeler. How do you live with yourself? read more

Have been going to Dr. Schmeler for 13 years now. She is awesome! She is like the great aunt I never had. Makes me feel at home. Her offices are super clean, organized and new. Her support staff is always friendly as well! 110% recommend Dr. Schmeler! read more

Wow, there are so many things I can say about my experience with Dr. Schmeler and her staff. They were not friendly to me and I frequently felt condescended to. When I asked to see my X-rays because I was curious about the size of the *4* cavities she said she found, Dr. Schmeler seemed annoyed and told me "They're big enough to show up on an X-ray." and that was the end of it. If you decide to go to Dr. Schmeler for dental care, ask her to show you your X-rays; if she seems evasive about it, it may be well worth heeding any alarm bells that go off in your head... Sadly, I *didn't* heed those alarm bells. When I went back to get two of the cavities filled, she did what I can only describe as a "spackle job"; those two teeth were sensitive to hot and cold for a month after I got the fillings and I had a hard time flossing between them because the space was full of amalgam! I couldn't bear to go back to Dr. Schmeler to get the last two cavities filled, so I switched to a different- and much nicer- dentist. He and I looked at the X-rays that I had Dr. Schmeler's office send over; he said that he didn't see one of the cavities she claimed was there at all, and the other one was so small that it wouldn't be worth removing much of the good enamel on the tooth just to fill what is still a tiny cavity at this point. And finally (and this is nit-pickey), Dr. Schmeler's office over-charged me for my co-pay on the two cavities I had filled by her. I say it's nit-pickey because they only charged me a couple dollars more than my actual co-pay and I sort of feel like I should have known the exact amount of my co-pay to begin with. But I think it's worth mentioning because it sounds like other reviewers of Dr. Schmeler's office have experienced much the same thing when it comes to being over-charged. I do not recommend Dr. Schmeler as a dentist to anyone. read more

Watch this one. Aside from paying the price for shoddy dental work, the office balance billed me (only learned after receiving EOB from my dental provider). When I questioned this, the receptionist rudely told me that Dr. Schmeler did the work and deserved to get paid. She would not accept that Dr. Schmeler did get paid, per the contracted rate. After getting nowhere with them, I filed a suit against her and she settled. She balance billed a friend of mine as well for not only routine procedures but also crowns. read more

BEWARE! I am a physician and hate to even write this type of review, but felt others should be warned. I have had dental insurance for over 14 years and have never needed to dispute a bill; however, I've had to do it TWICE in the past 6 months with Dr. Schmeler's office. The first time, they billed me for the entirety of the bill for a routine cleaning which was covered at 100% by the insurance company. I looked into it and the insurance company had already paid it, but they double-billed me as well. It was resolved after two days. The next time, Lynda, told me that my filling was 'not covered' and billed 100% of the service to me. I had to obtain the itemized billing codes and ask the insurance company myself (the office never checked), and it is actually covered. I am in the middle of this dispute now (getting a refund for the amount I paid which the insurance company has actually paid). I actually like Dr. Schmeler and her work, but there is definitely something sketchy going on in this office. My advice: STAY AWAY. read more

Dr. Schmeiler has a wonderfully patient approach and she helped me become more comfortable with some oral surgery options which I ultimately have to decide about. My previous dentist took x-rays and referred me out to get a root canal at another facility. I had scheduled the appointment but I was very uneasy about the referral. On a friend's advice I scheduled an appointment for a second opinion with Dr Schmeiler.. With just 24 hours notice, I cancelled the root canal and i was able to, on the same day, replace that appointment with the appointment with Dr Schmerler. And boy am I glad I did! Her x-ray showed infection which needs to be treated first that my previous dentist Missed. The root canal would have been done top of infection! In my experience, Dr. Schmeiler is very thorough And I now have a much better explanation as to what my options are. I'm so glad I listened to my intuition! I feel I'm in much better hands for my upcoming dental procedure. read more

Dr. Schmeler has a beautiful office, with easy parking! We have been going to her for years. She is terrific and great with kids too!

I made an appointment weeks ago. Three days ago, the office called me to ask if I could come in a little earlier as they'd had cancellations. I said I couldn't. Today, they called to tell me the doctor had "something come up" and they were cancelling my appointment. Just totally inconsiderate. Look her up on citysearch, her reviews are terrible. read more

STAY AWAY!!!!! My family HAD BEEN patients for well over 15 years. I decided to get Invisalign braces after having some problems with chipping teeth and overbite issues. Initially, everything was fine. Then, six months into treatment, Dr. Schmeler changed to Clear Correct without my permission. First, I was told that my braces were on back order because of weather issues - LIE! Then, I was told that Invisalign and Clear Correct were one and the same -LIE! When I pressed Dr. Schmeler on this, she was anything but pleasant. When I asked for half of my money back (because she said they weren't covered under my insurance - LIE! I took a credit care loan and she got paid in full up front) because of her lies and not fulfilling our agreement (using Invisalign), I received less than $1300 as a refund. On the statement of refund, she took $450 for a charge from the credit card - LIE! When I contacted said credit card company, they said they don't charge $450 for anything. She kept over $1800 for half the lab fees (which, unfortunately, Invisalign could not or would not help). She got paid almost $4500 of the $5400 I took out for the ENTIRE process for doing less than half the work!!!! PLUS, after seeing an orthodontist who has been using Invisalign for over 15 years, I found out that she had me wearing sets of braces for three weeks when the company's protocol for wear is 1-2 weeks and she never told me that I would need to wear bands to help with the overbite. STAY AWAY, STAY AWAY, STAY AWAY!!!!! SHE IS SWEET AND NICE INITIALLY, BUT DON'T QUESTION HER OR HER STAFF OR THEY WILL TURN ON YOU AND BECOME VICIOUS, RABID DOGS. SHAME ON YOU, CHRISTINA SCHMELER!! read more

Dishonest and rude. She tried to con me by telling me that white fillings were not covered under my plan, which they were. I called the insurance company to confirm, and then read a bunch of horrible reviews online (should have done that first!). I ended up canceling my appointment for fillings and finding another dentist. My initial appointment for a cleaning was not all that great either. She is not thorough at all and I really didn't care for her condescending manner toward me. I have an accent and she spoke to me like I was a moron who didn't understand English. Sttay away from this dentist. read more

(Later) Though they claimed to have checked and they told me that my insurance was applicable, my insurance company later informed me that they don't pay claims from this dentist. I can only conclude that Dr. Schmeler's office intentionally lied to me. read more

Stay away. Office is run in an unprofessional manner. Insurance coverage is ignored and you will be billed for covered care. Appointments canceled at the last minute. read more

Christina Schmeler is completely incompetent - and I am still paying the price for her incompetence 10 years later. On relocating to Pittsburgh and obtaining a new job, I decided to find a new dentist. I was advised that I needed some cavities filled and my old fillings were also needing replaced - she was the expert so I agreed. (Of course, white fillings would not be covered by insurance!) At least two of the new fillings needed to be redone as a result of sensitivity to which she recommended root canals - again she was the supposed expert. I decided to do one at a time and maybe I should be thankful that I only allowed her to mess up one of my teeth. After the root canal was done, I changed dentist, and the new one was horrified at the prognosis of Schmeler. On reviewing my patient records, she had advised four root canals, and since none of these would be covered by insurance, I now know why! Unfortunately, the one I did let her work on needed to be redone as it was done incorrectly and this work was performed by the UPMC dental hospital (who did a great job BTW). Learn from my experience - keep smiling - and find someone else! read more

I had a very similar experience as the other review here. I've been going to this dental office since 2012. Everything had been alright, until about three month ago I went there for minor gum infection. It happened to be the open enrollment period for my insurance, which is under the UPMC plan from U. Pitt. The front desk told me there was some confusion about my enrollment. I called the school on site and let the front desk talk with the representative from school. At that time, the receptionist told me there wouldn't be a problem to retro my out-of-pocket pay back. HOWEVER, after 3-month back and forth phone calls, they realized the service I received actually wouldn't get reimbursed under the agreement/contract between them and UPMC. This money-sucking office revealed their true color and changed their tone of voice immediately. They claimed then that they had never done any retro for anybody, which means they completely lied to me in September. My insurance/UPMC told me I have all the rights and paperwork, which was faxed to the dental office already, to prove that I did not to pay a penny for the service I received. But this greedy office simply ignored all the evidence and still refused to reimburse the money I didn't need to pay... In brief, be very careful with this office. They are indeed all for money. read more