Could our dentist be not telling the truth??

We just moved to a new area around north georgia. We found a dentist that seemed good but when we both went in to get our teeth checked the dentist suggested that our teeth needed an extra cleaning that cost an additional amount of money that our insurance only covered partial. They said it was due to the fact that our gums had 4-5 pockets in it and it needed to be deep cleaned under the gum. My husband and I think that it is kind of funny and they may be lying b/c we just went to the dentist about 8-10months ago and that dentist gave us a regular cleaning that our insurance covered and told us that our gums had only 1,2,3 pockets. My question is, could both our teeth and gums really have progressed that bad in that short amount of time if we both have been taking care of it or could our current dentist be lying to try to upgrade our teeth cleaning to something that our insurance does not cover completely? How can u tell??

Could our dentist be not telling the truth??
I would ask the dentist to show you the 4-5 mm pockets. There is a chance that your old dentist is just not as dilegent with checking for pocketing as the new guy. I have seen this happen time and time again.





Sounds to me like a full mouth debridement. Is that what he called it? That is not a big deal, just more involved than a regular cleaning. True, insurance companies don't usually cover more than about 80% of it, but it could have been that the older dentist wasn't as detailed as the new guy.
Reply:Ew. I wouldn't trust the guy saying you need special cleaning that the insurance doesn't cover. If you really need it, the insurance would be paying for it!
Reply:hmm it's hard to tell if he's lying. pockets can progress in 8 to 10 months to a milimeter or so. but i don't think it would require an extra cleaning. a five millimeter pocket is not that much more difficult to clean than a 4 millimeter. now my question is do you practice good hygiene ie: flossing brushing daily. tarter can build up to a point where an extra cleaning maybe required but if you were getting a regular cleaning with a dental hygienist your build up would not be heavy enough, again to require an extra cleaning. if you don't want to pay for that extra cleaning that is certainly you perogative but to me it sounds like you don't need it. (sorry to all the dentist's who may be reading this) they doen't take the time necessary to do a good job when it comes to cleanings. good luck
Reply:Hmm...I would also ask your dentist to show you the 5 mm pocket. Here's the deal. If you have 4-5 mm pockets, then the dentist charges out the cleaning differently. How the cleaning is charged was set up and determined by the insurance companies. If just a few ares were deep, then he billed out an SRP 1-3 teeth code. That's not illegal although there should be significant tartar to justify billing that way.





I work in a rural town and I have patients all day long with 4-5, even 6 mm pockets. I don't charge them for SRP (deep cleaning) even though I'm doing it.





There is only one way to measure pockets, it can however be done incorrectly, but it's not going to vary much.





It is also possible that you're other dentist wasn't being as thorough as this dentist is.





I hope that answers your question.
Reply:I think that you should get a second opinion. Your teeth could not have changed in that short of time unless you have stopped taking care of your teeth all together. Go see someone else to make sure you are receiving the right treatment.