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Why Does My Pediatric Dentist Insist on X-Rays Every Visit?

August 20, 2016

I am diligent to take my children to visit the dentist every six months, even though we don’t have a lot of money. One thing that troubles me is the fact that they insist on x-rays every single visit. My insurance only covers it once a year. If it was necessary, I would think that they’d cover it twice. Is it that important or can I skip the next ones?

Mallory F. – New Hampshire

Mallory,

I wouldn’t say that x-rays every six months are necessary, with the exception of a high risk patient.  If you have a child that has a greater than normal chance of developing a cavity, based on genetics or habits, it would be appropriate to do x-rays at every six months. Other than that, every year would be more the norm.

I’d talk to your pediatric dentist about your concern.  It may be he’s noticed something about your children’s teeth that make him extra cautious. Barring that, I’d just tell him you’d prefer to only do the x-rays once a year.

It’s always difficult making ends meet, especially when you have children, so any way you can save some money and still carry out your child’s best interest, is helpful.

This blog is brought to you by Dr. Don Swearingen.

My Lumineers Don’t Match My Other Teeth

August 6, 2016

I had four Lumineers done. I like them and they’re a beautiful shape and color, but they don’t match the teeth next to them. My regular teeth are darker than the Lumineers. Can I whiten them to match?

Celeste E. – Oregon

Celeste,

I’m glad you’re pleased with the Lumineers. I think the bigger problem here is you went to an inexperienced cosmetic dentist. Four Lumineers aren’t enough in your case and that obvious because the teeth next to them are visible.

Now, let’s say that four was absolutely all you could afford. In that case, your dentist should have had you whiten your teeth BEFORE the Lumineers were made. That way you could whiten them to the brightness you’d like and then your dentist would match the Lumineers to them.

Now, you can still whiten your teeth, and it may help, but they will not be an exact match to your Lumineers.  If you want an exact match, I would get a two to four more Lumineers to put on the adjacent teeth. You’d only need four more if you have a very wide smile.

This blog is brought to you by Dr. Don Swearingen.