Creative Diagnosis: 10 Steps to Protect Yourself from Becoming A Victim

Kristy Henderson

Dental

November 6, 2020

Introduction

Have you received excessive treatment, unnecessary fillings, or numerous X-Rays? If so, you are probably a victim of creative diagnosis.

Creative diagnosis is the act of performing unnecessary treatment for financial gain. It is the most common form of dental fraud. The American Dental Association recognizes this scam as a trend ravaging the dental community.

Dentists everywhere are inventing diagnosis for profit. They are targeting children and vulnerable adults by misdiagnosing cavities and other dental issues. They are using their power to perform unnecessary procedures and steal from innocent patients. This is wrong!

Luckily, there are a few steps you can take to protect yourself from creative diagnosis.

10 Steps to Protect Yourself from Being a Victim of Creative Diagnosis

1.) Beware of Excessive Treatment

We’ve all been told since childhood that we should see a dentist twice a year for basic cleanings.

Today, an increasing number of dentists acknowledge that adults with good oral hygiene only need to see a dentist once every 12 to 16 months.

Don’t let your dentist overtreat you. Unnecessary appointments are a waste of time and money. Also, beware of unnecessary crowns, root canals, sealants and fluoride treatments.

If you have a generally healthy mouth and a dentist suddenly says you need thousands of dollars’ worth of treatment, you’re probably getting scammed.

2.) See for Yourself

Nonexistent cavities are one of the biggest scams in the dental industry. Dentists everywhere are using creative diagnosis to irresponsibly fill perfectly healthy teeth.

So, if you have a typically clean bill of health when visiting the dentist but are diagnosed with a suspicious number of cavities, be proactive.

Ask your dentist to show you the cavity. See for yourself!

3.) Be Cautious of Misinformation

Dentists across the country are spreading lies about dental health to line their pockets. For example, dental offices will tell you that your amalgam fillings need to be replaced. They may say it is because the mercury in the material poses a risk to your health. There is no scientific evidence to back this claim. In fact, amalgam is strong, low-cost and is useful in most patients.

Don’t leave yourself vulnerable to manipulation and misinformation, be aware of the facts.

4.) Avoid Excessive X-Rays

Dentists will claim law prevents them from treating patients without first conducting an X-Ray. This is a lie.

The ADA states average dental patients only need one set of dental X-Rays every two years. It is important to monitor your dentist in this area because of the risk associated with radiation.

Dental X-Rays have been the fastest growing source of human exposure to low dose ionizing radiation over the past three decades. This type of exposure results in thyroid cancer and brain tumors. It is the most common source of diagnostic radiation exposure to the public.

5.) Get a Second Opinion

X-rays are legally your property, and your dentist is required to turn them over to you to bring to other dentists. So, if you receive a suspicious diagnosis, get a second opinion!

Deep teeth cleaning, for example, is a commonly cited red flag in cases of creative diagnosis.

This procedure is typically reserved for patients who experience frequent gum infections or have periodontal issues. If you do not experience either of these symptoms, odds are you’re being taken advantage of.

Don’t let your dentist pressure you into an expensive deep cleaning, which can cost upwards of $800, and is typically not covered by dental insurance.

Take your X-Rays to another dental office and get a second opinion.

6.) Don’t be Fooled by Attractive Specials

Legitimate dentists will tell you to be wary of practices that use low-cost specials as a cheap ploy to get patients in the door. Don’t be fooled!

Giving into these cheap sales tactics puts you at risk of becoming a victim of creative diagnosis.

7.) Don’t Give into Pressure

Beware of dentists who pressure you to act quickly, or ones who refuse to supply evidence the procedure you are receiving is medically necessary.

If you don’t have any oral pain or can’t see evidence of a problem, don’t be pressured to have it fixed right away. Your dental professional could be using creative diagnosis to con you out of money and cost you undo pain or discomfort.

Ask questions, see for yourself, and stand your ground. If you feel like you’re not getting all of the information, you’re probably right.

8.) Find an Alternative

Matthew L. Logan, D.D.S. says, “if you wouldn’t recommend it to your mother, then don’t recommend it to your patients.” Unfortunately, not many dentists live by this moto.

The crisis of creative diagnosis puts adults and children at risk every day, despite the concern of ethical dental professionals like Logan who call for change. In Logan’s own words: “Someone needs to stand up and stop this blatant violation of trust.” Here at Brighter Image, that is exactly what we’re doing. We are standing up to dentists who think they own the everyday smile. We’re standing up for you.

Brighter Image Lab offers dental tools to the public, allowing customers to reclaim their smile without a dentist.

9.) Do Your Own Teeth Whitening/Polishing

NEWS FLASH: You don’t need a dental degree to whiten or polish your teeth, you just need the tools!

Our unique and easy-to-use products offer an alternative to people who want to improve their smile without the hassle of untrustworthy dentists.

Micro Surface Polishing is a key component of preventative oral care. With the Bilistic Polisher you can do this without a dentist, from the comfort of your home.

Our Bilistic Pure Bleach Gel and Bilistic Polisher offer a cheap and easy-to-use alternative to those looking to brighten their smile. The unblended, uncompromised formula delivers consistently impressive results without a dentist.

Spare yourself the risk of becoming a victim of creative diagnosis. Order our Bilistic Pure Bleach Gel and Bilistic Polisher today and brighten your smile at home!

10.) Take Your Smile into Your Own Hands

For decades people have believed that dentists are essential to maintaining a beautiful smile. This is false. You don’t need cosmetic dentistry, just the dental tools.

Brighter Image Lab brings dental tools out of the dentist office and puts them in the hands of everyday people. Whether it’s polishing, whitening, or simply cleaning your teeth, Brighter Image Labs has a solution for you.

Visit brighterimagelab.com today and take your smile into your own hands!

Conclusion

If you have received excessive treatment, unnecessary fillings, or numerous X-Rays, you might be a victim of creative diagnosis.

Creative diagnosis is the act of performing unnecessary treatment for financial gain and is the most common way for dentists to commit dental fraud.

Performing unnecessary procedures for profit is theft, plain and simple.

Dentists are inventing diagnosis, targeting children and vulnerable adults for financial gain. This is disgusting and a slap in the face to hard working Americans just looking to smile again.

Don’t become a victim of dental fraud. Follow our 10 step system and protect yourself from the greed of modern dentistry and creative diagnosis.

Creative Diagnosis Scam Hidden From 11 Patients

Bil Watson

Dental

November 7, 2017

Is the Creative Diagnosis by a Texas Dentist really a ripoff?

My household’s level of confidence in dentistry is at an all-time low due to creative diagnosis. About six months ago, my Texas dentist informed me that my “bunny teeth” were likely getting in the way of my professional success, a problem he could correct with a (pricey) cosmetic procedure.

If I let him fix my teeth, he told me, he was sure I would start “dressing better.” A few months later, my husband scheduled a basic cleaning with a new Texas Dentist.

Once they had him in the chair and looked at his teeth, they informed him that the regular cleaning wouldn’t do at all: He would need to reschedule for an $800 deep cleaning. Creative diagnosis? No thanks. I’d rather go to Tijuana to get dental veneers.

We were convinced we must look like suckers—until I came across an op-ed in ADANews, the official publication of the American Dental Association. The article, by longtime pediatric dentist Jeffrey Camm, described a disturbing trend he called creative diagnosis — the peddling of unnecessary treatments.

The Mystery of Creative Diagnostics by Dentists

William van Dyk, a Northern California dentist of 41 years, saw Camm’s op-ed and wrote in: “I especially love the patients that come in for second opinions after the previous dentist found multiple thousands of dollars in necessary treatment where nothing had been found six months earlier. And, when we look, there is nothing to diagnose.”

“In recent years, I have been seeing more and more creative diagnosis,” Camm told me when I called him at his practice in Washington state. A Texas dentist, he said, might think, ‘Well, the dental insurance covers this crown, so I’m not hurting this patient, so why don’t I just do it?’ That’s the absolutely wrong approach.”

Poking around, I found plenty of services catering to Texas dentists hoping to increase their incomes. One lecturer at a privately operated seminar called The Profitable Dentist ($389) aimed to help “dentists to reignite their passion for dentistry while increasing their profit and time away from the office.”

Is the ADA Perpetuating Creative Diagnosing?

Even the ADA’s 2014 annual conference offered tips for maximizing revenue: “Taking time to help our patients want what we know they need, …” notes one session description, “…can drive the economic and reward engine of our practice.” Could this be the source of creative diagnosis? Is this part of what is fueling the upsurge in dental scams?

Do you think you’ve been the victim of “creative diagnosis” from any of these dentists?

Upselling in dentistry isn’t a new phenomenon, but it’s having a moment. One reason: Texas Dental school tuition—and debt—has doubled since the ’90s.

Is High Debt Causing Creative Diagnosis by a Texas Dentist?

According to the American Dental Education Association, students who graduated in 1996 were in the hole $112,000 (in 2013 dollars), on average, while 2013 grads were a whopping $215,000 in debt—28 percent were on the hook for $300,000 or more.

By contrast, the average med school grad owed $170,000. ADEA executive director Richard Valachovic explained that one reason dental schools have jacked up tuitions is the rising costs of technology for student labs.

In any case, a generation ago, newly hatched Texas dentists would join established practices as modestly paid associates, with the promise of eventually becoming partners. But these days, with dentists retiring later, there’s less turnover in private practice tempting new dentists to forgo dental care and engage in creative diagnosis. But creative diagnosis flies in the face of good dental ethics.

Are Dental Chains Asking Dentists to Diagnose Creatively?

Instead, more and more young dentists are taking jobs with chains, many of which set revenue quotas for practitioners. This has created some legal backlash: In 2012, for example, 11 patients sued (PDF) a 450-office chain called Aspen Dental, claiming that its model turns dentists into salespeople.

Some corporate dentists appear to have crossed the line into fraud. In 2010, Small Smiles, a venture-capital-owned chain with offices in 20 states, was ordered to refund $24 million to the government after an investigation found that its dentists had been performing unnecessary extractions, fillings, and root canals on children covered by Medicaid. Could these corporations be the reason behind creative diagnosis?

A new lawsuit alleges that some toddlers it treated underwent as many as 14 procedures—often under restraint and without anesthesia. (The group was banned from Medicaid this year.) Several other pediatric dentistry chains have been sued as a result of similar allegations.

Advice for Creative Diagnostic Attempts by Your Dentist

So how can you spot creative diagnosis when you go for your next cleaning? First, beware of specials: That laser dentistry and whitening package may be a ploy to get you in the door so the practice can upsell you on more-profitable procedures. If you truly do need the procedures, that’s one thing, but if the dentist is dishonest when recommending the procedures, well, that’s unethical behavior in dentistry.

Van Dyk also advises caution if your Texas dentist insists on replacing old fillings or recommends crowns instead of fillings. And look out for excessive X-rays: The ADA says healthy patients need a full set (14 to 22) every two years at the most.

If your Texas dentist recommends a special “cone-beam” X-ray, get a second opinion. Along with a 3-D picture of your mouth, it delivers radiation up to 18X that of a traditional dental X-ray.

Radiation experts worry that some Texas dentists are substituting FDA approved cone-beam scanners for a standard X-ray.

Dealing with Creative Diagnosis in Pediatrics by a Texas Dentist

Finally, when it comes to children’s dentists, make sure to find a board-certified pediatric specialist. Not all dentists that cater to children have special training.

The practitioners I spoke to were quick to add that even dubious-sounding treatments are in some cases medically necessary, and not necessarily creative diagnosis.

In conclusion, if your gut says your dentist is going overboard on treatment, get a second opinion. “Will you have to pay a little more for another consult?” Camm asks. “Sure. But it could end up saving you a whole lot more in the long run.”

Curated from Is Your Dentist Ripping You Off? | Mother Jones

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