Hi there,
Today I tell you another disastrous story with an incompetent dentist who traumatized me and put a composite on me wrongly.
On March 21 I went to my follow-up appointment in Valencia with my orthodontist as part of my Invisalign orthodontic treatment. While I was having my cleaning, the doctor noticed that I had dropped a composite on one of my lower incisors. This composite was covering a cavity that was treated 20 years ago, so it was already quite old.
The following Monday, back in Porto, I called CEPI, where I am usually seen by both my periodontist and my trusted dentist, Tiago. He had already fixed another composite in the past and everything was perfect. But this time, I was told that they did not attend emergencies, and that the earliest Tiago could see me was April 10. The problem was that I was going on vacation to Amsterdam the first week of April and I didn’t want to leave with a hole in my tooth.
So, I started looking for an alternative. I asked the owner of the CrossFit box if he knew any dentist in the group, and he said yes: a woman who trains on the same schedule as me. I contacted her, but she said she couldn’t see me before my trip, although her sister could.
I then went to the consultation with her sister, and it was a disaster. As soon as I sat down, the first thing she told me was that I had a lot of mobility in my lower incisors. My orthodontist had already mentioned this to me, explaining that it was completely normal in the context of Invisalign treatment. The teeth are moving, so some mobility is to be expected. But this doctor told me that this mobility was the cause of gum recession.
I explained that no, that I have had this recession for many years, that it has not progressed, and that I have been under control with a periodontist for some time. In fact, in the last two years there has been no change. But I did not feel heard or understood at all.
She told me that she could not guarantee how long the composite would last due to this mobility, which has absolutely nothing to do with it. She placed it in less than five minutes, without following the correct technique. For comparison: Tiago, when he fixed another composite in the past, it took him almost an hour because he did it with detail and precision.
The composite fell out after three days. I expected it to last at least 2 or 3 years, maybe even 5, which is how long a “short-lived” composite usually lasts. I was shocked. Diego suggested that I confront her and ask her to put it back in, but honestly, what’s the point? If I don’t trust her, I’m not going to risk her damaging my tooth. So, I ended up going on the trip with the hole in my tooth, exactly what I wanted to avoid.
I kept my appointment with Tiago on April 10. He fixed my tooth as it should be with technique, patience and care. The composite is placed in layers, drying each one with the heat lamp, that’s why it’s called “layered composite”. This lady simply put it as if it were a piece of chewing gum and placed the light without me even feeling any heat, which already seemed very strange to me.
I lost half an hour to go, half an hour to return, 45 euros for the treatment, and I added one more experience to my list of dental disasters in Porto. One more dentist to add to what sadly already seems to be the norm in this city: incompetence and ignorance.
If I have learned anything from this, it is that when you have a good professional, who works well and is honest, it is best to wait the time you need to wait. It’s not worth looking for quick fixes that end up being a disaster.