Finished my dental appointments. Just a quick synopsis....
Alamo - Very thorough and informative. Had an in-house periodontist look at some of my bone loss. They went through everything, all the x-rays (digital) and talked about each problem I had. Facilities were a little older looking, more like a clinic in the U.S. as opposed to a nice dental office. But everything seemed very clean, very professional, and everyone was informative and seemed competent. It seemed like going to a big group dental office. Lots of activity, lots of different dentists, a lot of in-house services. I was there 90 minutes, very thorough exam and a ton of x-rays, no charge.
Bernal - I liked them but ended up cancelling my appointment. They're gone for two week starting on Monday and I really wanted to get started on my treatment and get going. I can't wait two full weeks (three counting this week) to get started.
Marichi & Olmeda - I visited with Dr. Almeda. Super nice lady, very kind and everyone in the office was extremely nice. The dental area was very cramped, three people in same room separated by some half walls. x-rays were not digital and she took 4 of them. We discussed treatment I didn't really agree with her course of action. No discussion of bone loss or gum disease I have, they wanted to grind down a bunch of teeth to run what I thought was an unnecessary bridge more for aesthetic reasons. She seemed competent and professional and I liked her personally but I think her focus was more on how my mouth looked and I am way more concerned with fixing some more important health issues right now. She was by far the most expensive but that's because she was recommending much more restorative care (which i need to wait for) including a couple of implants. It just wasn't a great fit for me. Charged me $80 for the x-rays, a bit steep but they let me keep them. I should have asked first how much it was. Also tried to sell me an anti-bacterial wash but I declined.
Dr. Urena - Beautiful office and facilities. When you walk in you feel like you're in a dentist office in the states. Great communication, the doctor and the receptionist speak great English. She did an initial exame but was unable to give me a full evaluation because I didn't want a cleaning that day. She told me some of the things I needed but said I needed cleaning to get accurate x-rays because of extensive plaque build up. I believe her, I just wasn't ready. I was very impressed with doctor Urena and I regret not just getting the cleaning done and getting a full evaluation. Alamo told me not to do anything until I took antibiotics for a few days because of the problems in a bad spot in my gum they need to clean up so I was reluctant to start the process. They charged me $20 for the exam but said if I go forward with treatment it will go towards my bill, very fair.. Dr. Urena was a bit cheaper than Alamo, maybe 10-15 percent.
I have an appointment to go back and start at Alamo but I'm really considering trying Dr. Urena again before I commit to Alamo. I think Dr. Urena outsources root canals, I think I read that somewhere, but I'm not certain. I will need to read some more. I dont' think I need one but my wife probably needs 2.
One of our issues is my wife's EXTREME fear of the dentist (not Mexico, any dentist). I spoke to Alamo and they said they would knock her out (for an extra charge) during her work. Dr Urena was more reluctant and thought that was a bit extreme and would like to speak to my wife about it personally. I think she may be able to reassure my wife. We're also going to a different dentist at Alamo on Friday, a Dr. Monica, who is supposed to be very experienced with high-anxiety patients.
We'll see. A few decisions to make but so far so good.
