Are dentists just filling their own pockets?

FINDING a dentist to treat a routine complaint is something of a lottery.

Patients who shop around can be given widely disparate advice on the treatment they need.

A vague complaint of pain from a filling resulted in recommended cures ranging from the extraction of a wisdom tooth and a 20-minute descaling treatment through to the removal of a wisdom tooth, four fillings, root canal treatment and four visits to a hygienist.

Check-up costs varied from pounds 18 to pounds 65, proposed treatments from pounds 8.08 to pounds 915.

Although all the dentists agreed our reporter needed to have a wisdom tooth removed, the advice and price for other treatments seemed very confusing.

Abbey Dental Practice, 224 Whitechapel Road. NHS practice.

Check-up, four X-rays and teeth cleaning pounds 40.46 at NHS rates. Treatment advised: removal of wisdom tooth on NHS and second visit to dentist for teeth cleaning: pounds 8.08.

The telephone helpline NHS Direct provided names of dentists in the Whitechapel area. Most said a wait of up to two weeks was needed for an appointment but The Abbey offered one the next day.

This was most definitely NHS-style dentistry; the practice had a cramped waiting room with not enough chairs.

During the 25-minute appointment Dr Arman Sabour immediately got down to work with a descaler. He said no new fillings were required, but one wisdom tooth would have to be extracted as it was starting to decay. This could be done under anaesthetic at hospital on the NHS. Dr Sabour booked another appointment for descaling.

There were no luxury extras but Dr Sabour was friendly and efficient, although the consultation did seem slightly rushed and there was not much explanation and questioning of my habits and diet.

Boots Dental Care, 151 Oxford Street. Private practice. Check-up and X-Rays: pounds 39.50. Treatment advised: extraction of wisdom tooth on NHS; hygienist visit: pounds 43.50; four fillings, three at pounds 70 and one at pounds 45.

Dentist Mohammed Omar did his utmost to put me at ease in a room full of computers, cameras and X-ray machines - I even got pictures of my teeth and gums to take home.

The 35-minute consultation was thorough. Mr Omar said a wisdom tooth would have to be extracted, four old fillings needed replacing "quickly" and others may need work. He recommended cheaper silver fillings rather than white composites. He also recommended three trips to the hygienist.

The New Kings Road Dental Practice, 59 New Kings Road. Private practice-Initial check-up and X-rays pounds 56.

Treatment advised: four trips to hygienist at pounds 60 each; four fillings at pounds 35, pounds 50, pounds 90, and pounds 100; extraction of wisdom tooth (on NHS) and possible root canal treatment at pounds 400.

The practice had out-of-date magazines, uncomfortable chairs and a children's play area, but Dr A Omidi was reassuring and made me a video showing where work was needed.

The 30-minute consultation was thorough and friendly. He warned me my gums needed urgent treatment with at least four visits to the hygienist, compared with the one 20-minute trip the NHS dentist had advised.

He told me I needed four fillings replaced and, in addition to the wisdom tooth extraction, I would need pounds 400 worth of root canal treatment. At the end of the consultation I was given a "proposed treatment" printout which came to pounds 915.

I was told this was an estimate only and I didn't need to pay anything on the spot, but the charge seemed way in excess of anything else I had been told before.

James Hull Associates, 73-74 Berwick St, Soho. Private practice.

Initial 45-minute consultation with Xrays, pounds 65. Treatment advised: filling replacement, pounds 95; visit to hygienist, pounds 45 for a half-hour session and removal of a wisdom tooth - which could be done on NHS.

This was a state-of-the-art surgery with ceiling screens showing cable TV while you lay back. Dr Matthew McLoughlin spent 20 minutes on the check-up and took three sets of Xrays, including a whole-head scan. He also took 10 minutes reassuring me about dentists.

Dr McLoughlin said one of my wisdom teeth was beginning to decay and needed removing.

A large filling needed replacing quickly and it could be done with a laboratory-constructed filling of white material, but that would require two separate visits, each charged at pounds 180 an hour, plus the extra costs of the material. He recommended the cheaper, amalgam fillings.

Gums needed the attention of a hygienist which meant a separate visit at a cost of pounds 45 for 30 minutes.

The dentist told me there were other fillings which would need replacing in time, but I could decide on when to have that treatment.

A spokesman for the British Dental Association said today it welcomed the Office of Fair Trading investigation.

"We would always urge good communication between dentists and patients about the cost of different treatments and we would recommend that people shop around."

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