Aspen Dental in South Portland? (Westbrook: insurance, gated, prices)

[ava's mama]

Okay, I have a question regarding the Aspen Dental in South Portland, Maine, by the Maine Mall. After a childhood of constant anti-biotics I have no enamel left on my teeth and they are just plain awful. I went to Aspen Dental the other day and what it came down to was that I need full upper dentures and partial lowers as well as work to repair the lower teeth that will remain. The total is just over $11,800! But, I'm willing to finance it as long as I wll be getting a quality denture. I am just 34 so I really am hoping for as natural of a look as possible.
So, I came online and saw a ton of complaints about Aspen Dental and their dentures in general, but nothing about the specific South Portland one. I realize that a dentist office is only as good as the people working their. So I am hoping that someone can shed some light on this specific one by the mall. I go in two weeks to get my teeth yanked and would love to have some reassurance that this place is good!! Thus far I am not worried but I really don't want to have a terrible smile after all of this and feel like crap about myself. Thank you all in advance and i hope to hear good things- but please let me know if you've had a bad experience there as well!

[dubthang]

I went to an Aspen Dental in Keene, NH to have a tooth pulled. My experience was excellent there. I wish I could give you better insight about the So. Portland one. I do like the fact that you can finance through them which makes getting work done easier. See if you can get a guarantee with your work. Something that states that if you don't like it, they'll fix it until you are happy with the outcome without paying more.

There is a place on Bridgeton Rd. in the Prides Corner area of Westbrook that a few people I used to work with went. They raved about the quality of work they got with their dentures, and the overall great service. I wish I could remember the name of the place.

[genmomto5]

My experience with another of there offices was horrible. I have insurance but they were going to charge me $3,000 after insurance for some work. I went to another dentist because I just couldn't afford that financing or not. I ended up getting all the work I actually needed (Aspen found a cavity the other dentist didn't) for $160. I would not ever recommend Aspen. I think they should be investigated for this horrific price gouging.

[broadbill]

Here is my take, for what it is worth:

I would stay away from the chain dental places, especially when extensive dental work needs to be done. My impression from talking with a dentist was that these places are focused less on quality patient care and more about getting procedures billed. In my opinion, this is not the type of place you want to go for quality dental care....why would they do a good job the first time around when they can get you back in the chair in a year for another procedure?

I went to another well-known chain dental clinic and they told me I had 9 cavities! I thought this was odd and so I went for a second opinion and the dentist said I had NO cavities. I would bet that most folks that go into one of those places has at least one cavity drilled whenever they go....that's how they operate...pad the bill with unneeded procedures.

At the very least I would urge you to go for a second opinion and at a independent dental clinic. It sounds like you are going to have to pay one way or another for this procedure, you may as well shop around. You might have more options available to you than you realize and it might not cost as much as Aspen Dental says it will.

DM me if you want and I can recommend my dentist who is in the portland area. I think he is pretty good.

[futurecruiser]

Our neighbors father got dentures there and they are a horrible fit and 'clack' all the time. I've not heard anything good about the place. Just my 2 cents.

[Cglinko]

It is never a good idea to place a generalization on an organization (or for that matter a profession) especially in regards to dentistry.

The general public doesn't know a good dentist from a bad dentist. Too much is based on the social skills (or lack there of) of the dentist. The questions you need to ask yourself before you should decide to get work done somewhere is this:

1.- Did the dentist provide all treatment options?
2.- Did they give me realistic expectations on the outcome of procedures?
3.- Did they educate me on the specific procedures to make sure I had a clear understanding?

As for Aspen and their denture system. I know they have many options out there from a very basic denture to a very sophisticated denture. The higher the quality the higher the price point. I believe they also warrant their work on the higher quality dentures.

Just make sure you feel comfortable with what you are being told and make sure that what they tell you to expect is what your actual experience turns out to be.

[Visnja]

In regards to Aspen Dental in South Portland, I go there and have not had any problems. They do really good work and are very personable. Dr. Griffey is amazing and so are a lot of his techs. They are very attentive and want to make you happy.

I, myself, was given the news that I could get all of my upper repaired for over $3000 but the work could not be guaranteed for more than 3 months. I had to make a decision right then and there to go with the repair or get a denture. Seriously, I spent a lot of time in the office manager's office while she explained the process and let me know what to expect as well as what I was getting.

I go every 2 weeks for adjustments and the staff now knows me by sight. They are always friendly and have a smile on their face.

I sat next to a woman who's dentist is getting too big for his britches and starting to charge outrageous prices as if he was only catering to those in Hollywood. She decided to check out Aspen Dental and asked me every question imaginable.

I am still embarrassed by the fact that I have to wear upper dentures but no one has noticed and I can actually smile .. I'm sure in time I'll get used to them .. I just didn't think I'd have them at 40.

But there you have it.