Tag Archives: cheap smile makeover

Don’t become a cosmetic dentistry horror story

Here’s an ad that I spotted over the holidays in our Mesa Tribune:

North Scottsdale Family & Cosmetic Dentistry
A cheap smile makeover offer from Steven Poulos DDS and Sid Stevens DDS of North Scottsdale Family & Cosmetic Dentistry

I would skip this smile makeover offer – there are a couple of serious red flags here that, as an accredited cosmetic dentist, I can help you with.

The first problem is the fee of $695. This is a cheap porcelain veneer. You can easily pay triple that here in the Phoenix valley. It’s way below the minimum for which you can get a quality smile makeover. You need to pay at least $1000 or $1100 per tooth for a smile makeover.

Don’t try to cut corners here. Once the dentist grinds on your teeth and replaces your natural tooth enamel with porcelain, there is no going back. But if you get a cheap smile makeover, there is no going back, even though you may wish to. And I have corresponded with many patients who have wished they could have their natural teeth back after getting a mediocre smile makeover.

If money is an issue, try this cheaper alternative: do nothing. But if you want a smile makeover, go for beautiful and be willing to pay for it.

Wondering what your smile would look like with one of these cheap smile makeovers, I decided to check out their website.  When I did, I found this smile gallery:

bogus smile gallery
Bogus smile gallery from North Scottsdale Family & Cosmetic Dentistry

I was immediately suspicious, because nowhere on the page did it claim that this was the work of Dr. Steven Poulos or Dr. Sid Stevens, the two dentists at this office. So I decided to call. And I was fortunate to get Dr. Poulos himself on the phone. I mentioned the smile portfolio and asked, “Who did this work? Is this by one of your dentists, or is this just an illustration of the procedures?” He confessed that these were what he called “canned” photos. He said that they do good work but they’re not very good photographers.

Right.

My advice: Skip this smile makeover offer. Go ahead and take them up on their teeth whitening, but if you want a beautiful smile of porcelain veneers, you need to be willing to pay in the neighborhood of $1000 to $2000 per tooth. Avoid cheap smile makeovers as you would avoid cheap parachutes.

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