7 questions to ask your dentist before you sign

A good dentist answers all seven without getting uncomfortable. That reaction alone tells you a lot.

These aren't questions designed to test anyone. They're the ones any professional expects to be asked when proposing a large treatment, and the ones almost nobody asks because in the moment you're nervous and in a hurry.

Bring them written down. It isn't rude: it's what anyone would do before a decision worth several thousand dollars.

1. What happens if I don't do this now?

This is the most useful question of all, and hardly anyone asks it.

The answer tells you what the real urgency is. Some problems get worse in measurable, predictable ways; others have looked the same for five years. Both answers are valid; what matters is that you get one with reasoning behind it, not a pressure line.

If the answer is "it's going to get complicated" with no further detail, ask for the detail.

2. What's the simplest option that would also work?

There's almost always a plan A, a plan B, and a reasonable minimum. The quote you're handed is usually the one the professional considers ideal, and that's fine, but ideal isn't the same as only.

Asking about the more conservative option isn't asking for something cheap: it's asking for the full range so you can choose within it.

3. Why this option and not the other one?

The natural follow-up to the previous question. This is where judgment shows: a professional with reasoning will explain why, in your specific case, an alternative is ruled out — and that usually comes down to your bone, your bite, your habits or your time.

4. How much of my healthy tooth has to be touched?

This one is specific and it's worth gold, especially if you were offered veneers or crowns.

Some procedures barely touch the tooth and others require filing it down irreversibly. Both can be justified, but it's information you should have beforehand rather than afterward. A tooth that's been filed down can't be un-filed.

5. What exactly does the price include, and what doesn't it?

The boring question that prevents the surprise. Specifically:

• Does it include X-rays and diagnostic studies?
• Does it include the final crown, or only the implant?
• Does it include follow-up appointments?
• Does it include temporaries while the process runs?
• If something doesn't go as expected, who covers the adjustment?

In implant quotes, the difference between "the implant" and "the implant with its crown" is sometimes thousands of dollars, and it's the most frequent misunderstanding of all.

6. Who will perform each part of the treatment?

Large treatments often involve more than one professional: someone does the surgery, someone does the prosthetic work, someone does the root canal if one is needed.

Knowing who does what — and what training they have in it — isn't distrust, it's the basic information about a plan involving several pairs of hands.

7. How long does it take, in how many appointments and over how many months?

There are two questions hiding here: how many visits, and how many months. An implant treatment may need few appointments spread across several months of healing time.

If you're weighing up travel or time off work, this is the one that decides whether the plan is viable for your life.

What the reaction tells you

None of the seven is aggressive. All of them are questions a professional with sound judgment answers readily, because they're the ones they asked themselves when putting your plan together.

If you sense discomfort, impatience or vague answers, that information is part of your decision too. It doesn't prove the treatment is badly planned; it does tell you what communicating with that person will be like over the months it lasts.

Before the appointment

• Bring them printed or on your phone. In the moment, they get forgotten
• Ask for the quote in writing, always
• If you can, bring someone with you. Two people retain far more than one
• Ask for copies of your X-rays. They're yours

And don't decide in the chair. Almost nothing in dentistry has to be decided the same day.