Dentists in Irving

The Texas State Board of Dental Examiners licenses dentists, hygienists, registered dental assistants and dental labs. Its Public License Search shows license status and any public disciplinary actions. Look for TSBDE's consumer information sign too; every Texas dental office must post one in plain view.

Specialists versus general dentists in Irving

Texas recognizes 12 specialties, from oral and maxillofacial surgery to orofacial pain. To advertise as a specialist, a dentist needs an accredited specialty program of two or more years or board certification, and a practice can't imply its general dentists are specialists. Specialties aren't printed on the license certificate, so ask the office directly. If you are referred for a root canal or implant, it's fair to ask whether the dentist is a specialist or a general dentist who does that work.

Delta Dental's national numbers give a benchmark; ask any Irving office for its own fees.

Ask for a written treatment estimate before work starts. The state board doesn't settle fee disputes. These are general price ranges, not dental advice. Our Texas dentists guide has more on costs and coverage.

Texas has four dental schools with public clinics, and the nearest to Irving is Texas A&M's college in Dallas. Adults pay $120 for registration, screening and X-rays, nothing if they aren't accepted, and the adult clinics charge much less than private offices, though they don't take insurance.

Children and young adults on Medicaid or CHIP, generally age 20 and younger, are usually in a dental plan run by DentaQuest, MCNA Dental or UnitedHealthcare Dental. Call Texas Health Steps at 1-877-847-8377 on weekdays to find a dentist who takes the plan. DSHS also suggests 2-1-1 and federally qualified health centers.

Hygienist visits in Irving

Your cleaning may be done by a hygienist without the dentist on site, if the dentist examined you in the past 12 months. Hygienists can take X-rays and apply fluoride but cannot diagnose, prescribe or do procedures that cut tissue. Questions about a diagnosis belong with a licensed Texas dentist.

TSBDE takes complaints about quality of care, sanitation, professional conduct and patient abandonment, by email at complaints@tsbde.texas.gov, by fax or by mail. It doesn't accept anonymous complaints. Where care fell below the standard, it can order restitution only up to your out-of-pocket treatment costs.

Before you file, gather the dates of each visit, your bills and any X-rays or records you were given; a clear timeline makes the complaint easier to review.

Other Irving services are on the Irving city page, and dentists in Grand Prairie are close by.

About 105 Texas public water systems serving 9.7 million people adjust fluoride, and about 19.6 million Texans, or 72%, drink water that is adjusted or naturally fluoridated. Texas was early to this: Marshall began fluoridating in 1946, the first Texas city to do so.

To learn whether your Irving tap water is fluoridated, ask the city for its annual water quality report or look up your system on the CDC's My Water's Fluoride page, and share what you find with your dentist. Any decision about treatment is one to make with a licensed Texas dentist.