Dr. Gregory Kenton Balis, DDS

I was going to delete a positive review, but I felt inclined to update it instead. I’ve been coming here for years now, I had two front crowns replaced by Dr. Huddleston, in the following weeks my upper palatal area became alarmingly inflamed where this work was performed, it was so severe that I was referred out to an oral surgeon. I experienced 3 oral surgeries, or “crown lengthening” procedures for about 2 years in an attempt to fix it…literally months of my life were spent with bloody, swollen sutures in my mouth, tilting my head back to eat food, unable to properly speak while bouncing back and forth between this office and the oral surgeon. It was at a follow-up appointment after the 3rd surgery that it was suggested that I go back to my dentist to have them assess a possible solution going forward with treatment as the problem persisted and the surgeon suspected an allergic reaction to the materials used. I switched from Dr. Huddleston to Dr. Balis because I lost a bit of… faith in Dr. Huddleston’s work. In the interim, I kept going for my cleanings because I know they are the foundation of good oral health. I brush and floss every single day, I don't allow myself to miss because as a 34-year-old that has spent more than $9,000 on dental work, I know how much time and money is lost due to poor dental hygiene. I think I continued with this dental office because I felt like the right thing to do would be to allow them the opportunity to correct this. I justified the visits because I felt like it would have been my fault if I didn't allow them the opportunity to assess the work performed. There is simply a breaking point, a point of diminishing return where you have to assess the quality of care you're receiving and weigh that among risks and potential outcomes of procedures moving forward. I would describe this as factory dental in a less-than-clean office setting using what I would surmise is 1980s dental tech, think Pep Boys for dental work. Dr. Balis considered the work done by Dr. Huddleston to be satisfactory and pointed to the root cause as being the position of my teeth and not flossing (I do floss, every day). He added that they do the cementing of crowns all the time and so it couldn’t be excess cement beneath the gum line or ill-fitting crowns that caused my particular situation (even though one of their hygienists dug out a sizable piece of cement from the area following placement at another visit.) What was gathered by me was that they were going to use the same process and bonding materials in my mouth that I reacted to so poorly in the first place, I couldn’t do it, it was the moment that the technician brought out a dingy, worn, reusable metal tray they use to take impression molds with that triggered my anxiety and fear...I had to walk out of the office and take a deep breath in my car. The guy seemed almost like he was being put out by having me there in the first place…It felt like one of those really bad fever dreams that you wake up from drenched in sweat. I’m feeling better today after spending a couple of hours post-visit feeling like an oral freak show well into the evening. I’m looking for a new dentist now. I have hideous margins on my two front teeth and bulbous scar tissue on my upper palatal directly behind my teeth, to make matters worse the oral surgeries I had made my gums in that area recede in an unnatural way that promotes further decay. The crowns shifted all over the place, presumably from all of the intense, throbbing, inflammation and multiple surgeries. I wasn’t demanding respect, attention, or pointing a finger of blame I was quite simply eager for someone to take my issue as seriously as I have, after 3 very long years of feeling like a human ping pong ball with bad dental work. That last visit on NOV, 8 2021 was a little bit too much on the dehumanizing side for me. Dr. Balis couldn't keep his hands steady the entire time he was inside of my mouth further adding to the anxiety, fear, and concern on my part. For a bit more context: I grew up in poverty in Los Angeles, we genuinely couldn't afford visits to the dentist during my childhood, we were very POOR. I own that and wear it as a badge of honor; after all, your life experiences are what make you uniquely you. It wasn't until around my twenties that I could even begin to afford dental work, that's when I started to assess the damage after years of neglect and I've had plenty of work and cleanings since then trying to gain traction on my path to good oral health. What I didn't need at this time was a callous and cold approach from a dentist that seemed, at times, overtly apathetic to my situation. There is a person behind the teeth, a person with feelings. I’ve had my fair share of crowns and dental procedures in my life, yes, but I have NEVER had an immune/inflammatory response this bad to any of it except this one procedure that left my mouth much worse off than it was when I first walked through the front door of this office. Your two front teeth are what people notice first when you open your mouth to smile or talk. A little bit of empathy and compassionate care can go a long way, even if you have to fake it. It’s my opinion that this was shoddy dental work. Explaining this several times has become exhausting. Additionally, having to explain it to the dentist that had my chart in front of him but couldn’t bother to catch up before my appointment even though I sat in the chair for 50 minutes after my appointment time before he even acknowledged me. All in, I’m out around 2,500 dollars and a lot of my time. I have lost plenty of trust, my patience, and quite possibly my two front teeth. I've never felt like crying in a dental office until that last appointment with Dr. Balis. This is an honest review of my personal experience protected under the Consumer Review Fairness Act (CRFA).

Careful, thorough, proactive, professional and great staff. Best dentist I've had in 59 years!