Seeking a Pediatric Dentist

Hi there,

I'm looking for recommendations for pediatric dentists and everything I've found on BPN seems pretty old. Any current positive experiences to share? Would love to find someone in the NOBE area or downtown Oakland or Berkeley, ideally. 

Thank you!

Do you know of an in-network pediatric dentist accepting new patients in the Oakland area or close by?

Alameda pediatric dentistry is no longer in network and unfortunately costs hundreds of dollars for a basic routine visit. I also tried Dr. Sharon Albright who is out of network but accepts Aetna and it was about $200. Little goldfish isn’t accepting new Aetna patients. 

Hi! My 2yo toddler is well overdue for his first pediatric dentist visit! We just got Guardian dental insurance. I wonder if anyone can recommend a dentist on Guardian's list?

Also, pls DM me with any "STAY AWAY FROM THAT ONE" (highly appreciated for obvious reasons). 

Thank you all so much!

Hello, I looked up the archived posts, but the most recent specific reference I could find is several years old. Does anyone have any recent experience getting a soonish appointment, for a new patient, with a pediatric dermatologist? East Bay ideal, but willing to travel. Thank you!

I have a 3.5 yo who hasn't seen any dentist yet. We're still breastfeeding (including to fall asleep/night feed). My daughter doesn't respond well to any distraction/redirection tactics some doctors use. When doctors/nurses slow down and take time to explain well with simple language, my daughter doesn't cry with immunization shots or any procedures. So it's most ideal if the dentists and hygienist are respectful and breastfeeding friendly. I have had traumatic experiences with dental work as a child and still affects me to date so I want to choose a right dentist for her. 

I've read the past thread and Aloha dentistry sounds great. If you have experience with Aloha, which dentist would be a fit? My daughter probably prefers female identified person over male identified person. 

Hello - we're sad to have learned that our dentist that we love (Aloha Pediatric) is no longer taking our insurance (Delta). Do you have any recommendations for a pediatric dentist, preferably taking Delta? Thank you

Hi! I’m seeking recommendations for a good pediatric dentist in the area. My toddler is 18 mos with many teeth, still nursing at night (breastmilk contains sugar!), and has yet to see a dentist.

My dentist recommended Aloha but nobody specific by name. I’d like a dentist that is great with toddlers and is TRUSTWORTHY. (Not necessarily at Aloha.)

Also, if you had a bad experience with someone, I’d appreciate knowing who to stay away from (please message me in private).

We have Delta dental insurance.

Thank you!!!

After skipping a couple appointments during covid, I'd like to get my 3 year old back to the dentist. The two places I've called (POW and Aloha) told me that "most" of their staff is vaccinated, but that they couldn't confirm that the person working with my kid would be. We've been very careful and luckily healthy so far, so I'd rather not put my kid at risk, especially now that vaccines are available. Has anyone had more luck finding a dental office where everyone is vaccinated? 

I'm seeking a highly recommended pediatric dentist in Berkeley (or nearby) that accepts Delta Dental as in-network. As of June 2021, Aloha Dentistry will no longer be in-network and apparently many other practices won't be accepting it as well.

Thank you!

My almost three year old had a fall and supposedly fell on his front teeth a month ago. 

Ive recently notice one of his front teeth turning grey and am needing to find a dentist, ideally SF but flexible to oakland east Bay Area as well..

i am looking for someone that takes delta dental or within the anthem blue cross program (medi-cal) program- in SF.

Someone eco/choice conscious, any leads would help.

thank you!

Admittedly, I'm skeptical of dentists (read The Truth About Dentistry in The Atlantic). I had my own series of shady experiences years ago, which I won't go into here but I saw numerous dentists each advising different treatment, none in agreement (read the article) and ultimately most not necessary (which I can attest to more than 10 years later). Anyway, now I have kids and I love their pediatric dentist but I have serious concerns about whether this dentist is recommending treatment in excess of what is really necessary. Anyway, without going into further detail, I would like to get a second opinion with a dentist who is known to take a conservative approach and preferably is at least aware of no-drill approaches to treating minor decay. Preferably in Oakland or East Bay, but I would travel farther for the right person. 

Hi, we're looking for a good pediatric dentist in the Oakland/Berkeley area.  Suggestions are appreciated.  Thank you!

Hi everyone, 

Im looking for a gentle and kind dentist that takes guardian dental insurance, for my 2 year old Boy. We live close to Alameda /oakland but we would be okay to travel a little extra just to find the right fit. Does anyone have and recommendations ? thank you 

Has anyone had a great experience taking a toddler to the dentist in Berkeley or Oakland? After reading reviews of pediatric dentists, I allowed myself to hope that their tricks and techniques could usher even the littlest ones through without tears. But we had our first appointment (at 14 months) and it didn’t live up to that high bar—the people and setup were very nice (toys to play with while waiting, etc.), but when it came to the exam they just said it was normal for him to cry. Looking ahead to a visit at 20 months, I’d love to know: do any of the Berkeley/Oakland pediatric practices have the secret sauce for a happy toddler visit? Or is that simply an unrealistic goal at this age?
If you know of a practice with great techniques for making toddlers think brushing is important or fun, that would be great to know also!

Hi there,

We're new to the area and I just took my 5 year old for a check up at POW dental in Albany.  I expected to hear that she has a cavity (this is what our prior dentist told us to keep an eye on at her last appointment a year ago), although we were told that she has now has 4 that need immediate treatment.  This may be entirely true-- I'm definitely not qualified to determine this myself, and she's my first kid so I'm learning as I go-- but I wondered if any BPN parents have had similar experiences with POW suggesting surprisingly intensive interventions, or if BNP parents have had fantastic experiences there.  I'd love to know about either.  I thought I found POW through BPN suggestions originally but just now in scanning through the dental postings here, I can't actually find them listed in the suggestions.

I'm just trying to make sure I don't sign her up for anything unnecessary since I know the treatments would be stressful for her.  That said, I absolutely want to do them if they are needed.  Thank you for any advice!

Liz

Hi,

Our pediatrician recommended Alameda Pediatric Dentistry for my son's first (one year appointment).  Has anyone used their Oakland office?  If so, how was your kiddos experience?  Your experience as a parent?  Any specific dentist at this practice you would recommend?

Thanks!

My wife and I are seeking a pediatric dentist for our son of 17months close to Oakland/Berkeley/Emeryville

Thank you

We've been taking our son to see the same adult dentist that we do and it has worked really well so far. He has no fear or anxiety about going to the dentist and I really like the business-like, matter-of-fact approach. They never acted like there might be an issue with going to the dentist so he's never had an issue with going to the dentist. It probably helps that I love getting my teeth cleaned and look forward to our appointments.

Unfortunately my dentist is a general dentist and seems to know very little about dental issues specific to kids. I asked some questions about an issue that's been worrying me and she couldn't answer them. In fact, she wouldn't have even known that there was an issue until I brought it up. I think that we need to switch him to a dentist that knows about issues specific to children (permanent teeth, orthodontists, etc.). We have MetLife for our dental insurance and would like to find a pediatric dentist in Berkeley, Albany, El Cerrito, or Kensington who is in network.

I did some research and came up with the following names. Do any of you have any feedback on any of them? We want someone who is proactive and recognize issues. But we don't want to take him somewhere where he'll be overly babied because we don't him to get the impression that he should be afraid of or dread going to the dentist. The names that I've found are:

Dr. Nancy Ekram Elias and Dr. Roxanne Gould in Berkeley

Dr. Patrick Ting and Dr. Vivienne Valdez, Pediatric Oral Wellness, Albany

Any feedback that you have would be appreciated. REcommendations to any good pediatric dentists in the area that take MetLife would also be appreciated.

Thanks

Hi There!

Our family is moving from Chicago to Berkeley this weekend & my 4 year old son is in need dental care.  He has had a bad experience with the two dentists in Chicago & it is very important we find a pediatric dentist that is warm, nurturing, & will let parents go to the back with their child. Any recommendations would be helpful.  Thank you in advance.