Who is an Endodontist?

An Endodontist is a dental specialist who has completed additional postgraduate training after dental school to prepare him or her in treating complicated endodontic cases. Dr. Nima Dejbod has limited his practice to root canal treatment and related procedures. By referring you to an endodontic specialist, your family dentist demonstrates a personal concern for the quality of your dental care.

What about infection control?

We are very proud of our sterilization and infection control. Every item used is completely disposed of or heat sterilized after each use. All surfaces of the dental treatment rooms are disinfected with chemicals that kill bacteria and viruses. We pride ourselves on maintaining the highest standards of office cleanliness and sterility.

What is endodontic treatment?

Root canal or endodontic treatment is performed when the soft inner tissue of the tooth (the pulp) has been damaged, usually through decay or physical trauma. Treatment consists of removing the pulp and then cleaning, sterilizing, filling, and sealing the root canals. The tooth remains alive, nourished by adjacent tissues of the gums and jaw. Over 90 percent of cases are successful, while a few may require additional treatment. After root canal treatment is completed, it is very important to return to your family dentist so that a permanent restoration can be placed. Usually, a crown is needed to protect the tooth from fracture.

Toothache is defined as pain coming from one tooth or multiple teeth and gums. Some toothaches can be just a mild twinge or severe such as constant and throbbing pain.

What causes a toothache?

Toothaches can be caused by cavities, cracks on the tooth, loose filling material on the tooth, and gum recession. Trauma from heavy biting, accidents, sports, etc., can also cause toothaches.

What are symptoms of a toothache?

When a toothache is mild, symptoms include a twinge sensation from cold, hot, or sweet. Severe toothaches lead to difficulties in biting, eating, or drinking cold or hot foods, lying down, flying on an airplane, or diving. One may also experience earaches or headaches.

How do you treat a toothache?

If the toothache is mild, you can try using desensitizing toothpaste such as Sensodyne and avoid cold, hot, or sweet foods. To relieve the pain, you can take 1 to 2 tablets of over-the-counter pain killers. Then visit the dentist for treatment. If the toothache is severe, swelling on the face or gum can occur as well as a fever. With these symptoms, see your dentist immediately. Root canal therapy or other therapy may be needed.

What is latex-free endodontics?

If you are allergic to latex, we have a latex-free treatment for root canal therapy. We have non-latex gloves and latex-free rubber dams. We use biocompatible root canal filling materials.

What are the alternatives to treatment?

Once the dental pulp is diseased, the only alternative to root canal treatment is extraction. After an extraction, replacing the tooth with a bridge, implant, or partial denture is generally more costly than the root canal treatment and the crown. More importantly, you lose your natural tooth.

Is root canal treatment painful?

Root canal treatment usually involves no more discomfort than a routine filling appointment. In fact, most endodontic treatment relieves pain. Most stories of painful root canals are holdovers from the days before modern techniques and effective anesthetics were available.

Can all teeth be treated?

Some teeth cannot be treated successfully. We will explain potential complications before treatment. A few cases will require additional treatment if the tissues do not heal normally after the root canal treatment has been completed.

Root Canal Dentist Seattle | Endodontic Treatment Issaquah

Registration

How do you make an appointment with Evergreen Endodontics? Give us a call at 425-697-9777. When you contact our office, we will create your chart and put you into our schedule. You will then receive an email containing our electronic secure patient registration form that you should fill out and submit to us BEFORE your first visit:

If you have dental insurance, please inform us so that we can be informed of your benefits
A list of medications you are presently taking.
Your referral slip and any X-rays if applicable.

Completion of your personal information and registration in our system prior to your appointment will minimize the amount of time you need to spend in the waiting room while paperwork is being processed. As such, we recommend that you complete and submit the online patient registration form right away.

First Visit

Step 1. We implore that you show up on time for your appointment. Should you forget to submit your online patient registration prior to your first appointment, please arrive 20 minutes BEFORE your scheduled time so you can fill out the registration form on our kiosks.

Step 2. We recommend that on your first appointment, you bring your referral slip, previous xrays, insurance cards, a list of medications you are presently taking, and alert the office if you have a medical condition (i.e. diabetes, high blood pressure, artificial heart valves and joints, rheumatic fever, etc.) or if you are on any medication (i.e. heart medications, aspirin, anticoagulant therapy, etc.) that may be of concern prior to treatment.

Step 3. Your initial appointment will consist of a consultation explaining your diagnosis and treatment options. While you may have taken an xray at your family dentist, as a specialist, we are legally required that we take our own xrays to aid in diagnosing and before any treatment is started. A limited in-office evaluation consists of a thorough extra- and intra-oral examination. Diagnostic aids such as probing and special testing, along with appropriate radiographs allow Dr. Nima to arrive at a diagnosis and appropriate treatment. Treatment may be done the same day as the consultation. However, a complex medical history or treatment plan may require scheduling treatment on another day.

Step 4. We will estimate what your insurance carrier may contribute toward your endodontic therapy. Note that this estimate is based on your personal dental history. It takes into account not only what the carrier pays toward treatment in general, but also how much of your dental benefits are remaining for the year, and if deductibles have been met. Because there are so many variables, the estimate you are given on your first visit is not an exact figure.

All patients under the age of 18 years of age must be accompanied by a parent or guardian at the consultation visit.

Pricing & Treatment Fees

We pride ourselves in being as transparent as possible with our procedure fees for dental emergencies. No surprises! At Evergreen Endodontics, we make every effort to provide you with the finest endodontic care and the most convenient financial options. Once we conduct our evaluation on your first visit, we will be able to make an assessment on needed treatment. Endodontic services vary greatly due to the nature and complexity of the procedure.

If you do NOT have Dental Insurance

If you do not have dental insurance, you can see our flat pricing and make an appointent here: https://booking.evergreenendo.com. A consultation (up to 45 min) is first needed to assess your tooth clinically and radiographically, share the findings with you on an iPad, go over your options, risks and benefits of each and answer your questions to help you make the decision that's best for you. We'll work with you to ensure we get your needs taken care of.

If you have Dental Insurance

If you have dental insurance, the above flat rates do not apply to you. We are in-network for employers like Microsoft, Amazon, Boeing, Costco and many other insurance companies like Delta Dental, Regence, Cigna, Aetna, GEHA, Ameritas and Premera! Even if you have another insurance, we can file on your behalf and your insurance company will still provide a contribution towards the procedural fees. Should you have insurance, on your first visit, we will do our best to find out an estimate of what your insurance carrier will pay toward your endodontic therapy. Note that this is again an estimate that is based on your personal dental history. It takes into account not only what the carrier pays toward treatment in general, but also how much of your dental benefits are remaining for the year, and if deductibles have been met. Because there are so many variables, the estimate you are given on your first visit is not an exact figure. For example, depending on your plan, exams can be covered at 100% so no-charge (2x a year) and root canals can be anywhere from $50 (i.e. your deductible) or as high as $1500 if you've exhausted your remaining insurance benefits for the calendar year. Most patient's average copay is $200-$500 for a root canal. We will not know your exact copay estimate until we see you, input your dental insurance information and provide you the estimates. Your "copay" will actually be determined by your deductible, insurance benefits remaining, % coverage, and what your insurance will maximally cover up to the office's procedural fee. You can still look at our flat rates here and use it as a ballpark reference. For instance, if your insurance plan provides 80% coverage on root canals with a $50 deductible and office fee is $1000, your copay would be 20% of the office's treatment fee so $1000 * 0.20 = $200 and your $50 deductible.

State or Federal Insurance

While we do not accept state insurance (i.e. Apple, Molina) or Medicaid, we do have many patients that come to us for their dental emergency because of the excellent dental care they receive.

We accept cash, checks, debit cards, Visa, MasterCard, Discover Card and American Express. For your convenience, our practice also participates with a financial assistance company, Care Credit. Care Credit applications can be accessed and completed either online or in our office. Please contact our office for details.

You can also make a payment via PayPal

Financial Policy

We ask that an initial 50% payment is made when your treatment is started, and the balance is paid on your final visit. All remaining balances must be paid within 30 days of service. We accept cash, checks debit cards, Visa, MasterCard, Discover Card and American Express.

We understand that a significant number of our patients rely on dental insurance to cover most of their dental needs. Our staff is committed to working with you and your insurance company to maximize your insurance benefits. Our policy is to have our patients with insurance pay one half of treatment cost at the time of treatment. If your insurance company reimburses at a higher rate, we will provide you with a refund. Occasionally insurance companies will not cover the entire remaining balance. When this occurs you will be responsible for the balance.

If the cumulative cost of your dental treatment is not financially feasible, and you are determined to keep your tooth, consult with our financial manager who will familiarize you with some programs to help finance the cost of your dental care. We will do everything we can to allow you to receive treatment in a timely manner while retaining your natural tooth. At Evergreen Endodontics, we understand the value of a healthy dentition and want treatment to be available to you.

If you have questions regarding payment, please contact our billing department at (425) 697-9777 and they will research any insurance questions you may have and explain everything to you clearly and concisely. Many times, a simple telephone call will clear up any billing concerns you might have. Our goal is to deliver the finest endodontic care at a reasonable cost to our patients.

Insurance

To maximize patient benefits, as a courtesy, we are happy to bill your insurance directly and will accept insurance payments from almost all dental insurance plans: Advantage, Ameritas, Anthem, Assurant, Aetna, Blue Cross, Cigna, Delta Dental, Guardian, Humana, Lifewise, Maverest, Metlife, Pacific Source, Premera Blue Cross, Regence Blue Shield, United Concordia, United Healthcare, etc. We will NOT bill to the following insurances: Washington Apple Health (Medicaid), DSHS, Medicare, Molina, Provider One or any state insurance. We will discuss with you the cost of your treatment before anything so that you can make the best choice for you.

When you visit one of our offices, please bring your insurance information with you so that we can attempt to verify your coverage, inform you of your benefits, and expedite processing your claim. We will estimate what your insurance carrier may contribute toward your endodontic therapy. Note that this is again an estimate that is based on your personal dental history. It takes into account not only what the carrier pays toward treatment in general, but also how much of your dental benefits are remaining for the year, and if deductibles have been met. Because there are so many variables, the estimate you are given on your first visit is not an exact figure.

Please remember you are fully responsible for all fees charged by the practice regardless of your insurance coverage.

Since coverage varies for each individual, when your treatment is started, our front desk staff requires an estimated initial payment (usually between 25% to 75% of the cost of the procedure). Please keep in mind however, insurance companies routinely indicate that coverage verification does not guarantee payment.

If your insurance pays more than the estimated amount, we will issue a refund check within 30 calendar days from the date the payment is received.

If your insurance pays less than the estimated amount, we will forward you a statement. We usually do not send monthly statements, so prompt attention is greatly appreciated.

Please note, if your insurance company does not reimburse us after two attempts to collect, you will be responsible for the remainder of the balance. To see if your insurance carrier is in-network with our office please call or check with your insurance company.

Upon completion of treatment, we will process your claim and forward it to the insurance company on the same day. After payment has been received from the insurance company you will either receive a bill for any remaining balance or a reimbursement check if the insurance company has paid more than anticipated. If for any reason the dental claim is rejected, please understand that you are responsible for fulfilling the payment of any remaining balance for the services rendered.

Most insurance companies will respond within four to six weeks. Please call our office if your statement does not reflect your insurance payment within that time frame. Any remaining balance from your insurance initial payment, and after your insurance carrier has paid its portion of the bill, is your responsibility. Your prompt remittance is appreciated.

Have us do a complimentary Insurance Eligibility & Benefit Coverage for you

Insurance Facts

Below are a few facts to help you understand how dental insurance works:

Dental insurance benefits do not work in the same way as medical insurance. There is almost always a co-payment due from the patient for almost every procedure.
There are “deductible” in almost all plans. At one time these deductibles were never taken out of preventive treatment (“exams, x-rays”). Recently many carriers have begun to take deductibles out of preventive treatment.
Irrespective of any dental insurance benefits that might exist, the patient is always legally responsible for the entire cost of dental treatment.
The extent of dental coverage is solely dependent on the dental insurance plan purchased by the employer. The higher the premium the employer pays, the greater the dental insurance benefits.
Even if there is a written predetermination of benefits returned from the insurance carrier, it is possible that after treatment is provided, there are no insurance benefits payable.
We (the dental office) have absolutely no power or leverage to deal with the insurance carrier. Only the employee or the contract purchasers has that power. Any complaints about benefits, payment, or coverage should be directed to Human Resources or the company owner.
The letters “UCR” on insurance vouchers stand for Usual, Customary, and Reasonable. The dollar amount you see as UCR has no basis in reality. It is an arbitrary amount determined solely by the plan selected and insurance premium paid by the employee.
There is no relationship to the actual dental office fee. The better the plan (i.e., the more premium paid), the higher the UCR will be.
A single insurance carrier may have a dozen different UCR fees for the same procedure, same office, and same dentist.
There is no universal coverage and payment schedule established. Just because an insurance code describing a dental service exists, it does not guarantee that it will be a paid benefit under your policy. There are many dental procedures that are necessary, and many of them are preventive, but are not covered benefits.
Your dental benefits almost always have a yearly maximum contribution level. This amount is the most your insurance carrier is contractually obligated to pay during a defined year (calendar or otherwise). When this amount is reached, there will be no further dental benefits payable until the next benefit year. If you have already begun some additional dental treatment prior to the maximum being reached, the insurance carrier has no payment obligation beyond that of the annual maximum.
Insurance benefits cannot be saved and carried over into the next year.

Appointment Policy

We understand that your time is valuable, and we will make every effort to provide services in a prompt fashion. We strive to give each patient our undivided attention with unsurpassed service for his or her appointment time. In exchange, we expect that you will be present for your appointment at the scheduled time. We understand that scheduling conflicts occasionally occur and would appreciate at least a 24 hour notice if cancellation of your appointment is necessary. If you do not give us a 24 hour notice or do not show up to your appointment that we blocked out precious time block for, you will be charged a $100 fee per our policy.

Patients