Contact:    Attorney  Barnard  N.  Madsen                      FOR  IMMEDIATE  RELEASE  Fillmore  Spencer  LLC  801-­‐426-­‐8200  bmadsen@fslaw.com  

 DR.  HEATH  HENDRICKSON  DDS:    TROOTH,  LLC  IS  CONDUCTING    A  MISLEADING  “FEAR  AND  SMEAR”  PUBLICITY  CAMPAIGN  

 The  “silly  season”  of  negative  political  campaign  ads  appears  to  have  spilled  over  into  a  recent  campaign  by  a  group  of  oral  surgeons  against  Provo  dentist,  Dr.  Heath  Hendrickson.    You  may  have  seen  “Trooth,  LLC’s”  billboard,  or  someone  holding  a  sign  in  front  of  a  Wisdom  Teeth  Only®  office  that  says:    “Heath Hendrickson of Wisdom Teeth Only is not an oral surgeon.” That  statement  is  true:    Dr.  Hendrickson  is  not  an  oral  surgeon;  he  is  a  “DDS”  (a  Doctor  of  Dental  Surgery)  -­‐-­‐  a  licensed  General  Dentist.        But  the  implication  that  there  is  something  wrong  with  that  is  false  and  misleading.        Let’s  do  a  quick  fact  check.    Here  are  the  three  most  important  facts  “Trooth,  LLC”  may  not  want  you  to  know:    -­‐  Fact  #1:    You  don’t  have  to  be  an  oral  surgeon  to  remove  wisdom  teeth.    A  DDS  (a  licensed  General  Dentist)  is  qualified  to  remove  wisdom  teeth  (as  well  as  fill  cavities,  perform  root  canals,  do  gum  surgery,  and  provide  other  dental  care).          -­‐  Fact  #2:    A  DDS  (a  licensed  General  Dentist)  is  held  to  the  same  standard  of  care  as  an  oral  surgeon  when  removing  wisdom  teeth.        And,  perhaps  the  most  important  fact:    -­‐  Fact  #3:    A  DDS  (a  licensed  General  Dentist)  generally  charges  less  than  an  oral  surgeon  to  remove  wisdom  teeth.  For  example,  Dr.  Hendrickson’s  general  cash  charge  to  remove  all  four  wisdom  teeth  under  sedation  is  $899.    Here  are  some  additional  important  background  facts:    Fact  #4:    Oral  surgeon  Dan  Bluth  DDS  sold  part  of  his  Wisdom  Teeth  Only®  practice  to  Dr.  Hendrickson  in  2007.        Fact  #5:    As  his  advertising,  signs  at  his  office,  and  his  informed  consent  form  make  clear,  Dr.  Hendrickson  is  a  “DDS”  (a  Doctor  of  Dental  Surgery),  or,  in  other  words,  a  licensed  “General  Dentist.”        

Fact  #6:    Since  Dr.  Hendrickson  began  exclusively  removing  wisdom  teeth  in  his  Wisdom  Teeth  Only®  dental  practice  in  2007,  he  has  performed  tens  of  thousands  of  wisdom  tooth  extractions.    Fact  #7:    In  Dr.  Hendrickson’s  five  years  of  Wisdom  Teeth  Only®  dental  practice,  his  insurance  carrier,  Professional  Insurance  Exchange  (or  “PIE”),  has  never  had  to  defend  him  in  a  claim  or  suit.    PIE  director,  Richard  C.  Engar  DDS,  says  that  from  a  claims  standpoint,  Dr.  Hendrickson’s  practice  record  is  “clean  as  a  whistle.”          Fact  #8:    “Trooth,  LLC”  is  a  group  of  ten  oral  surgeons:    Christopher  Burton  DDS  and  MS;  Gary  Crawford  DDS;  Cameron  Egbert  DDS;  Michael  Harris  DDS  &  MD  [“Medical  Doctor”];  Maurice  Jenkins  DDS  &  MS  [“Master  of  Science”];  William  McBee  DDS;  David  Nicholls  DDS;  David  Park  DDS  &  MD  [“Medical  Doctor”];  Christopher  Price  DDS  &  MD  [“Medical  Doctor”];  and  Tate  Viehweg  DMD  [“Doctor  of  Dental  Medicine”].    Fact #9: A DDS (or DMD) degree generally requires 4 years of dental school. Training to become an oral surgeon generally takes 4 additional years. Oral surgeons have additional training to perform facial reconstruction, trauma surgery, cosmetic procedures, head and neck cancer surgery, jaw surgery, and so they themselves can administer sedation anesthesia. But you do not have to be an oral surgeon to be fully qualified to remove wisdom teeth. Fact #10: All of Dr. Hendrickson's sedations are performed by Michael Call, a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (“CRNA”). Michael Call graduated with his CRNA degree in 1973 from the Mayo Clinic. Over the course of his career he has performed hundreds of thousands of sedations. While oral surgeons are licensed to perform their own anesthesia, they often call on the skills of CRNAs, like Michael Call, when performing more demanding procedures.

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Please contact Dr. Hendrickson DDS through his counsel, Attorney Barnard N. Madsen, Fillmore Spencer LLC, 801-426-8200; bmadsen@fslaw.com Facts #1-3, 7 and 9 can be verified by Dr. Richard C. Engar DDS, at PIE – 801-262-0200. His bio can be found here: http://www.pieutah.org/content.aspx?id=11 On the following page is a photograph of Dr Heath Hendrickson DDS. His bio can be found here: http://www.drwisdomteeth.com/pages/meet-dr-wisdom-teeth.html

Heath Hendrickson, DDS

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