Richards David W, DDS PHD

Dr Richards is a top notch clinician, nice guy and the entire staff are lovely to work with. I have congenital periodontal problems and life long experience with with periodontists: Dr Richards is the best. He takes time to listen, to explain and answer questions, he’s personable. Best of all, he’s a fantastic craftsman /​artist who LOVES the technical side of the job, and the final outcome has always been a 10 for me. Very rare to get 5 star performance on all of the science and art skills needed for this profession in one awesome periodontist, and Dr Richards is the best

This review is about my experience prior to surgery. I was referred to Dr. Richards by my dentist for a gum graft. I went there with my wife in February of 2013.
The reason for my low rating is the following: After Dr. Richards explained the procedure of the gum graft, I still had many questions I wanted to ask. Only while he was leading me to the door did he finally ask if I had any questions. This made me feel like he was rushing me. This already left me with a strange impression and my wife felt the same.
As I asked my questions, he told me he would call me back regarding some of the questions as he would need to confer with a colleague. Well a few days go by and I hadn’t heard back from him. So I call the office back and Kathy apologized and said the doctor would call me back in a few minutes. A few more DAYS go by and I have to call the office again in regards to my questions. After they didn’t return my call a 3^rd time, I never bothered to call them back.
Fast forward to November of 2013 and I finally receive a call back from them. I didn’t get a chance to answer the call, but the voice mail left by Kathy went something like this: «Hi, we were wondering if you still planning to have the procedure done. It’s getting close to the end of the year and we thought you might want to use up any insurance money remaining. Also, we remembered you had some questions about the procedure…»
Well, if you knew I had questions, why didn’t you call me back then!!! Unbelievable! I guess they’ll only give you a callback when they need to make their yearly quota.

I can’t say I love going to the Dentist, especially for Crown Lengthening. Not fun. I was a little nervous, after researching online what Crown lengthening entailed, and having consults with 2 previous dentist (one was over $ 1000 more than Dr. Richards, and the other in T.J. which was an experience in-​itself). The ladies at the front desk were friendly and prescribed a pill to relax me and said it had an amnesia effect. I took it being scared and it was not that strong for me, and no amnesia effect, but fortunately after about 5 shots I felt no pain and the procedure was very fast, but not pleasant.
The office is very clean, modern and efficient. I would definitely recommend Dr. Richards for Oral surgery procedures. I was out in less than an hour.

If you are looking for an extreme pro and need someone you trust, someone with tons of experience, someone who taught other doctors how to do it right or simply like me who has very difficult case and you want your implants to be done right this is the only guy you should consider! I put my first implant few years ago on my lower left and it was simple and easy procedure and since then I tried to find time to put two more on my right side but this time it was extremely difficult case because of the nerve close to surface so I finally went back to Dr Richards because I don’t think there’s anyone better than him and if he can’t do it I doubt there are any other doctors around that would. Pulling the teeth out from that area was a nightmare back in 2005 because none of the doctors (about 6 – 7 different doctors) would pull 2 of my roots after they saw the nerve on X-​ray, finally I found someone who agreed on doing it because I was in so much pain and after signing 60 pages of paperwork where Dr would not be responsible for anything he might damage, the teeth were gone. Wish I knew Dr Richards back then, it would be so much easier! Just two days ago I finally got my two implants in that area — even Dr Richards admitted that I am «one if those difficult cases» but he was going slow and precisely without damaging that freaky nerve. I am moving to San Francisco so I absolutely wanted to take care of this before I move and Dr Richards is the only one I trust, he is THE BEST! He even referred me to new dentist in the city, he said he taught tons of them in the city and I just hope they learned well! Office has the best equipment I’ve seen — seems like top notch, those chairs are so comfy I want one of those to watch tv at my home! Staff is amazing — will make you comfortable, call from Dr Richards at 10pm after surgery just to check if I am doing ok was well appreciated. Seriously, stop reading my story and give him a call — you won’t find a better doctor than him!

I went to Dr. Richards because I had extra gum tissue in between my two front teeth. It had gotten to the point to where it bothered me so much I was willing to pay cash to get it removed, as I don’t have insurance. I had been putting this off for almost a year probably because I thought it might be expensive, painful, and otherwise a hassle. Finally after someone told me recentlyI had something in between my teeth, I called Dr Richards office on the following Monday. His staff was warm and helpful. They got me in and out and did the
procedure in about 30 mins. He knew I was paying cash and only charged me $ 75 for the whole procedure. What a great guy, he didn’t even know me. I will be returning for a teeth cleaning and recommend him. Great experience.

I’ve been seeing Dr. Richards for 12 years, ever since my original dentist became concerned about gum recession and pockets. Dr. Richards helped me improve my oral hygiene (which was pretty good to begin with) to restore gum health. He has done two gum grafts over the years, but more importantly we’ve managed to avoid the need for surgery in other areas. The first graft he took donor tissue from the roof of my mouth; the aftermath and recovery were painful and difficult. The second graft he used commercial graft tissue, and it was a breeze. I recommend going this route, and scrupulously following post-​surgery care instructions to maximize chances of success — it’s much easier than taking donor tissue.
For years I’ve been getting my teeth cleaned four times a year, to keep the gum tissue healthy, alternating between my regular dentist and Dr. Richards’ office. I like Chi so much that I’m now switching to 3x year with Dr. Richards and 1x year with the regular dentist. If you ask when making the cleaning appointment, the office will schedule a few minutes on Dr. Richards’ calendar to check your gums on each cleaning, which gives me peace of mind that things are either the same or better.
Everyone in the office is very nice. Kathy, the surgical assistant, explains post-​procedure care and answers any questions. Christine does most of the scheduling and insurance, and is always super pleasant and nice to talk to. Dr. Richards is very honest about pros and cons of different treatment options, and provides his cell phone for post-​surgery calls.
My teeth are sensitive to cold, and many of the teeth cleaning machines that dentists use are painful because they shoot air or water or baking soda or something else at high pressure, which feels cold and causes pain. Chi is very understanding, and uses warm water, which makes the process painless for me.
One aspect I don’t like is that parking is not free, and it is often very difficult to find a spot in the garage.