Peter E Lyu, DDS MD

This dentist is great for dental implants. Explains the procedure well which is a major concern to someond having an implant.

I am Conflicted: Fine Medical Service but Front Office Procedure Unethical
I am not sure how to balance very positive medical service with big negative of unethical front office in my star rating. I gave four stars for medical service.
I went to his Los Gatos office (Wednesdays only) for two wisdom teeth extraction and the procedure went fine, no pain, only minor ache and minor swelling afterwards, no infection afterwards. I was apprehensive, but in retrospect, it was fine and a lot easier than I had expected. He prescribed painkillers which I did not get and I did not even take over-​the-​counter ones. Dr Lyu and the assistant were very caring and thoughtful made sure I was comfortable and gave clear post-​op instructions. Dr Lyu was straightforward and struck me as competent. There wasn’t much small talk, but that was fine with me.
However, my very first visit, prior to surgery, was for a consult and I found the front office procedure to be unethical.
Before I was allowed to meet Dr Lyu, or discussed my situation with him, on phone or in person, the front office made me sign a statement that I had discussed my case with him (In an outlined box on form and in bold letters) and I must sign the form that I discussed my case with him (that is, sign PRIOR to me meeting him for first time or discussing my case with him.)
Otherwise, if I did not sign this obviously non-​factual statement, my appointment would be cancelled. I think the front office at Los Gatos, affiliated with Kothari Dental, is staffed by at least one controlling clerical person. She had no concern that I was being asked to sign something wrong, just responded that it is simple: they will cancel my appointment if I do not sign it — - even though it is clearly wrong and not factual.
I signed it and immediately had misgivings about giving in to this.

It’s like an odd time to be alive because I searched for my oral surgeon on the same site I use to find the closest gay club.
I don’t know why I did this, but I googled «wisdom teeth surgery gone wrong» a few days before my procedure and read all these horror stories of people going under general anesthesia and not waking up. I convinced Dr. Lyu to give me «twilight anesthesia» which I guess is also known as «date rape sedation» because I was terrified of what could happen.
The procedure went really well; Dr. Lyu is such an amazing surgeon. The after surgery car was top notch (he made me visit twice to make sure everything was healing fine) and seemed genuinely interested in my recovery. While knocked out (I was told), I tried telling him about my cat and how lucky I was to have met a celebrity cat; I feel sorry for the weird stuff he probably has to listen to while working on people.

Dr. Lyu really helped our family out when our daughter came home for holiday break and (of course) an impacted wisdom tooth suddenly started to become very painful. He accommodated her very quickly and was extremely professional, calming, and skilled. His staff was terrific as well. Having a wisdom tooth extracted wasn’t exactly the holiday gift we were hoping for, but Dr. Lyu made the experience as pleasant as possible and we would recommend his practice to anyone looking for an outstanding oral surgeon.

Dr. Peter Lyu is AMAZING!
I had my wisdom tooth pulled out this week at Dr Lyu’s office. The assistant was very nice and set up an appointment for me for the next day!
Dr. Lyu was very professional and did a great job explaining the situation, laying out out the options, and discussing the possible outcomes. Being a very indecisive person, I spent almost 10 minutes to decide and Dr. Lyu was extremely patient with me throughout the process. When I finally decided to pull out one wisdom tooth that day, he and his assistant got ready for the surgery within seconds (extremely efficient!). The surgery took him around 20 minutes, and the pain so far has been minimal/​bearable.
Everyone was so nice and helpful at the office. I will definitely come back if I have any dental problems in the future!

Just got my wisdom teeth extraction for all 4 teeth, 2 impacted and 2 normal. Dr. Lyu and staff did a great job of explaining the process, what to expect, any possible complications, and general competence.
Surgery took shorter than expected, no complications, so far the pain has been extremely minor and I was prescribed medication to handle the pain if it worsens. Follow up coming soon. If no further updates, everything went extremely well or I died.

I was referred to Dr Lyu by my primary, Dr Velasco for an extraction and Dental implant of my FRONT TOOTH! I was extremely scared and nervous going in, and throughout my consultations and procedures throughout the past year, I can confidently say I wouldn’t have gone to anyone else!
Dr Lyu spent the time to understand my concerns and alleviate some of the stress I was having, and consistently set realistic expectations.
The whole process had minimal pain, and the implant/​new crown look amazing!!!

I sadly have to have a back molar removed. Dr Lyu and his assistant, Dennis, did a wonderful job. I was nervous going in but their bedside manner reassured me and my fears went away. The procedure took only about 30 minutes and was painless. Over the weekend before, I had a question and called his office; he got right back to me. His staff are very kind and proficient. Via is highly competent and pleasant, so is Anne (who I’ve only spoken to on the phone).
His office is very nice — and he has some lovely photography on the walls.

My significant other went in for surgery, and I was very nervous for her. Dr. Lyu reassured the surgery would go as planned and the extractions were done in half the time he had planned for. My princess is only 48 hours into post op and the pain is minimal, and the surgery went beyond my expectations. I am very impressed, and I HIGHLY recommend Dr. Peter Lyu. I would rate him the best Oral Surgeon in San Francisco. Thank you :)
P. S. The staff and assistants are incredible and very nurturing!

He is an excellent doctor, very informative. I asked lots of questions before one of my wisdom teeth extraction. He was very patient to answer all of them. After the operation I had a problem and contacted him via text; he directed me quite well.

Really good Oral Surgeon in my experience. Just had Dental implant completed by Dr. Lyu and it went great. In addition to sensing a technical competency & professionalism when I went in for my initial consultation, Dr. Lyu also seemed like a really nice guy: experienced but unpretentious & open to treatment questions & normal conversation (vs. the imposing Dr. who walks into the room looks at your file and makes you feel like any question is biting into their next patient’s time). That initial positive experience translated throughout the actual procedure and follow up visits. The people who work in his office are also very nice and helpful. Highly recommend him & his practice.

My current dentist referred me to Dr. Lyu. I scheduled an appointment with Dr. Lyu and had to do X Rays on my initial consultation. The scans showed that I have three horizontally impacted teeth and one that was non-​impacted. Dr. Lyu clearly explained the procedure to me and did not attempt to sugar coat the experience or the procedure, which I really appreciated. After the consultation, I scheduled the surgery date with the receptionist. Due to a busy schedule, I had to reschedule the appointment a few times. Both receptionists were very patient with me and accommodated my requests and answered any questions that I had in the days leading up to the surgery. I was also given a quote update via email whenever I had deductions from my coverage to reflect the most updated charges.
I developed a sore throat on the day of the scheduled surgery. I called in and the nurse handed the phone to Dr. Lyu. Dr. Lyu advised me to reschedule the surgery despite having planned for the surgery because the sore throat is a sign of infection and inflammation and it would prolong my recovery time if I had undergone the surgery.
I took his advice and reschedule the surgery date when I felt better.
On the actual surgery day, they checked me in on time. Because my X Ray scans were taken more than a year prior to the surgery, I was able to take another scan for free. I remembered talking very briefly to Dr. Lyu and followed the instructions that his assistant gave me. The entire experience was not horrible at all. I woke up and did not feel groggy at all. I had very minor bleeding unlike the experience of a lot of people around me who had undergone the same procedure. I did throw up from the pain medication/​antibiotics on my first dosage. It was probably because I had too little food and too much acid in my stomach. After some rest, I took the second dosage of meds with more food and a protein shake and I was fine so I did not feel the need to contact Dr. Lyu. The pain was really minimal. If anything, the areas of incision just felt tender. I did not need to take the pain meds starting the second day.
On the next day, I had swelling on only one side of my cheeks, which is better than I expected because I had three badly impacted teeth. I am on my fourth day of recovery now and just had a checkup at the clinic and everything is looking great. The swelling is almost all gone and I can start the hot compresses to reduce the puffiness.
Normally, on a Unilocal reviewer would say, «I am definitely coming back.» Since wisdom teeth extraction is a once in a lifetime experience (thankfully), I highly recommend Dr. Lyu. He is very skillful and competent. He is also calm and he has a great team of staff. My experience could not have been better.

Dr. Lyu is great! He was referred to me by my dentist for an implant. He is very thorough and made the whole process easy and bearable. I had to go through many steps, too, since I needed to have a bone graft to start with. The whole process was pretty painless, I didn’t even need to take the pain pills he prescribed! He definitely went above and beyond, even seeing me every week to adjust my stayplate that I have to wear temporarily before getting the implant. His staff are really great as well, super accommodating and very friendly!

Dr. Lyu performed two implant surgeries for me in the last three years and I was very impressed with his «gentle hand» and professional level of service. He answered all my questions clearly in a friendly, caring manner. He made me feel comfortable and above all, at ease. The Chinese nurse was also gentle and made both surgeries bearable. The front desk ladies, Anne and Via, answered all my billing questions and took care of the insurance paperwork with efficiency. I hope I don’t need another implant, but if I do, I’ll call Dr Lyu.

I got my wisdom teeth taken out here last week… i can’t believe it has been a week! Even though the experience was pretty unpleasant and painful, Dr Lyu was great! He answers his calls at midnight when I’m throwing up because of the pain killers, he answers all your questions, his assistants are tech-​savvy and they give you estimates and communicate via email. Everything was easy and efficient!
If I ever grow more wisdom teeth further down in life. I’ll definitely come back and have Dr Lyu remove them!

Having my wisdom teeth extracted was never going to be an *enjoyable* experience. But I think it went as well as it could have. Dr. Lyu explained the procedure very clearly and was very nice to me when I was nervous about being put under. I had no swelling and very little pain afterward.
I was impressed with the service overall. I want to acknowledge the nurses (not sure if that is the right term?) who were also very professional and kind throughout. Some reviewers have had issues with reception staff, but all were, again, helpful and nice. Highly recommended.

Let’s talk about how I had my wisdom tooth extracted yesterday, and am in no pain today!
Dr. Lyu has to be the best oral surgeon in the Bay Area. I went in for a consultation on Monday. He did some x-​rays and told me that, yea, I need to get my wisdom tooth out… like now! It was severely infected, impacted, gross, etc. He is extremely nice and pleasant. His staff is great as well. Prescribed me some pain meds and antibiotics (thank God for those!). The infection was healing up nicely by Friday, when I had the surgery.
I arrived Friday morning around 8, and was taken back to get all hooked up to the machines. I was clearly nervous because the heart rate monitor was going a mile a minute. They came in and gave me oxygen. And then they had to find my veins for the IV… which is always tough for me! He poked around a little on the inside of my elbow, and then found a nice, big one on my wrist. Thankfully, needles don’t bother me, and the extra pinch he said I’d feel (and apologized for!) wasn’t that bad.
Next thing I know, I’m awake and the surgery is over. It’s about 9:15. Boyfriend was there to hear all of the post-​op instructions. I was very groggy. Fast forward to being at home, and my jaw was just a little sore. Went in and out of sleep a few times, popped about 3 painkillers just in case. Around 8pm, I decided to eat some warm soup. Put more ice on my face. Went to sleep. Woke up, and I don’t feel a thing.
I can kinda feel some stitches in the back of my mouth, but as far as pain goes, nothing! He told me that it wouldn’t be nearly as bad as my tonsillectomy, and he was right.
Dr. Lyu is DEFINITELY the one to see if you have any kind of oral surgery needs. I will be referring all of my friends to him.

I have been to Dr. Lyu for two different procedures and I was always very very pleased. He explains the process very well, is very attentive, and best of all, he is funny :-) or at least receptive to my jokes.
And last but not least — although this might be my body and not something he does — I NEVER swell up after his procedures and don’t need to take any pain killers (wisdom teeth being pulled, etc.)

I ultimately still found this to be a positive experience, but I wanted to update with post-​surgery care, Dr. Lyu is good at what he does, but he’s not the best with the reassurances for skittish patients. I was throwing up on antibiotics, so I called the office and Dr. Lyu was pretty helpful. However, two days later, I developed intense pain in one socket that radiated across my jaw, through my ear and forehead. Dr. Lyu was very dismissive. He told me to take the pain meds that had made me throw up the day before, and I felt rushed on the phone. If he had just listened to me and taken me seriously the first time I called, I would have felt so much more comfortable.
Long story short: I went in for a check-​up, Dr. Lyu «rinsed» the socket, found nothing and told me I must have been having phantom pain. Two days later, I found a peppercorn embedded in the socket, which the syringe managed to get out. Not disastrous by any means, but certainly something. If I hadn’t been condescended to, I would have solved it earlier– and you pay too much money to get treated dismissively.

I am really pleased with Dr. Lyu’s office. I don’t know why some reviewers had problems with the staff and their billing, but I suppose those patients simply are not familiar with their own insurance policy and expect the office to do everything for them. A little initiative and knowledge on the patient’s side is needed, but that is something that should be clear to anyone.
Dr. Lyu has an impeccable bedside manner and he is very knowledgeable. I felt and still feel like I am in very good hands, he knows exactly what he is doing and knows how to calm a nervous patient.
I loved how precise he was with the local anesthesia, since I did not feel anything during the procedure but still did not have a completely numb, sagging face for the rest of the day.
He is always there to answer questions as is his staff if he is not available, and it really feels like he only has the patient’s well-​being in mind.
I would always gladly go back and highly recommend him to anyone who needs an oral surgery of any kind.