Parent testimonials

" My 11 yr old daughter was very sick from all the decay and infection in her mouth. She had several surgeries prior to Dr. Fallah, but nobody could connect with her (she is very disabled), establish trust, or help her understand how to help herself get better. It was a no win intervention (a miserable experience: vomiting, hysteria, autism shut down) every time we had to get care. Dr. Fallah was different. She developed a relationship with Lauryn. She spent time with her connecting with her, teaching her she will feel better, and have no pain if she can learn to get past the deep oral aversion and brush/let us examine her. In addition to the oral aversion, Lauryn has a bad case of "white coat syndrome" from all her hospitalizations. But Dr. Fallah was SOOO cool and beautiful and kind, Lauryn just had to listen to her. Lauryn couldn't help but establish trust with her. When you have trust, you have everything. Dr. Fallah did the impossible. Lauryn lived through surgery (she has a metabolic disease) lost about 15 pounds of fluid within 2 weeks of the surgery- healed the infection. It was such a phenomenal change in my daughter. You wouldn't even recognize the before and after photos of Loo. Today? She brushes, lets me brush her teeth too, flosses, and while things aren't perfect, things are good for her. She even lets Dr. Fallah put a mask and gloves on to examine her, and that might someday help another doctor work with her. Trust has to start somewhere. "  Carolyn G.

"Thank you so very much for all of the good work that you have done on Derek’s teeth at UCSF. Amelogensis Imperfecta, as you know, can be psychologically debilitating for a young child; but because of your dentistry skills, Derek routinely smiles very broadly now. Prior to your dentistry work, Derek was shy around other people, especially in school. As you know sometimes kids can be thoughtlessly cruel, with comments like “Hey, what’s the matter with your teeth?...or… Don’t you ever brush your teeth?” being commonly directed at him. He even developed an aversion to dentists in general, which evolved into anxiety around anesthetic injections and a draining, gag reflex . Dr Mullen's excellent dental work has given him a new lease on life and a new found confidence that is already beginning to show in his daily life, even in school. Her caring and concerned attitude has also gone a long way in allaying much of his anxiety related to dentistry in general (I think these particular changes may directly be attributed though to your good natured smile and easygoing sense of humor). We want to thank Dr Mullen and the UCSF Pediatric Dentistry doctors and staffs for everything you have done for us. His teeth look wonderful."  Lawrence K.