Howard E Spector, DDS, FACDS

I found Dr. Spector on Unilocal and EXTREMELY happy I went to him. My teeth are exactly how I wanted them. If you don’t go to him for invisalign you’re missing out on a good ortho to correct your teeth. He is an expert and has an amazing team!

I had my teeth straitened by Dr. Spector, and cannot tell you what a blessing he was to find. The man is pure genius. From the initial consultation to the final product, I cannot explain how utterly pleased I am with my teeth. I literally LOVE my teeth now. He was always honest throughout the whole process, and his staff are just as attentive and caring as he is. There were times when I was late with my payments, and his office was forgiving and non judgmental of my circumstances.
I highly recommend him to anyone who is looking to have their teeth fixed, as you will be satisfied with the whole experience. Look no further, my friends, you have found the right Orthodontist in Dr. Spector.

Great location. Wonderful staff. When it comes to orthodontics, Dr. Spector is as good with seniors like me (whose tolerance levels may not be the greatest) as he is with children. I can highly recommend him.

Very pleasant experience. Put our daughter at ease. Unfussy and flexible, and appointment times don’t mean waiting 45 minutes when you arrive on time, unlike where we took our other daughter. We will see how treatment turns out, but so far so good. Recommended.

In the last few months I finished up Invisalign for about a year treatment with Dr. Spector. It was painless, easy, and overall Dr. Spector did what was best for me.
My experience:
1. I have to admit, I’m a sucker for a super neat and really tech savvy office. Dr. Spector’s office really isn’t that. It’s a smaller office and has character, but doesn’t have the shine I normally find myself appealed to. Some call it pretentiousness, but whatever.
2. That being said, I found myself not caring about it. Dr. Spector didn’t see me every time because I had a pretty easy realignment, but each time before I left he’d look at me and ask how I was doing. Knew me by name and always seemed to give me great advice about my oral health. Great guy. His assistants were all very nice too. Always helpful, easy going and liked to joke around.
3. The overall quality I got was up to my satisfaction. He closed a small gap in my teeth and corrected the alignment of my bottom teeth just fine. It was painless, easy, and overall worth it. I would recommend Invisalign to anyone who is in that same situation.
4. If you get upset about being seen late at a doctors office you’ll have to suck it up. On average, I was probably seen 10 minutes late every time, but it really isn’t that big of a deal. After the first few appointments I started showing up at the exact time (instead of 10 minutes early like I usually try to be) and my wait was only 5 or 10 minutes.
5. Lastly, they are very accommodating. I have a job that I am frequently traveling for. They were very open to scheduling me in advance. One time I had a work emergency that I had to run back to the office for and completely forgot to go back in and tell them I was leaving. I came back the next week just to reschedule and Dr. Spector just laughed it off AND then saw me that minute. Didn’t care, which I was worried because I felt bad about it.

I had a very complicated case and had received consultations from 3 different orthodontist. I decided to go with Dr. Spector since he was the only ortho that said that Invisalign could be used for my case as well as his sensitivity to knowing that I wanted to be confident with my smile throughout all of the processes! I had significant spacing in my front teeth along with 2 baby canine teeth (which later were extracted and implants placed). He was able to provide me with a recommendation for a great oral surgeon and dentist to help with my case. After almost 2 years, all of my procedures (including oral surgery x2) were complete and I am 100% happy with the work that Dr. Spector did with invisalign and how straight my teeth are and no spacing! I can tell that he is truly passionate about what he does, he has minimal office wait time (I would always go during my lunch), and his staff is very friendly. I can not believe the transformation he made on my smile and confidence!

LOVE Dr. Spector! He is very personable and a great ortho! I go to him for my Invisalign. The great thing is that if I call and ask to talk with him, he jumps on the phone. He does a great job and I only trust him with my teeth!

Dr. Spector is certainly an excellent dentist. He knows his craft and I appreciate him for being just great when it comes to orthodontics. I spent many days during my «braces phase» in HS in his office. Afterward, I got my retainer. Each visit WITH HIM has been great. However, his staff demeanor does not match his personality. Each conversation is very dry and dull as if they don’t want to talk to you. They simply seem unhappy and just make the visit very irritating as you try to guess why in the world they have such an attitude with you. Nonetheless, I continue to go to Dr. Spector because he’s great and I can deal with his staff as long as he continues to do awesome work!

I just got done with about a year and a half of invisalign with Dr. Spector. Overall, I am very happy with the service I received and would recommend Dr. Spector for invisalign treatment. Here is my advice to anyone considering Dr. Spector and/​or invisalign:
— Invisalign is not easy. You have to be really disciplined and wear it as you are supposed to. I was not and it set me back a few months. Be prepared to feel ugly while you are wearing it, to take it out to have every meal, snack, cup of coffee, etc. and to brush your teeth before you put it back in every time. Some appointments hurt (the sanding between your teeth is the WORST) but if you suck it up and wear your retainers like you are supposed to, the results are well worth it and will be with you for the rest of your life.
— Be prepared for each appointment at Dr. Spector’s office to take a half hour longer than you expect. Whether it is waiting to be seen, waiting in the chair, etc., it always took extra time. At my first few appointments, I got really mad waiting because I was late for things I had planned after but I learned to not schedule any work meetings within a a few hours of my appointment and plan to wait and relax while reading a magazine, facebook, etc. and it was fine. There are lots of magazines to choose from in the office!
— The girls who work in his office are awesome. The majority of them were there during the entire length of my treatment and chatting with them makes appointments much more fun. I’ll actually miss going to the office to see them and Dr. Spector. Dr. Spector himself is very personable and 90% of the time is in a great mood and very chatty. 10% of the time, he is in a bad mood and you don’t want to be there while he’s in a bad mood. This only happened during 1 – 2 of my 12 – 15 appointments. The receptionist was friendly and great and always calls to remind you of your upcoming appointment.
— I had a few concerns about how my teeth were moving during my treatment and I wasn’t necessarily happy with the answers Dr. Spector gave me. If you are looking for someone to deliberate over every tiny concern you have, this is not the guy for you. However, he really is great at what he does and you just have to trust him. During the middle of my treatment, my bite seemed to be off, teeth were touching in the wrong places, etc. but this all fixed itself by the end of my treatment. Looking back, the answers he gave me were fine, but when you are paying thousands of dollars for something, you want to know you are on the right track.
— Payment for services couldn’t have been better or more transparent. My insurance covered 50% and I was on a monthly payment plan for the other 50%. Even when I got off track and had to get a new set of aligners, I didn’t have to pay extra (I think this is only free once and I don’t recommend it because it set me back about 6 months). Permanent retainers, follow-​up appointments, etc. were all covered. No hidden fees here.
If you are considering Dr. Spector for invisalign treatment, give their office a call. You won’t be disappointed.

A couple of weeks ago my permanent retainer broke and was continually cutting the inside of my mouth. I was not able to make it back to see my Orthodontist in Michigan, so I looked on Unilocal to find someone located in the city.
Dr. Spector was happy to help fix my retainer and file down the wire so that it was no longer poking me. He was friendly and welcoming, as was everyone I talked to throughout my appointment.
If I ever need any further orthodontic work I will most certainly be going back to see Dr. Spector.

Dr. Spector managed to take a smile that I have been self-​conscious about for 15 years and turn it into something that looks completely beautiful and natural. When I finally decided to invest in straightening my teeth, I visited 4 different orthodontists and decided to go with Dr. Spector because he offered the most personalized consultation and payment plan. He genuinely seemed excited to get started and work together towards the end result that I wanted. I just finished up my treatment last week and my experience with Dr. Spector and his staff was very positive; the staff provides great service, is flexible, friendly, and they work in what feels very much like a family atmosphere (casual, joke with each other, etc.). Dr. Spector knows his stuff and stays current with his industries’ movements; throughout my treatment he would often mention that he was speaking at a seminar or attending a conference to teach or learn about new discoveries in orthodontics.
Couple things to note if you are considering orthodontic work:
1. Dr. Spector offers lingual braces… these are tiny little metal braces that are custom fit to you and fit to the back of your teeth. Yes, the BACK of your teeth. Dr. Spector recommended these for my upper teeth when I expressed my discomfort with wearing traditional braces at my age. Considering all the options that are out there (such as clear braces & Invisalign) you’d be surprised at how affordable these lingual braces are.
2. Don’t underestimate the importance of choosing an orthodontist that is easily accessible for you! You will be visiting the orthodontist a lot during your treatment, especially in the beginning for routine adjustments. You want to pick someone who works in an office that you can get to and from easily without interrupting your work schedule too much. I work downtown so the office was just a few blocks from my job and I found this to be something I didn’t really consider in the beginning but it wound up being a huge convenience in the end.
I highly recommend Dr. Spector if you want to achieve the beautiful smile you always dreamed of with a highly experienced orthodontist that employs a fun staff!

I’ve been looking into Invisalign for quite some time now, and although I’ve had braces before and my teeth aren’t a total disaster, I did want them PERFECTLY straight. I just moved to Chicago from Los Angeles, so I relied on Unilocal reviews to find Dr. Spector, and I’m so glad I did. His staff is very organized and friendly, and Dr. Spector was very honest and detailed when explaining the entire Invisalign process with me. After I took my molds and he got back the digital plans for my teeth, I got a call right away to come down to the office to make sure I was happy with the placement of the attachments. I obviously went with his recommendations, but I was happy that he respected my input. I’m now ¹⁄₃ of the way done with my invisalign, and I can’t wait until February to see my straight pearly whites!

After my permanent retainer fell off (put on by someone else) I called in to see pricing for a new one. The staff was so friendly, worked with my schedule, and discussed a payment plan. It’s a very clean and welcoming environment with a great location!

So I went to Dr. Spector for my initial consultation for Invisalign. My requirements were a orthodontist (not a dentist) in The Loop. I wanted someone that had been in practice for a while. Anyone complaining about wait times needs a reality check. Doctors have wait times. Would you want a doctor that didn’t listen to you when you met with him? This is not an assembly line people.
Dr. Spector is warm, attentive, and knows what he is talking about. I went to him for Invisalign. His staff is on top of everything and I’ve been impressed so far. I also like that he continues to invest in the latest technology, which I find to be a rarity with those that have been in practice for a while. I give this place two thumbs up. Excited for my Invisalign treatment at a reasonable price.

I went to Dr. Spector for Invisalign treatment. Dr. Spector has done a great job so far, he uses a lot of analogies in talking about treatment options as well as he generally explains procedures clearly and succinctly. There’s a reason why he is one of the top providers of Invisalign in Chicago.

Last week, I had a mild panic attack. My permanent retainer came loose on one side, and I wasn’t sure what to do about it. I didn’t have an orthodontist in the city, and I was afraid that it would cost me an arm and a leg to get it fixed. I was also worried that I wouldn’t be able to get it taken care of quickly enough, and all of my years with braces would have been for naught.
Thankfully, I found Dr. Spector on Unilocal.I made an appointment to see what could be done, and I was able to come in within 48 hours. In a matter of 15 – 20 minutes, my retainer was fixed and everything was back to normal, all for just $ 35. Other businesses I called hinted that it would cost significantly more than that to fix, so I was very pleased with the price.
Both Dr. Spector and his hygienist were very friendly, and they made me feel at home. If I ever need to see an orthodontist again, I will surely be coming back here.

I went here as a kid and never got bad treatment. However, the wait in the office is simply ridiculous. Even if you show up early, expect to wait and wait and WAIT. I don’t know if this guy is playing Tetris or what, it just takes forever and makes you feel like he isn’t respectful of your time.
This two-​star review is mainly for when I grew up and called to see if they could remove my permanent retainer they put in and told me I should have removed when I was 19 or 20. The receptionist was incredibly rude on the phone and said she had no record of me even being there – even though I went there for years and years! I eventually went to another dentist to get it removed.
I hope Spector got a new receptionist, and the old one found a more suitable career. Like undertaking.

I’ve known Dr. Spector for most of my life. In junior high, i went to him for braces. i returned for him when i needed invisalign treatment as an adult. While going to him a second time might seem like an indictment of him, keep in mind, teeth constantly move (mine moved a ton), and, i wasn’t exactly the most disciplined patient with my post-​braces retainer, etc.
first, i went to someone closer in proximity for an initial invisalign estimate. I didn’t feel comfortable with the dentist — felt like he was just trying to sell me, and that he was annoyed by my questions. I remembered my youth going to «Spector» (as my family called him), and decided to see what he had to say.
The reason i did this was due to how great i remember him being as a kid. I was born with some messed up teeth. Extra teeth that had to be pulled, wisdom teeth pulled, teeth constantly moving. had i been born even 30 years prior to when i was, i’d have lived a life of pain. as a kid, i always hated dentists/​doctors (what kid doesn’t), but, i never felt that way going to Spector. He was always straight forward about everything (not how most people deal with teenagers), let me know what was going on, and treated me much better than other docs/​dentists. so, i decided to go back to him as an adult to see his thoughts on invisalign. I wanted his opinion, because, quite frankly, i wasn’t sure invisalign would even work for me.
Now, it had been probably about 15 years since i last saw him. And, walking into his office — he not only immediately recognized me — he asked me questions about how i’ve been, how my brothers were (who were all patients as well — he knew all of our names 15 years later), how my dad was, etc.
He gave me options, he let me know what would be done, how long it would take, what it would cost (with a great payment plan), and what to expect. Yet, at the same time, he eased me into invisalign treatment. He answered all of my questions (including my fears of taking out invisalign for too long, saying «it’s not a prison sentence ((which, as i’ve since found out, it’s not)).
Sector is good, and you can tell by the quality of the care he gives. I could tell that when i returned a second time, he was professionally determined to help me — as, i had been a patient so long. It wasn’t about money or a quick buck — it was about a sincere desire to help me. There’s a vast difference in any industry between someone who is out to make a living, and someone who is professionally determined — and, i find that difference to be invaluable.
And, a final note — his staff. His staff is absolutely outstanding, at every point of contact. From the moment you enter the office to leaving the office, you are dealt with by people who care about what they’re doing. They make you comfortable with every step in the process, and are very passionate about what they’re doing. I’m done with my treatment now — but, i might even miss them a bit!
— — — —
i could write an entire review of invisalign itself, but that’s a different post for a different review. I will say this, though. I wish i wouldn’t have waited so long to do it. It was incredibly painless, and I don’t think people i come in contact with in a daily basis even had a clue i had invisalign. Going through it with Spector made it all the more easy, comfortable, and painless.
So, when my kids need braces/​invisalign, etc, they’re going to Spector.

After smushing my top retainer under my hand and bending the wire, I visited Dr. Spector to see if he could help me fix my retainer because the orthodontist I normally visited was in California. I saw Dr. Spector two minutes after my scheduled appointment time (I was pleasantly surprised that I didn’t have to wait longer). He tweaked the wire a couple of times until I said it felt right, and then he sent me on my way. The whole process took around 10 minutes, and most surprisingly, he didn’t charge me anything for the visit.
I found Dr. Spector and his staff to be very friendly and professional. Highly recommended!

So I am 26 and I still have two baby teeth as I am missing eleven permanent teeth (crazy I know)– this makes an orthodontist very important to me. I have been periodically seeing my old orthodontist back in San Diego, but the distance has become increasingly frustrating. I called Dr. Spector’s office to see if I could find someone local to help me and the receptionist happily transferred me directly to the doctor. Dr. Spector carefully listened to my situation and graciously offered me an appointment the next day.
The following day I received friendly service from everyone in the office and Dr. Spector quickly and knowledgeably assisted me with my problem.
I am so happy to have found a great Chicago orthodontist and I actually look forward to returning the next time I need assistance! Thanks Dr. Spector!