Howard Aaronson, DDS

I went to Dr. Aaronson with a tooth that was pretty far gone. There was a bad infection under the crown and it was quite uncertain whether the tooth could be saved. While waiting to see the doctor, I overheard him tell another patient that root canal would not save his tooth, and I took that honesty as a comfort since I wanted the doctor to make a good effort in my case… but not an over the top effort with over the top procedures and an over the top bill. Dr. Aaronson worked very much in harmony with my preference. He took a conservative approach and worked in stages, not doing more than the condition of the tooth appeared to warrant. He was also quite patient with my panicky reaction to various sensations arising during treatment, some of which had nothing to do with the tooth or jaw. Ultimately the tooth was saved without heroic efforts — care, patience and skill won the day and I did not need an extraction as I had feared.
I can’t speak for anyone else’s experience, but I will say in response to some negative reviews that sometimes it is not obvious whether a tooth can be saved with root canal. It may take some work to determine whether the tooth is viable, and that work must be paid for whether the tooth is viable or turns out not to be viable. It’s no fun to undergo procedures that are costly and exploratory in nature, but without opening and partially treating a tooth and giving it time to either heal, or not, it can be impossible to figure out what must be done.
I found Dr. Aaronson to be capable and professional. I am very glad my tooth was saved, and his experience level was high and directly contributed to that result. Unfortunately I don’t have dental insurance so the work was very expensive and out of pocket, but that would have been true with any root canal specialist. I recommend Dr. Aaronson.

If you’re like me then you’ve never had any extreme dental needs. Until today, right? Your dentist told you the tooth can be salvaged via root canal. Also like you, my insurance made it cheaper if Aaronson did it other than at the primary care place.
Well, it turns out root canals aren’t as bad as advertised. This is particularly true if you have a guy like Dr. Aaronson who was been doing these (AND JUST THESE!) for years now. He’s a perfectionist, makes sure the job is done, and I swear he did it with as little pain to me as I could’ve hoped for.
I’ve got no intention of seeing this guy again, but take my word– it’s as painless and easy as possible here. Just the way other endodontists are reviewed is scarier than the procedure itself.

If I could give this jerk a negative 17 star, I would. He’s one heck of a rude idiot who does a terrible job, and then is rude and nasty about it. I would not recommend anyone to waste their time in his office. He’s really only after the money. Terrible work ethics…

I sign up under every bad review given to this doctor. My situation is rather similar to every other bad review here.
To start with, I was referred to Dr. Aaronson by my primary dentist. I had had a root canal done years before but my dentist said the job was not too good (it was done outside of this country) and I needed some additional work before he puts a crown. I waited for Dr. aaronson for several weeks as he was on vacation. After conducting some research, I really believed he was worth the wait (what a fool I was!). On the day of the appointment, everything started quite well. I was greeted, did not wait, was showed to the room. After the x-​Ray was done, I was actually told the same thing as before that my root canal was not done in a very quality way and I needed to redo it. Fine with me… whatever it takes. Here I must admit that the tooth was in a really bad shape as the surface part was completely ruined and I had had a «temporary» tooth there for years. However, I never had any pain or inflammation or etc with it.
After spending at least an hour on my tooth, and I really believed he was working on my root canal, I was told that nothing could be done to save the tooth and I needed an extraction. What?! I ended up paying $ 600+ out of my pocket for this very valuable to me information after my insurance covered $ 400+ so his total bill came up to $ 1100. He opened my tooth and just left it like that in the ugliest state possible.
Later on, I was also mailed a bill for $ 50 (really?) which of course I did not pay so they sent me another bill $ 50 PLUS INTEREST! Who does that?! Having decided not to ruin my day fighting with the office I just wrote them a check. But that was not the end, on my insurance profile I also found a claim for another $ 200+. And that where I lost it and called my insurer for explanation. They actually contacted Dr. Aaronson’s office and a couple of weeks later I found a credit of $ 300 back to my credit card. Summing it up, should I have never contacted my insurer I would have never seen my refund money. AVOID!!!

OMG!!! If you need to get a root canal, do yourself a favor and look no further. This dentist is the best, and so is his wonderful and very professional assistant Jennifer. I have been to this office twice and both times I could have actually fallen asleep in the chair. I have anxiety whenever i have to go to my regular dentist, but not with Dr. Aaronson. He never keeps me waiting, always professional, always fast and always WITHOUT PAIN. There would be no logical reason to EVER go anywhere else if you need a root canal. Treat yourself to only THE BEST!

As a former Clinical Educator at NYU and former employee of Dr. Aaronson’s I can speak very honestly of his work as a specialist. Dr. Aaronson makes great efforts to always be at the clinical forefront of Endodontic Dentistry. He has gone through great lengths to provide patient education packages to patients, their referral doctors in order to inform them of the cutting edge technology in his office — including the rarely seen dental cat scan machine, & endoscope technology (among others). He is also a professor at Columbia’s School of Dental Medicine and does a lot for the dental community including providing Study Group meetings for CE credits from the Office of Professions New York to facilitate the licensure of other dentists, as well as providing quarterly newsletters to keep referral office apprised of different cases, and technologies used to accomplish these cases.
As an employer, he is one of those few human beings who intrinsically is concerned about all levels of his employees, and is very considerate in all dealing with them. He may not be very outspoken, but he is very professional with patients, staff and colleagues. (Including those CRAZY patients — that he has a rare capability of treating and easing their fears).
He is a genuinely good person, with extraordinary competence in his field.
Best regards, doc!

I just come from Dr Aaronson, and it was a good experience. He treated my root canal very carefully, caring about how i felt during the treatment. he’s done my teeth completely, with good bedside manners.
his assistant was pretty nice, and his secretary gave the exact amount of money i had to pay, before the appointment. So very helpful. I have to go for another tooth and this time, if everything works well, ill give 5 stars

I’m actually pretty shocked at some of the reviews regarding Dr. Aaronson. I went to Dr. Aaronson by referral of my General Dentist for root canal therapy. I found his secretary to be very friendly with me (maybe this was a fluke). Dr. Aaronson does not talk much, but I assumed the primary reasoning is, if you are in his office the visit is about one thing and one thing only. I personally don’t see the need for much discussion other than telling me what you are about to do and doing it. Its not like you go to an endodontist’s office to discuss teeth whitening or braces.
So anyway, I sat in the chair and Dr. Aaronson reviewed my x-​rays. I was prepped, he briefly explained the procedure and got to work. The important part, I felt absolutely no pain and the therapy was a success considering I had a very badly decayed tooth. In reality, the tooth should have probably been extracted but between Dr. Aaronson and my general dentist, the tooth was saved.
My 2^nd visit to Dr. Aaronson for my second root canal, he took a few xrays being that I had broken the tooth recently, he also cut the gum down to see if root canal was worth it. I feel, if he were a crook he could have performed the root canal, took my money and sent me on my way knowing that tooth would have to be extracted. Dr. Aaronson explained in detail why he couldn’t do the root canal and recommended extraction. The office contacted my general dentist and I was sent to an oral surgeon.
Personally, upon my visits with Dr. Aaronson, I would highly recommend him based off his technical capability. He got the job done both times, I have no problems. I don’t need the holding of hands by doctors. Tell me what must be done, do it and then do it good and I’m happy.

Dr. Aaronson is extraordinarily technically capable, but somewhat uncommunicative.
I think if you read the other reviews, you will find that people either love his ability, or dislike him because of communication problems, and neither are really wrong.
I saw Dr. Aaronson for a root canal and it not only took less time then I expected (one visit of about one hour) but it was also completely painless. If your priority is having your root canal done as well as possible, then I would unreservedly recommend Dr. Aaronson.
However, Dr. Aaronson did not take very much time to explain what he was going to do, and while he was working he did not say what he was doing, or make any conversation at all. Once the procedure was done, he very briefly instructed me on what to do over the next several days.
As you can see by my rating, I consider his technical skill far and away more important than his bedside manner. I am leaving this review mostly to try to explain the weirdly bimodal ratings that the Dr. has received.
For completeness’s sake, I found his staff to be capable, and not rude at all.

Upon seeing Dr. Aaronson, I provided him with the X-​ray from the dentist I had taken 4 days beforehand. He looked at the x-​ray I gave him from the other dentist and then insisted that the only way he could help me was by doing this other x-​ray without even telling me that it would be costly beforehand. He told me he was unable to see what the issue was so needed to do another X-​ray, which would help him get a better idea of what the issue was. Since I have been in pain and trusted him, I consented to the additional exam. When he got the results, he spent several minutes mumbling about the different pictures, which did not look clear or any more helpful to me than the initial X-​ray I brought him from the dentist. He was circling different parts of the x-​rayed pictures and mumbling dental jargon so I had to ask him what my options were several times. He did not provide me with clear and concise answers. He never even looked in my mouth. I had to ask him what needed to be done to rectify this issue as well as the costs involved. He said I could leave it and it would worsen or the procedures could cost anywhere from $ 1000 to $ 10,000 or more.
When I was leaving, I asked for a copy of the receipt, and they said they had a problem with the «system.» They told me the bill would be nearly $ 500, and they would charge it to my Care Credit account. I was baffled as to what I was charged nearly $ 500 for considering Dr. Aaronson didn’t even look into my mouth. I also asked for them to email me my options for the procedure since Dr. Aaronson could not clearly tell me what those options were. They provided me with a nebulous, jargon-​filled email without any costs attached. I found this very odd and unhelpful.
I feel that I was deceived, taken advantage of and duped by this man. I was a vulnerable patient in pain and trusted him, and he insisted I do this (VERY EXPENSIVE) x-​ray without telling me how much it would be beforehand. His staff and he were aware that I had a $ 2,500 CareCredit, and it seems apparent that he did the most costly exam without its necessity being warranted. Not only did he not provide me with a receipt as I left the office, he said he could not scan the one they had and that it would be sent via regular mail during the week. Only when I called and questioned the exorbitant bill and suggested that I will put a hold on the payment and review his business on Unilocal and other social media outlets, did he expedite a copy of my receipt and emailed it to me within 15 minutes. He also claimed in the newly printed receipt that he was generous enough to offer me a discount.
I highly suggest going to one of many other reputable endodontists in the city.

Straight up quack. I couldn’t get out of this office fast enough.
I was referred by my regular dentist for an evaluation of a tooth (for a possible root canal) and the appointment started off as one might expect: greeted by receptionist, asked for referral sheet and insurance card, having to fill out some ‘have you had this? where’s the pain? yadda, yadda’ forms… you know the drill (bu-​dump-​bump). One thing that stood out during my wait was when I asked for water and was informed that neither the office nor the building supplied water. Okay, LAME, given that office is orally aimed, but whatever…
Once I was taken inside I sat for several xrays taken by the endo’s relatively humorless assistant who, upon completion informed me that the endodontist would be in shortly. Turned out to be a true story that would quickly go twilight zone. He came in, made some idle chatter while setting up a little tray that I assumed was for my evaluation and then proceded to lower the exam chair and then to ask me to open up while he inserted a needle of novocain. WTF? I was taken aback – too much so to push his needled hand from my newly punctured mouth, but figured maybe this was necessary to do a root canal exam?
When he withdrew the needle I asked just that – if novocain was necessary to do an exam? «No, it’s to work on the tooth.» Uh, what? I’m here for an examination, which my referral form clearly stated (as did I upon setting that appointment and upon arrival when I handed over the form). «Well, you need the work.» Okay, WHY? «The film shows it.» Okay, seriously, I’m here for an exam so SHOW ME and EXPLAIN TO ME why I need a root canal. I mean, after all, it will be me forking out mucho dinero to pay for this procedure so you need to explain to me why I need it.
NOW, the chair comes back up and he points to some areas of shadowing (that were evident in the same areas of other teeth) as «these suggest you need a root canal.» Uh, why do they suggest that? «Well, they could be evidence of an infection or abcess or some other problem.» Even though I don’t have pain or inflammation of any kind and you can see the same shadowing on other teeth?
You get the idea: This endodontist is aimed at the pockets of your pants (your $$$) and not at those that may or may not exist around you teeth. I was only given a superficial, cursory, mumbling/​bumbling VERBAL exam that involved chubby finger pointing at my xrays when I demanded an explanation AFTER this endodontist started a procedure I didn’t approve of or even, necessarily, need. To top things off, when I told him I preferred to have a second opinion, he did everything he could to make me feel foolish and troublesome, to include sarcastically stating that I would still be charged for his services and that he ‘hoped’ my insurance would cover them.
BOTTOM LINE: AVOID this endodontist who is out of touch with and unconcerned about his patients (at very least this one). I can’t vouch for his work, but if you’ve read the above you’ll understand why I never will.

I cannot say I had a quick and painless root canal procedure. I was an emergency procedure, and Dr. Aaronson himself called me and fit me in immediately on a full day. My procedure was rough– but it wasn’t his fault. he made it as comfortable as he possibly could. He was personable and concerned, and he even called me that night to follow-​up. His staff was great, they called insurance right in front of me and told me exactly what I would have to pay upfront.

Awesome endodontist. I felt absolutely nothing during my root canal. The office was professional and spacious, unlike a lot of other New York dentist offices. I would absolutely come back to him if I needed another root canal. I also appreciated the fact that the receptionist gave me the exact amount I would need to pay over the phone, so I knew what to expect.

worst dentist in the city. I came here for a root canal. The first visit goes on well and Dr. Aaronson told me everything is fine and came back for another visit. The second visit took about 30 mins, then all in a sudden, I was told that my root canal failed and I have to extract my tooth right away. I was never informed that there is a possibility that a root canal can fail and even after the first visit (which he operates for about 35 mins), Dr Aaronson never mention that there’s even a slight possibility that something will go wrong. I was told everything was fine and scheduled the 2^nd visit with him. I have no choice but extract my tooth. In addition, I paid in full $ 1800 on the first visit and never get any refund. I tried to contact Dr. Aaronson several time ask for explanation of the failure of the procedure and ask for partial refund, which was received by nasty words and even was told that I should not harass him any more, What a joke, a patient try to find out the reason for failure and was shouted at. It is a very humiliating experience. I have no pain or discomfort before the procedure and Dr. Aaronson insisted that the root canal procedure is absolute necessary to save my tooth. In the end, instead saving my tooth, I spent $ 1800 on a failed procedure and another $ 500 to extract my tooth. Now, anther 3500 to have a implant.
Watch out for this crooked doc!

Can’t give Dr. Aaronson 5 stars yet, as I’ve yet to complete my root canal, but what an awesome endodontist. At first I had my root canal scheduled with another specialist in another office. I got to the office, apparently they had me scheduled for a «GENERAL» cleaning — no endodontist in the office and I had to scheduled yet another appt. Grrr. The day of the mix up with the other office, I called Dr. Aaronson the day of and Dr. Aaronson agreed to take me. The staff was friendly, and for a last minute appt I was in and out. Numbed me up extremely well, didn’t feel ONE thing! Procedure was quick, thorough and painless. The day following my root canal, ZERO pain, no Swelling.
Hopefully my follow-​up appointment will allow me to give Dr. Aaronson 5 stars.

Dr. Aaronson is an excellent endodontist! I had my first root canal performed by him and it was absolutely painless. He constantly stopped to make sure I was okay and explained to me what he was going to do before doing them. I’ve been back at his office many times and each time was treated properly, with attention and kindly. I found Dr. Aaronson randomly through my insurance network online since he was close to where I worked. But I feel so fortunate to have found him!
The receptionist and the dental assistant are both SO NICE and friendly and always very prompt with picking up the phones and booking appointments. My experience here has been virtually stress-​free.

Wow. This was single handily the WORST dentist’s office I have EVER been to. The secretaries are rude, vulgar, and do not care about the patients needs at all. They will lie to you and tell you procedures are covered by insurance (when they’re not). They make you lay out cash that you never get back from your insurance company. And, to make matters worst, the actual so-​called Dentist «Dr» Aaronson, is as rude and incompetent as can be. I would suggest ANY dentist in NYC before this one.

I had my first root canal done through Dr. Aaronson and when I asked how bad its going to be he said «its going to be painless and less uncomfortable and than filling treatment». He was right, it was painless, I hardly even felt when he put the shot in, he is very calm and listens to his patient, great bedside manners, every time (once or twice) I showed any sign of discomfort he apologized — which he didn’t need to.
I didn’t think that I’ll say this but really, I’d rather have root canal through Dr. Aaronson than procedures through other dentists.
Since I had RC on my molar I had to keep my mouth open the whole time, and I would say that this was the most uncomfortable part of the treatment, everything else was a breeze.
Results:
I had a filling done to the tooth next to RC tooth and after a week the whole area was causing pain, went back to Dr. Aarsonson and found out that it was the filling tooth causing the pain NOT the RC tooth, which was just dead as expected.
Cost:
I asked one of the other endo to give me estimate and they didnt upon my multiple request, Dr. Aaronson’s office gave me EXACT (paid) estimate without me asking for it.
If you have insurance its not expensive, he takes Metlife — in netwk