Chen Howard Orthodontist

The WORST orthodontist EVER!
The last time I came here was probably almost a decade ago, I started when I was in early high school. I will never forget the days in that office.
Dr. Howard Chen was supposedly the best orthodontist in the area, how wrong that information was!
His office is CONSTANTLY packed. You arrive every time for your appointment but there’s a ‘mandatory’ wait for at least 1.5 hours. They were so busy they always have at least 15 patients in the first waiting room and 6 kids in the second waiting room.
When it’s finally your turn on the chair, you still have 2 kids ahead of you. While you wait, there is entertainment provided by Dr. Chen and his nurse assistants, he’s almost always flirting with them. I don’t think I’ve seen one male nurse the couple of years I’ve been there.
All this wait is definitely made worth while for the sloppy work that’s about to happen next. Every visit I paid, I walk out with my face covered in my own saliva, on the rare occasions when he actually remembers to wear a mask that is. More than half the time you leave with your saliva and his spit all over your face. He spits a lot when he talks. and he talks A LOT (remember what I said about the flirting?). He’d make you keep a toothbrush in his office that’s kept with everybody else’s toothbrush — no security whatsoever, you can only pray that someone didn’t accidentally used your toothbrush — and uses max strength to tackle your teeth when he thinks you’re not brushing hard enough.
The work he does is extremely unprofessional. He’d always tighten the rubber bands way too tight, rarely cuts the wire in the back of your teeth. For years I’ve had torn walls in the back of my mouth, on my tongue and all along the sides of my inner lips. I would complain but he never remembers to do anything.
After a couple years i couldn’t take it anymore. I just stopped going and had the braces left on my teeth for years because I dreaded going back to him, that’s how much I hated going there.

ZERO STAR, NEGATIVE IF POSSIBLE. Worst doctor ever. Extremely unprofessional and he gives me nightmare every time he shave down my teeth.
1. He never wears a mask when he work on you, he just spit overall your face.
2. He sand and shave your teeth without your consent. He’s not even close to being precise when you shave your teeth. He would shave them uneven, at a weird angle, and take a piece of the tooth next to the one he shave and still tell you they look straight to him, they are fine, because you see it wrong.
3. He damage your teeth by cutting them too deep. He would shaved away all the enamel, and you get sensitive teeth
He would shaved down you teeth to flatten them rather trying to adjust them with your braces. He would do it without your consent and when I argued and asked why didn’t you tell me before you do this. He said he doesn’t always tell patients for small adjustment. HOW IS SHAVING DOWN YOUR TEETH A SMALL ADJUSTMENT. Once you cut them away, they are forever gone. they wont grow back. NOW THEY ARE SLANTED, AND HE STILL ARGUE IT’S NOT. I GOT A 2ND OPINION FROM ANOTHER ORTHO WHO ALSO SAID HE SHAVED IT TOO SHORT. He also shaved my bottom molar and a corner of the tooth next to it because he is not careful. They were perfectly healthy teeth and in good shape. Now they are missing a piece here and there. He could have just adjust them with braces, but he would just take short cut by cutting them down. I just want to get my teeth align with braces, I don’t want me to get shave, grind, and sand away. Who would want to damage their teeth by shaving it for no reason? If he already spent a long time aligning the teeth, why ruined it in less than a few second. I can’t believed this. I’ve so regretted getting braces done by him. I would rather have my old teeth back than getting them damaged by him like this. I should have done with research and get more consultation from other doctor. He cut at least 2 mm off on one of my teeth, can you imagine that? My bottom teeth were better aligned before braces than after. He pull the teeth up too much and he just cut it away instead pulling it back down. Save you money else where, never let him touch you teeth. NEVER, YOU’LL REGRET IT. I would file an complain against him if I can.

Dr. Chen and his staff are pretty efficient. Even if there’s a lot of people in the waiting room it seems like they’re in and out fast. I usually schedule my appointments right when they open so I’ve never had to wait too long.
I’ve had my braces for about 5 months now and should be getting them off in 4 more months :). I’m counting down the days til I can floss normally without threaders, HOORAY!!!

I have been at this place for 4~5 years, never had problem with them… had my retainer check up today.

ZERO stars. unpleasantness to the max. mixed service at the front desk and unprofessional/​unsanitary conditions in the back. rarely saw any employees practicing regular handwashing… and he did not always wear a mask — um… if my mouth is forced open using a guard, and you’re looking down at me and talking/spitting…it’s gonna land somewhere… and it’s not pleasant. –_–
heavy handed with his instruments and doesn’t listen when you Unilocal in pain. two-​faced for real… nice ‘n caring in the lobby and then walking to your death in the back. he worked on me as well as my sister and 3 of my cousins. and all of us are scarred for life. DON’T GO!!!