can i ask for a copy of my dental records?

i had been going to a dentist for years and last year changed to a different provider because it seemed as if they were just scamming the insurance company. now at my new dentist they said i have developed peridontal disease and is well developed. my previous dentist had never mentioned anything about signs leading to this disease. can i ask for a copy of my dental records to see if he had taken any note of it? should i contact a lawyer first? my dentist says im far along enough that i shouldve been alerted about it by my previous dentist. is this possible grounds for a lawsuit?
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I apologize in advance for the length of this answer.... Yes, you can have a copy of your dental records. The records technically belong to the dentist, but you are entitled to a copy of anything in them. If your new dentist requests them, there may not be a charge. However, if you just go into the office and ask for them, they may charge you either a flat fee or by the page. As for your perio disease... in your chart you should look for periodontal probing charts. At each appointment, you should have been "probed". During this procedure, the dentist or hygienist uses an instrument to probe 6 areas around each tooth to check the depth of the 'pocket' that holds the tooth in. Any reading under a 3 is considered normal. Anything over 3 is a periodontal condition that should be treated in some way and you should have known about it. Any LACK of a periodontal chart is, unfortunately, negligence. Please be aware that it is not uncommon for a periodontal disease to be caught when a person changes dentists because the previous office wasn't checking and the new office does. Also, if you DO have a periodontal probing chart in your records and the numbers are normal... you should know that periodontal disease takes quite some time to develop so if you went to the dentist regularly and the numbers on the chart are in the 'normal' range there are 2 possibilities: 1) something shady was going on during the charting process or 2) it is possible you have a systemic problem (compromised immune system, diabetes, etc.) that caused the periodontal disease to progress faster than normal. On the bright side, now that you have caught it, if you take good care of your teeth from this point your disease shouldn't get worse. Good luck!
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