Kao Richard, DDS PHD

This is about integrity! My wife went to Dr. Richard Kao for consultation. He asked us to pay $ 160 before he filed claim with Met Life, our dental insurance company. Met Life had approved the payment of $ 96 to Dr. Kao, and we were expecting a refund of the same amount from him. We waited for a month, and never received the refund. I had to go directly to his office to ask for the refund, and the receptionist told me that he would mail the check last week. After a week we, at last, received the refund check. We were extremely disappointed with Dr. Kao. And he didn’t provide clear explanation about my wife’s gum situation, either. :(

I had some work done by Dr Kao about a decade ago: I don’t really recall what, but I recall being well taken care of. I had a deep pocket repaired last year by a different perio dentist and was not enthusiastic.
So when I had a new pocket that needed surgery I asked my dentist to give the X-​rays to Dr Kao’s office.
I am so glad I did.
I was completely satisfied with my care and the follow-​up. Costs were clearly explained, and inline with my experience the previous year. The office staff was excellent. And when I mentioned I was going to Dr Kao one of my coworkers said she had a couple of friends who swear by him, too. Apparently he not only has top-​notch credentials and training but he’s got great hands and can sew tight stitches that help you heal better/​faster. Sometimes it’s not just the brain, you have to have some physical/​athletic abilities as well.
Dr Kao is a no-​nonsense, direct kind of guy. I felt that our communication was excellent and I knew exactly what was going on at all times. The one exception: he unbends and enjoys a friendly chat on the topic of vacations and cruises. Direct the conversation that way if you want to get past his professional exterior.

My experience is exactly like what Sally L. experienced.
I called to ask about an appointment and the lady at the front desk told me the consult fee is $ 160, but if you move forward with a surgery they will issue the $ 160 as credit towards the cost of the surgery. This is a lie, after I paid I reminded them what they told me on the phone and they acted like they didn’t know what I was talking about. Typical bait and switch, so I disputed the charge with my credit card company.
I asked Dr. Kao a question and before I could even finish he yelled at me «You’re not running your case, I am, and if you can’t deal with that, then you need to go see another periodtist!». So, I am not allowed to ask my doctor a question? Dr. Kao said that if I don’t see another dentist that he recommends for endo (root canal), then he wouldn’t treat me. He is simply trying to get a referral fee $ from the other dentist. I informed him I have a dentist, but he is refusing service unless I use whom he wants me to use.
Word to the wise, stay away from Dr. Kao. Dr. Kao’s first name is Richard, and you know the nickname for Richard, Dick.
Dr. Jeremy Ueno in Campbell allowed me to ask all the questions I want in order to fully understand why I am having a surgical procedure. That’s who I went to and would recommend over Dr. Kao, aka Dick.

I really liked Dr Kao. He was very smart and very efficient with time. Unlike many periodontists, he did not try to sell me on unnecessary treatments. He advised to not treat gum recession for the time being. I also liked that he is involved in the research community helping to test newer technology.

Amazing doctor. He found the problem and scheduled my operation. The area became more infected mean time and he called back immediately after I left a msg and after hours. He was really sensitive to my not wanting to remember anything of the operation. Here I am the next day and no pain! It couldn’t have gone any better. If I could give ten stars I would!!!

I have to disagree with some of the other reviews regarding Dr Kao’s bedside manner — I was very impressed with Dr Kao for his sensitivity and excellent work he did on an extraction. I was very nervous about the procedure and he made me feel at ease. I had minimal to no pain and no swelling after the procedure. I did not need to use any painkillers after the procedure either. I was amazed. He is a genius and I found him to be friendly and highly skilled.

I have some mild gum disease, for which I wanted to consult with a periodontist about treatment options and long-​term outcomes. I explained to Dr. Kao that I prefer not to do gum surgery, at least not immediately, as I am generally conservative with invasive treatment. I also asked him questions about what he thinks my treatment should be, and why, and what he expects the long-​term prognosis to be. I am an active participant in my health treatment. The way I see it is that I am the ultimate decision maker of what treatment I get, after consulting with medical experts. I do not blindly do what a doctor tells me to do without fully understanding the risks, costs, and potential outcomes.
Ten minutes into my appointment, Dr. Kao surprised me by informing me that I should find someone else to treat me. He refused to treat me because he said I was dictating treatment. He was angry that I asked him questions! He didn’t want to answer any of my questions. Basically, he wants his patients to be docile and to just do as they’re told. I was shocked that he is so old-​fashioned and patronizing. I told him that I am the ultimate decision-​maker in terms of what medical treatments I undergo, and that he is someone I pay to help me make my decisions.
I left feeling like I wasted my time and $ 170 for a useless consultation. If I had thought of it as I left, I would’ve told him I wasn’t going to pay the $ 170 because he refused to service me.

Dr. Kao came as a recommendation to complete some work after my periodontist fell ill and was unable to continue practicing. I had an implant done, and he added additional bone grafting and gum work in the time slot that he had for me at no additional cost to help make the area look great. After 2 other bone grafts leading up to this one I was expecting to have some discomfort and discoloration of my gums. Surprisingly, I barely even noticed I’d just had a titanium rod shoved into my jaw and was eating normally shortly after the surgery. It took some serious mirror usage to discover that any surgery had been done.
As the other reviewer noted, he’s not comforting. I wasn’t interested in comfort, I was interested in high-​quality professional work, and Dr. Kao is the best I have been to.

I had excellent results (note I’ve since left Silicon Valley).
First, he is a specialist, very experienced, so don’t expect his demeanor to be very comforting. Like many Asian professionals, he is very clinical and doesn’t go out of his way to soften your fears.
Came to him as a referral for bleeding gums, and later on, for a molar implant after the root canal had failed.
For the bleeding gums, he got me on a routine to use the inter-​teeth brush pick. It made the difference so my gums are restored enough that surgery wasn’t required.
My implant was very positive. My molar was close to a jaw nerve, and my general dentist was concerned about it. Dr. Kao didn’t flinch and just did the extraction (2 minutes for 2 teeth), and after healing and he did the molar implant, and transferred the specs to my general dentist who did the crown. The implant (in 2005) was $ 2,000.
As I said, his demeanor is straight forward and he’s not very chatty.
I needed results and he delivered.

Dr. Kao came highly recommended by my dentist. He took me from being in serious jeopardy with a gumline that needed work to outstanding health in short order. I also had Dr. Kao put in an implant for one of my front teeth that had been a crown for years and kept falling out. He worked with me financially since I did not have dental insurance so that I could pay for his work over the course of my visits. You can’t get a better surgeon for your dental health in my opinion.

My wife had bad experiences with other dentists who overcharged. It was Dr. Kao who finally discovered my wife’s root problem– part of her gums. My wife originally went to Dr. Kao to have implants made for her front teeth; he helped relieve her of irritating pain that was nagging her for years. We are happy to report excellent results. Our other experiences with him highlighted his high ethics and professionalism.