Dental Expressions
According to our open methodology, this clinic scored 64.4/100 for transparency, reputation, service accessibility, and digital visibility.
Overall rank: #2 of 12 ranked clinics · Last checked: 25 August 2026
Positions by Rating Profile
- Overall Transparency & Trust#264.4/100
- Best for Expats#362.8/100
- Best for Dental Implants#358.5/100
- Best for Emergency Dental Care#459.5/100
- Best Price Transparency#265.9/100
- Best English-speaking Clinics#265.5/100
- Best for Families / Childrennot ranked
- Sleep Dentistry (GA / deep sedation)not ranked
General Anaesthesia & Deep Sedation
Whether the clinic documents treatment under general anaesthesia or deep / twilight sedation — "sleep dentistry", where the patient is asleep and unaware (does not feel, see, or hear the procedure). Ordinary conscious sedation, where the patient stays awake and responsive, does not count here. This is informational and does not affect the transparency score.
- ? General anaesthesia / deep sedation (sleep dentistry) — Not verified No sedation/anesthesia information found on site (dentalclinicsandiego.com).
Summary
San Carlos (East San Diego) bilingual (English/Spanish) practice led by Dr. Irma Gavaldon with 35+ years' experience. Offers general, restorative, same-day and cosmetic dentistry, implants including All-on-4, and emergency care.
Strengths
- Information Transparency: 20 of 20 points.
- No red flags identified in public sources.
Weaknesses
No category fell below the weakness threshold (50% of verifiable points).
Score Breakdown
Every criterion below is scored from public sources. ✓ verified yes · ✗ verified no / not found · ◐ partial · ? unverified (scores 0, not a negative finding).
Information Transparency
Whether basic facts about the clinic - its team, premises, services, and location - are publicly verifiable.
| ✓ | Has a working website [s-de-web] | 4/4 |
| ✓ | Dentist names listed Dr. Irma Gavaldon. [s-de-web] | 3/3 |
| ✓ | Dentist specializations listed Complex restorations, implant rehabilitation, cosmetic. [s-de-web] | 2/2 |
| ✓ | Real clinic photos Clinic and dentist photos shown. [s-de-web] | 2/2 |
| ✓ | Service list published [s-de-web] | 3/3 |
| ✓ | Clear contact details Phone and email published. [s-de-web] | 2/2 |
| ✓ | English website version [s-de-web] | 2/2 |
| ✓ | Address and map published [s-de-web] | 2/2 |
Price Transparency
Whether patients can estimate costs before visiting. Published price ranges count; exact prices are not required.
| ✓ | Prices or price ranges published New-patient special: $145 radiographs + evaluation + cleaning. [s-de-web] | 3/3 |
| ✓ | Cleaning price listed Included in $145 new-patient special. [s-de-web] | 2/2 |
| ✗ | Filling price listed [s-de-web] | 0/2 |
| ✗ | Crown price listed [s-de-web] | 0/2 |
| ✗ | Implant price listed [s-de-web] | 0/2 |
| ✓ | Consultation price listed Evaluation included in $145 special. [s-de-web] | 2/2 |
| ✓ | X-ray / imaging price listed Radiographs included in $145 special. [s-de-web] | 2/2 |
Reputation & Reviews
Public review signals. The Google rating is adjusted with a Bayesian prior (rating 4.0, weight 25) so a 5.0 from a handful of reviews does not outrank a 4.8 from hundreds.
| ◐ | Google rating (Bayesian-adjusted) as of 2026-08-25 [dental-expressions-refresh] | 4/6 |
| ◐ | Google review volume [dental-expressions-refresh] | 1/3 |
| ✓ | Review recency [dental-expressions-refresh] | 3/3 |
| ? | Clinic responds to reviews | 0/2 |
| ? | No recurring complaints | 0/2 |
| ? | No suspicious review patterns | 0/2 |
| ✓ | Active Facebook presence [s-de-web] | 1/1 |
| ? | TripAdvisor presence | 0/0.5 |
| ✓ | Other review platforms Yelp, ZocDoc (4.83/5), Healthgrades, Instagram, YouTube. [s-de-rev] | 0.5/0.5 |
Medical Infrastructure
The range of publicly documented equipment and services. This measures documented availability, not clinical quality.
| ✓ | On-site X-ray [s-de-web] | 2/2 |
| ? | CBCT (3D imaging) | 0/2 |
| ✓ | Implantology All-on-4 and implants. [s-de-web] | 2/2 |
| ? | Orthodontics | 0/2 |
| ✓ | Oral surgery Extractions, implant placement. [s-de-web] | 2/2 |
| ? | Pediatric dentistry | 0/1.5 |
| ✓ | Emergency care [s-de-web] | 1.5/1.5 |
| ? | Works with international patients | 0/2 |
Communication & Service
How easy it is to contact the clinic, get answers, and book - especially for non-Thai speakers.
| ✗ | WhatsApp / LINE available [s-de-web] | 0/2 |
| ? | Response speed | 0/1.5 |
| ✓ | English spoken Bilingual English/Spanish staff. [s-de-web] | 2.5/2.5 |
| ✓ | Pre-visit consultation possible Walk-ins welcomed; new-patient evaluation. [s-de-web] | 1.5/1.5 |
| ✓ | Clear service explanations [s-de-web] | 1/1 |
| ✓ | Convenient opening hours Mon-Fri 8-5, Sat 8-12. [s-de-web] | 1.5/1.5 |
AI & Search Visibility
Whether the clinic is discoverable when patients search - including via AI assistants. Checked with fixed queries: "best dentist San Diego", "English speaking dentist San Diego", "dental implants San Diego", "emergency dentist San Diego", "San Diego dental clinic for expats".
| ? | Mentioned for: best dentist San Diego | 0/1 |
| ✓ | Mentioned for: English speaking dentist San Diego Cited in Spanish-language dentist search. [sq] | 1/1 |
| ✓ | Mentioned for: dental implants San Diego [sq] | 1/1 |
| ? | Mentioned for: emergency dentist San Diego | 0/1 |
| ? | Mentioned for: San Diego dental clinic for expats | 0/1 |
| ? | Structured data on website | 0/1.5 |
| ✓ | Google indexing quality [sq] | 2/2 |
| ✓ | Dedicated service pages [s-de-web] | 1.5/1.5 |
Licensing & Credentials
Whether the clinic publishes its operating licence and the dentists working there together with their professional licence numbers. A verified “not published” is recorded as a red flag; data we have not checked yet is shown as unverified and carries no penalty.
Clinic operating licence: 25593 (CA) — NPI 1386754174, Richard T Masek DDS Inc (NPPES — searched organization_name 'Dental Expressions' (CA, NPI-2), 2026-08-25: matched NPI 1386754174 'RICHARD T MASEK DDS INC' at the clinic's exact address — the legal entity behind the Dental Expressions DBA. The currently featured dentist is Dr. Irma Gavaldon, not Masek, likely a retained prior-owner PC name for the corporate NPI (common when a practice changes hands but keeps its billing entity).) [dental-expressions-lic]
Dentists & professional licences
| Dentist | Specialization | Licence No. |
|---|---|---|
| Dr. Irma Gavaldon, DDS [s-de-web] [s-de-rev] [dental-expressions-doclic] | Restorative, implant rehabilitation, cosmetic dentistry | 60022 (CA) |
Red Flags
No red flags identified in the public sources we reviewed.
Data We Could Not Verify
- Reputation & Reviews: Clinic responds to reviews
- Reputation & Reviews: No recurring complaints
- Reputation & Reviews: No suspicious review patterns
- Reputation & Reviews: TripAdvisor presence
- Medical Infrastructure: CBCT (3D imaging)
- Medical Infrastructure: Orthodontics
- Medical Infrastructure: Pediatric dentistry
- Medical Infrastructure: Works with international patients
- Communication & Service: Response speed
- AI & Search Visibility: Mentioned for: best dentist San Diego
- AI & Search Visibility: Mentioned for: emergency dentist San Diego
- AI & Search Visibility: Mentioned for: San Diego dental clinic for expats
- AI & Search Visibility: Structured data on website
Unverified items score 0 points but are not treated as negative findings. If you can document any of them, please send a correction.
Contact Information
| Website | https://dentalclinicsandiego.com/ |
|---|---|
| Phone | +1-619-828-1662 |
| https://www.facebook.com/ | |
| Google Maps | Map listing |
| Address | 8505 Navajo Road, San Diego, CA 92119 |
Contact details are provided for identification only and may change; verify with the clinic directly.
Sources
| ID | Source | What it supports | Accessed |
|---|---|---|---|
| s-de-web | https://dentalclinicsandiego.com/ | Name, address, phone, email, dentist, services, price, Spanish, hours, photos. | 2026-07-12 |
| s-de-rev | https://www.zocdoc.com/dentist/irma-gavaldon-dds-600436 | Dentist rating (ZocDoc 4.83/5) and platform presence. | 2026-07-12 |
| sq | search:dentista San Diego espanol | AI/search visibility scout 2026-07-12 | 2026-07-12 |
| dental-expressions-refresh | https://www.google.com/maps/place/Dental+Expressions/@32.8029543,-1… | most recent review 2 months ago (as of 2026-08-25) | 2026-08-25 |
| dental-expressions-lic | https://npiregistry.cms.hhs.gov/api/?version=2.1&organization_name=… | NPPES returned 1 result: NPI 1386754174, 'RICHARD T MASEK DDS INC', 8505 Navajo Rd, San Diego, CA 92119-2001 (exact match to Dental Expressions' address), CA license number 25593 shown on the organizational record. | 2026-08-25 |
| dental-expressions-doclic | https://npiregistry.cms.hhs.gov/api/?version=2.1&first_name=Irma&la… | NPPES returned NPI 1831360973, Mrs. Irma Gavaldon, DDS, address 8505 Navajo Rd, San Diego, CA 92119-2001 — exact match to clinic address. CA state license 60022 (primary); also holds an MI license 2901019338. | 2026-08-25 |
Change History
| Date | Change |
|---|---|
| 2026-08-25 | License verification 2026-08-25 against NPPES NPI Registry: clinic's legal entity (Richard T Masek DDS Inc, NPI 1386754174, CA license 25593) found at its exact address, though the currently featured dentist is Dr. Irma Gavaldon (likely a retained prior-owner PC name). Dr. Gavaldon independently confirmed, exact address match, CA license 60022. |
| 2026-08-25 | Re-verification 2026-08-25: confirmed website (dentalclinicsandiego.com) live, address and phone unchanged, clinic operating (open). Newly captured Google rating 4.7 (46 reviews, previously unset), Maps place URL, geo coordinates and review recency. Note: Google Maps listing shows website as 'dentalclinicinsandiego.com' (extra 'in'); not independently opened today, so stored website left unchanged since dentalclinicsandiego.com was directly confirmed live with matching name/address/phone. |
| 2026-07-12 | Initial data collection. |
A question or a correction?
Have a question, a suggestion, or a correction to this page? Get in touch — we read every message. Verified data corrections are reviewed against sources and applied with a public change-history entry.