Helen Vu, DDS

Dr. Helen Vu was so professional I had to report on Unilocal.I came in to re-​cemet a crown and she took her time to make sure everything was done correctly. She walked me through step by step what she was doing and why she was doing it. Prior to that I had gone to a dentist office just down the street and they were instilling fear and trying to up charge everything. It was un-​nerving. I have a appointment with a new implant dentist but since Dr. Vu was so pleasant I may cancel that appointment and set one up with the one she referred me to. Office is super clean. Parking is a challenge so give yourself time to walk from the free 2 hr lot 2 blocks up.

My sister fell off her bike and broke her two front teeth. Luckily, Jarrad helped me schedule an emergency appointment the next morning.
Both Dr. Vu and Jarrad are amazing! Very careful, thorough, and precise. Jarrad also comforted my sister after her accident. I know she was in good hands!
Her new teeth look even better than the original! They made sure they were straight and fit better. Can’t even tell they’re not real! She’s very pleased with her new teeth :)
Great service, beautiful work! Thank you so much for your hard work Dr. Vu & Jarrad!

Dr. Vu is fantastic. Appointments always start on time and Dr. Vu schedules enough time for each patient that she can really focus on your needs. I’ve had a lot of dental problems over the last year that other dentists were unable to fix, and Dr. Vu could always find out exactly what was wrong and fix it immediately.

The last 2 times I have gone for a teeth cleaning, Dr. Vu did not examine me, only the hygienist. This differed from my dentist growing up who always examined me after the hygienist. My last visit cost me $ 90 even though I have delta dental insurance. I asked some of my co-​workers how much they pay for a routine dental visit and they all said $ 15 – 20 (we all have the same delta dental plan through our employer). Although I liked Dr. Vu and really liked her hygienist, Dr. Vu’s prices are clearly outrageous, and I have now switched to a new dentist.

Clean office that is usually on schedule and tries its best to squeeze you in for last-​minute appointments. Dr. Vu is very professional and doesn’t push you to do unnecessary procedures. Heather is the best receptionist, and Kaylee is a gentle and thorough hygienist.

I saw Dr Vu about 2 years ago. I’ve been meaning to write this review for sometime, but haven’t gotten around to it.
Dr. Vu was a very nice dentist. Her staff was was also very warm and welcoming. I felt Dr Vu took me very seriously as a patient and provided good treatments.
However, I was not (clearly) notified about her being an «out of network» dental professional. Because of this I was paying much more for coverage I otherwise would not have had to pay for (with the exception of my deductible). I do not know if it was intentional, but I’m disappointed I was not informed sooner. I had to find it out for myself.

Back again with my young kids. Dr Vu is great with them. She has a sweet calming voice that puts my kids at ease. Gotta love the treasure toy box at the end!

I was fortunate to find Dr. Vu shortly after relocating to the area. She’s truly an amazing dentist — highly competent and has a wonderfully compassionate disposition. I have tremendous confidence in Dr. Vu and her Team. I called Dr. Vu’s office on a Saturday morning after experiencing a dental emergency, but didn’t leave a message upon learning the office was closed. Within 10-​minutes after making the call, Dr. Vu personally called me to see if everything was okay. She made special arrangements to see me that Saturday morning in her office and two hours later my dental problem had been resolved. Thank you Dr. Vu for going above-​and-​beyond to care for your patients! So very pleased to have Dr. Vu as my dentist!

If I could rate this place a –5 stars I would!!! Unfortunately, the lowest I can rate this place is a «one star». It’s pretty sad that her personal friends have to post reviews to make her look good!
Helen is a rookie Dentist and has lots to learn about Dentistry and the business.
More than likely every time you come in you will see new faces because she does not have a durable staff! (Hmmm, What does that tell you??) She is constantly going to court either because she gets sued by her patients or is suing someone. She has to shut down her office at least once a month due to court appearances!
There are random people from different offices constantly walking in and out of the office to take Panorex x-​rays (since its a building and she is one of the few that has this dinosaur machine available). She has regular old fashioned x-​rays that still need to be developed in a dark room! Talk about radiation exposure!!! Hello… digital x-​rays ARE out there… it’s 2011!!! When there is more than one patient taking x-​rays in the office at once, you have to wait your turn just for the x-​rays to be developed! That’s insane!!!
I would also question their insurance billing system because this is also done incorrectly. A Panorex X-​ray plus 4 Bitewing x-​rays are NOT considered a full set of x-​rays. Billing that way causes future problems with your insurance due to frequencies and you’ll end up paying a lot of unnecessary money out of pocket in the future for x-​rays. And that’s just x-​rays, not to mention major procedures like crowns and bridges!
The office plays music by old boom boxes in each individual operatory. I didn’t even know boom boxes still existed! I thought we were in 2011, how about small modern iPods Helen???
Parking is horrible!!! You have to pay an insane amount of money for parking on top of her sky high prices! Validate parking? Only if you have major procedures done and have spent thousands of dollars there. Otherwise, she will NOT validate your parking.
If you are looking for a Dentist in Westwood, DO NOT SEE HELEN VU!!! I would advise you to find another General Dentist in the same building (there are tons of great ones there and they DO validate parking).

Came here for a semi-​emergency visit about a possible dental carie.
Reception was very patient and helpful, both over the phone and in person. And the dentist herself was very friendly, and easy to talk to. She also saw me very promptly, so that was also a plus. I don’t have much else to say, since my visit lasted about only three minutes, but…
OVERALL (⁵⁄₅): Great hospitality and punctuality. If not for my dentist back home, would probably go here more often.

Great dentist. Have been visiting her for five years now. Highly recommended.
When I moved to Los Angeles five years ago, my doctor wife used her network to get the low down on the best dentists in the area. I was directed to Dr. Vu and am super happy with the decision. have never even thought about trying another dentist, even when we moved farther away from Westwood. Dr. Vu is personable, thorough, honest, and genuine.
I love the fact that she never tries to up sell me on things and isn’t searching for ghost cavities to pad her income. (To digress for a moment: be forewarned of fancy new dentist office with super posh furnishings, video screens everywhere, and rooms packed with over-​the-​top technologies. These new dentists have big loans to pay off from school and from starting their office. Intentionally or not, this can often drive their decision making when it comes to patient care. I once visited one that told me I had 11 cavities, recommended invisalign, and also suggested a whitening treatment! I swear that my mouth isn’t that screwed up!)
With Dr. Vu I have never had to worry about this. As an example, I asked about getting a night guard to lessen the impact of grinding my teeth while sleeping, but I was a bit hesitant about the cost. Rather than jumping at the opportunity to make a custom guard for hundred of dollars, she said that she would research what my insurance would pay. She also suggested that I first try a cheap night guard from Target or CVS before making the plunge for something more expensive. It is a really nice feeling when you know that your dentist is an advocate for you.
Anyways, if you are new to the area or just looking to find a new dentist, I highly suggest you do your research and check out Dr. Vu.

The best dentist bar none! Friendly staff that does an awesome job! They are very honest and I always leave their office feeling great! Highly recommend Dr. Helen Vu!

Vu is a pro. Great dentist and very honest. I can tell you 4 reasons from my experience…
Firstly, she came highly recommended. My old boss’ father was a dentist in NY. A very good dentist, with very good dentist friends… One of his friends had Vu’s practice in Westwood before she did. He «hand-​picked» Dr. Vu… The entire company I used to work for goes to Vu. Some of them drive from Santa Clarita to see her.
Secondly, she isn’t greedy. When I first met with Vu she did an X-​Ray and noticed that I had a root canal which wasn’t capped. This root canal is special because the man who did it was one of the nation’s top microscopic-​endodontists who filled it in a way that he said I would not need a cap. Regardless, every DDS I have seen since then (10+ years ago), have tried to sell me on a cap — EXCEPT VU. She looked at the X-​Ray and inspected to tooth and said that I might not need a cap on it.
Thirdly, she has really small hands. (This was mentioned by another Unilocaler and for good reason.) Growing up, I always went to Jewish male DDS’s with really large hairy hands — no matter how large you open your mouth, they are still constantly telling you to open more. Vu gets way in there when you are only partially open, so, you don’t leave the office with lock-​jaw or TMJ.
Finally, she’s cool. ;)

I’m guessing most of the reviewers here either have incredible insurance or they are loaded & don’t mind being gouged. Dr. Vu’s skills nothwithstanding, her business practices leave something to be desired.
Seriously, check your bill because no matter how much your insurance carrier contributes, she will always tack on a nice chunk of dough. For example, if you sit in her chair and she looks over your mouth for all of 30 seconds after a cleaning, she pays herself a hefty fee on top of the cleaning charges!
After speaking with my insurance company and comparing with several other patients who have different carriers than mine, I found no matter what your insurance covers, she raises the fee above that amount, no matter the type of service, so that you will always have to pay her additional money out-​of-​pocket.
If she suggests additional services, take care and get another opinion because it seems like the almighty dollar is much more important to her practice than her patients.

Helen Vu and her entire office staff are awesome! Extremely friendly, they make you feel comfortable.
They are also good at explaining everything in easy terms so you know what’s going on. I had a wisdom tooth extracted last year and she explained every part of the procedure (even pausing to answer my question halfway through the procedure as I half-​garbled some words while my mouth was being worked on!). Helen will also point out different things on your xrays so you know what things to watch out for.
Unlike lots of dentists, they don’t make you feel guilty about not flossing enough either!

I’ve been a patient of Dr. Vu’s for more than 5 years now. I started going to her when she was in Westwood then followed her to her temp office on Olympic blvd and now back to Westwood again. I have nothing but good things to say about Dr. Vu which is why I follow her practice around town every time I need dental work ;)

Well I am surprised to see all these negative reviews. Makes me wary now… but I’ve been going to Dr. Vu for the past 2 – 3 years. I get cleanings every 6 months or there abouts. They tried to tell me I needed to come in every 4 months (3 times a year) because my teeth build up plaque so quickly. I still just schedule every 6 months, because my insurance doesn’t cover that. I do get a lot of plaque, that’s for sure, but who knows if it’s «more than usual»? Not me… unfortunately, in this day and age, I let my insurance company dictate the care that I receive, because you know, they have extensive medical knowledge and stuff (sorry, extreme sarcasm).
But I digress. I have had 2 cavaties filled with her about 3 years ago. I could see them on the x-​rays of my mouth that she showed me. She filled one, and I told her at the next appointment it felt a little rough, so she filled the second one and made sure they were both smooth. Haven’t had any problems with the filling or anything since.
Haven’t had any cavities since (and that’s counting maybe 5 – 6 appointments). She also referred me to get my wisdom teeth removed and supported me in my decision to only remove one and not all 4 (again, I’m cheap). I also love that she doesn’t try to push whitening crap on you and stuff. I hate when dentists do that.
She’s close to UCLA, she’s friendly. I can’t complain. Sometimes the new dental hygenist gets on my nerves (yes, I know how to floss, and I do it regularly… sorry you can’t tell, but I’m not an idiot), but whatever.
Four stars is because she’s not as super duper awesome as my old dentist, who unfortunately no longer practices and wouldn’t take my insurance anyhow.

She has a great personality and is fun to talk to, but it was probably the worst cleaning of my life. When the hygienist did the polish, she took about 40 seconds and just glossed over my teeth, thus leaving all the coffee stains behind.
Every other dentist I had successfully removed the coffee stains. She did not.

Dr. Vu is fantastic!
I had a very bad experience with a Dentist on Westwood Blvd, trying to get me to take out loans and have absurd unnecessary procedures done.
I was then recommended to Dr. Vu, and she has been wonderful! I’ve had to get a lot of work done over the past few years, and she has been great explaining what needed to get done, and never pressuring me to get expensive procedures or get procedures done sooner than need be.
I have recommended another 6 or 7 people her way and they all love her!!!

Dr. Vu Trivia: She also has a degree in Electrical Engineering, she skipped fourth grade, her dog’s name is Deja.
My whole grad department started going to her. They appreciated her small hands cleaning the nooks and crannies of the back teeth. She even went to my friend’s engagement party!
She likes UCLA insurance and will give you a Cavatron t-​shirt if you ask. Her number is 1−800-Doctor-Vu. How did she get that number!!! All her sisters are doctors, too. Girl Power = Brain Power.