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Orthodontic Specialties provides orthodontic care for children, teens, and adults with treatments including Invisalign, clear braces, and modern braces.

About Dean J Murphy DDS
Dr. Dean J. Murphy treats whole families across generations, with reviews describing corrected underbites and elongated palates in young children.
Many reviews come from families who have brought multiple children through treatment with Dr. Dean J. Murphy over the years, describing early fixes for problems like elongated palates from thumb sucking and underbites. Most describe positive outcomes, including confidence-building smiles for kids, though a couple of reviews note a leftover misaligned tooth or asymmetrical grinding after treatment. The office is noted for a kid-friendly play area, and staff in the back are called out as helpful, even as a couple of reviews raise concerns about billing and insurance handling.
Summary of 14 patient reviews, January 2016–October 2025, updated September 2026
Orthodontic Specialties provides orthodontic care for children, teens, and adults with treatments including Invisalign, clear braces, and modern braces.
Dr. Dean J. Murphy emphasizes early intervention for children and teens to optimize facial development, and offers comprehensive treatment planning with latest diagnostic technology.
Treatments offered
Who They Treat
Dean J Murphy DDS provides orthodontic treatment for the following age groups:
Orthodontists at this office
Dr. Dean J. Murphy, D.D.S.
NPI verified · no bio or photo on file
Insurance accepted
What patients say
Latest review 13 months ago
What patients praise
Things to know
Who it suits
Doctors patients mention
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| Theme | Praise | Criticism |
|---|---|---|
| The orthodontist | 10 | 2 |
| Friendly staff | 10 | 1 |
| Treatment results | 8 | 2 |
| Great with kids | 6 | 1 |
| Scheduling & wait times | 2 | 1 |
| Clear explanations | 1 | 1 |
| Cost, insurance & financing | 0 | 2 |
| Responsiveness | 1 | 1 |
Recent reviews from Google
I would go lower in the stars, but I do like Dr. Murphy a lot as a person and as an orthodontist as well as the tech's in the back were always so wonderful. However, his billing team member does need some work in the professional department. I have a medical disorder, which they do not file under medical insurances - which most dentist offices do not. However, in order for my insurance to accept the claim fully, they needed to have Dr. Murphy physically sign off on it as well as call a specific number to finish filing the claim. First, it was email arguing with me regarding they do not do this and to deal with it myself which I did all the paperwork that was requested already and sent it in. Then it was 4 months when she finally sent it into my insurance company after much resistance on her part. Since I had already begun service for this issue, my insurance didn't fully approve it. They stated that if the issue would have been handled before service or when service started it would have been a different story but since it took too long for the office to send them the requested information, they didn't deem it medically necessary. Which is definitely an issue with the insurance company which I am handling with separately. I had been going for about 8 months before my life took a turn. I started going through a divorce, moved out, switched jobs, and ended up changing my phone number due to safety concerns. I did have my mail forwarded, they had already had my email address on file so not having my address or phone number reachable they could have just sent me an email. There was no, "this is your final notice before discharging" notice. I received a discharge notice, a final bill before they either A release me into a different office care or B final bill to take off my braces. However, I am unable to be seen until the final payment is taken care of. A bracket has already fallen off, one of the wires is poking the inside of my mouth and I have to pay the full remaining balance for them to even see me. I am currently waiting on proof of delivery of final requests prior to them discharging me to see if maybe I did miss something. I already know it's my fault for not reaching out for an appointment during this time and putting it on the backburner until I got things figured out, but my biggest issue is the complete unprofessionalism from their billing team member. I would LOVE to give 1 star, but the rest of the office and Dr. Murphy himself do not deserve that. So, if you are having things that are just not "braces" for young adults and are going for things you'll need to have constant contact with their billing department on, I would recommend elsewhere. Also, unlike most medical offices, they do NOT take care credit. I was aware prior to going, but after calling around after being discharged they are the only ones that do not. If this was a review without including her, even with the issue of being discharged due to moving and forgetting to schedule an appointment I would give the office 5 stars. He cares and his ladies in the back, care.
As an adult I am still upset about what Dr Murphy did to my teeth as a child. They excessively ground my teeth as instead of actually getting my bite confirmation correct and now as an adult an having to get Invisalign to fix my bite (this place did poorly) in order to correct my already quite heavy thinned enamel (from the excessive grind this place did) Also the way they ground my teeth was not aesthetic, they shortened my teeth and made them asymmetric and not straight. It would take veneers to truly fix what happened at the hands of Dr. Murphy but at this point I'm just trying to preserve my natural teeth as they last the longest despite the aesthetic damage. So now I'm paying to straighten my teeth (again) that have been filed down in a way they cannot really look straight or correct ever again just so that I can stop them wearing through the enamel. I also believe my two brothers had similar outcomes with overzealous grinding of teeth.
I had a rather disappointing experience with Dr. Dean Murphy's Orthodontic Specialists based out of Rockford, IL. Despite having insurance coverage that explicitly outlined the full payment for my orthodontic treatment aside from $200, the office refused to accept the Explanation of Benefits from the insurance companies. Instead, they demanded an upfront down payment of $800, which was $600 more than the total cost after insurance coverage. To add insult to injury, after reluctantly agreeing to the down payment and commencing a two-year monthly payment plan, I was informed halfway through the plan that the office would no longer accept my preferred form of payment, American Express, citing a slight increase in credit card transaction fees. It's baffling that they would penalize customers for their internal operational issues rather than ensuring a smooth payment process. Moreover, the rationale provided by the office, claiming they had been "burned" by previous clients, did little to justify their draconian payment policies. It's evident that their practices prioritize profit over customer satisfaction and convenience. Overall, my experience with Dr. Dean Murphy's Orthodontic Specialists left much to be desired. The lack of transparency, insistence on unnecessary down payments, and arbitrary changes to payment methods create an atmosphere that is far from family-friendly. I would caution others to thoroughly explore their payment policies and consider alternative orthodontic providers before committing to treatment with this practice.
I’ve been working in the healthcare industry for over a decade, and this establishment is by far the worst I’ve been involved with. Like most of Dr. Murphy’s customers, I sought his services to have my teeth straightened. Dr. Murphy and his staff managed the alignment of my teeth for about two years. The amount of disservice and disrespect I received during that time was appalling. Anytime I asked questions regarding the care of my teeth, I was met with eye rolls and rarely the answer to my questions. I once arrived at one of my appointments “too early” to check-in. So I asked the receptionist if she could check me in. She informed me that she could. Then, 30 minutes after my scheduled check-in time, I asked the same receptionist how long the wait would be. She informed me that she forgot to check me in. I ended up having to wait another 30mins to be seen. Needless to say, I never came to another appointment early again. The biggest frustration was after 2years of braces, one of my teeth was still misaligned. Dr Murphy noticed this fact after he removed my braces. In an attempt to remedy his error, he filed down the enamel on my tooth. Then, when he realized this wasn’t working, he shrugged his shoulders and walked away. I was appalled that not only did he fail to complete the service I had requested of him. He also caused permanent damage to my tooth. At the very least, he should have offered me treatment options before causing physical and permanent damage. Edit: As a response to Dr. Murphy. As a reminder, after you took off my braces and were informed that my bite was still misaligned, you shrugged your shoulders and walked away.
Dr. Murphy's work is phenomenal!! My oldest son had an elongated palate from sucking his thumb for years. Dr. Murphy was able to fix that and his teeth. Now my youngest son is in his care with an underbite. Dr. Murphy is fixing that as well. As a mother in very pleased with the work he has done on both of my sons. Plus, his staff is amazing as well!!! Wouldn't take my kids to anyone else!!!
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