Choosing between DSN vs. CareStack for your practice management platform is one of the biggest operational decisions a practice makes. In the current market, cloud-based platforms with modern interfaces are gaining significant attention. One such platform, CareStack, has deservedly earned a reputation as an excellent all-in-one solution for general dentistry, offering intuitive scheduling and strong patient engagement tools.
If your practice focuses primarily on restorative dentistry and hygiene recall, CareStack is a formidable contender.
However, oral surgery is not general dentistry. The operational workflows, clinical safety requirements, and financial structures of an OMS practice are fundamentally different. When applying general dental software to a high-volume surgical environment, practices often hit a “functionality wall”—specifically regarding clinical safety and medical reimbursement.
This analysis breaks down the critical differences between a generalist platform like CareStack and a specialist platform like DSN Software.
1. The Anesthesia Gap (The “Safety” Argument)
For general dentists, sedation is often a rare appointment type. For oral surgeons, it is an hourly occurrence involving moderate sedation or general anesthesia. This is the single biggest operational difference between the two practice types, and it demands different software architecture.
The General Dental Approach (CareStack): Most general dental platforms track sedation as an “appointment type.” While you can log that sedation occurred, these platforms generally lack native, integrated tools for real-time monitoring. Charting vitals often requires manual entry, paper records, or bridging to a third-party “bolt-on” anesthesia software.
The Oral Surgery Approach (DSN): DSN treats a surgical appointment as a medical event, not just a calendar slot. DSN includes a native, fully integrated anesthesia record designed to meet AAOMS standards.
Because it is built-in, it connects directly to patient monitors to track vitals (like SpO2, NIBP, EtCO2, and pulse rate) in real-time directly within the patient chart. There are no bridges to break and no paper records to scan later. In a high-stakes surgical environment, having a unified, digital record of the sedation event is a critical safety factor.
2. Medical Billing vs. Dental Billing (The “Revenue” Argument)
The second major hurdle for oral surgeons using general software is the complex reality of hybrid billing.
The General Dental Approach (CareStack): General dental platforms are built primarily around the dental ledger and CDT codes, designed for streamlined billing to carriers like Delta Dental. While it is possible to bill medical insurance, it is often a secondary workflow or a workaround that struggles with the complexity of CPT and ICD-10 medical cross-coding.
The Oral Surgery Approach (DSN): An OMS practice often generates more revenue from medical insurance (Blue Cross, Aetna, Medicare) than dental. DSN was built with a “Medical-First” architecture. It is designed specifically to handle the complex bridging between medical insurance (for the surgical procedure) and dental insurance (for restorations or exams).
DSN optimizes for CPT medical cross-coding natively, ensuring that complex claims are submitted accurately the first time, reducing denials and accelerating revenue cycles for surgical procedures.
3. The Multi-Location Referral Workflow
Referral management is another area where the direction of the workflow matters.
General dentists typically need tools to send referrals out to specialists. Oral surgeons need robust tools to receive and manage inbound referrals from dozens of different sources.
DSN addresses this with a built-in, dedicated referral portal. Referring doctors can securely send patient details and upload X-rays directly into your DSN environment. This instantly links the referral source to the patient chart, allowing for immediate scheduling and accurate, real-time reporting on which referring doctors are driving your practice revenue.
Summary of Features: General vs. Specialty
To visualize the architectural differences between a platform built for general dentistry and one built for oral surgery, see the comparison below.
| Feature | DSN Software (Oral Surgery Specialist) | General Dental Platforms (CareStack, etc.) |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Clinical Focus | Surgical Procedures & IV Sedation | Restorative Dentistry & Hygiene |
| Anesthesia Record | Native Integration: Real-time vitals tracking (EKG, O2) connected directly to the monitor within the chart. | None/Basic: Often requires paper charting, manual entry, or separate 3rd party software integration. |
| Billing Engine | Hybrid Medical/Dental: Optimized for complex CPT (Medical) & CDT (Dental) cross-coding. | Dental First: Focused squarely on dental ledgers; often struggles with complex medical/Medicare claims. |
| Implant Tracking | Detailed Inventory: Tracks lot numbers, expiration dates, and graft materials for safety compliance. | Basic: Usually treated as a generic service code without detailed inventory tracking. |
| Referral Management | Inbound Focus: Dedicated portal for referring doctors to send patients & files directly to you. | Outbound Focus: Designed primarily to generate referral slips to send patients away. |
When choosing software, the ultimate question is not which platform is “better” overall, but which platform is engineered for your specific daily reality.
If your practice revolves around hygiene schedules, fillings, crowns, and standard dental insurance, CareStack is an excellent, modern choice.
If your practice revolves around daily IV sedation cases, complex surgical procedures, and billing medical insurance, you need a platform built for that reality. DSN Software remains the only true cloud platform dedicated specifically to the needs of the oral and maxillofacial surgeon.