We often hear about people going abroad for cheap dental treatment such as dental implants due to the savings in costs, but have people considered that it might actually cost more money if complications are factored in?
We had a patient who came in for a dental emergency 2 weeks ago because one of her dental implants was mobile. She had 4 implants placed in Hungary 8 months ago because it was cheaper than in the UK. The mobile implant was subsequently removed, and there was no bone around it. She will now have to travel back to Hungary to have a consultation, then arrange a date to have a bone graft and wait for the bone to grow back before she can have a new implant fitted. Then she will have to go back and have the denture completely remade.This will take possibly another 12 months to complete and she has already waited 6 months to have the last set of denture fitted!
When I saw her, I did not know who manufactured the implants and what components were used, so she is going to have issues maintaining her new teeth if we need to source new parts. Not only that but but because of bone loss to the remaining 3 implants, I honestly don’t think the remaining implants will last long!
There are a number of things that you should consider if you are thinking of having your treatment abroad.
Is the dentist suitably qualified?– In the UK, an implant dentist or implantologist requires to complete extensive training to place dental implants and must be registered with the General Dental Council. It can be very difficult to ascertain the degree of a dentist’s skills in some countries and regulations may also vary.
Are they using high quality dental implants?– This is one way of cutting costs and that is to buy material cheaply from unbranded manufacturers. Using poorly made materials can mean the risk of failure is much higher.
Aftercare?– Who is going to look after you if you develop complications immediately after surgery? In the UK the dentist will want to see you regularly after implant placement to ensure that the implant is healing properly. Once the treatment has finished, we would have to inspect and monitor the implants usually every 6 months just like your own teeth.
If you are considering having your dental implants placed locally then look no further because our prices are very competitive in Stoke-On-Trent.