7,500 euro for dental work

townale

I nearly fell off the chair when I got the quote.

Background; I went through a period of grinding my teeth when I was younger. They're not really bad, but Im concious of them, also they're slightly discoloured.

Friends and familly have been telling me that if I'm concious about them go get something done about. The " If I had buck teeth them I'd get braces wouldn't I?" logic was starting to make sense.

I got an appointment with a consultant who specialises in cosmetic dentistry handed over 150 euros for a consultation. Then got a quote for the work needed.

It is as follows

Hygienist appointment =100euro
Upper and lower bleaching =900euro
Fillings (to open bite) @150 per unit x 6 =900euro
Wax-up =500euro
Temp crowns while waiting for permanent one 130e per unit x 4 =520euro
Veneer Crowns 1,100 per unit x 4 =4,400euro

Total including consultation 7,470euros. All I want is 4 veneers. Has the world gone nuts or am I living in fantasy land? I was expecting about 2grand.

Big_G

I work in a practice where this type of work takes place. I don't do it myself, but an extraordinary amount of work goes into restoring a bite that has been damaged by grinding. I regularly see treatment plans for €30000 for such a procedure and more!

It is definitely worth having done. I would recommend going to the wax up stage at least so you can see how everything is going to turn out. I think you will be impressed and see that it is worth doing. This is not about the look of your teeth, but the function. If you continue to wear the teeth away, you will eventually have nothing left at which point you will not have the option of doing this.

You do not want to end up in dentures, believe me.

bladespin

Time to book a flight :eek:

georgieporgy

you probably just wanted veneers to make the front teeth look bigger right? unfortunately your grinding habit will have worn down your back teeth as well. In order to provide bigger front teeth it is necessary to 'open the bite' by replacing the lost tooth structure in the back teeth.

if you don't want to have your teeth cleaned or whitened you could leave that out.

the only thing that surprises me is the fee for temp crowns. i would have thought most dentists would include this in the actual veneer fee. (but then the veneer fee may be higher??) sometimes temps are not necessary when doing veneers. in your case they are necessary so you can assess the appearance of the bigger teeth before finalising things.

If he/she is going the extra mile and getting a wax up done first that tells me they are making every effort to get an excellent aesthetic result.

Carpenter

bladespin wrote: »

Time to book a flight :eek:

A friend of mine got work done in Turkey and he said over here he got a price of 18k over there 2700 now there is a saving and he now has perfect teeth

townale

Thanks for the feedback,
So its not that outrageous after all. I'm still considering it, but just want to get ripped off.

I'm definately not leaving the country regardless of how cheap it is. My teeth are too important and I've heard too many scare storie of people going abroad for dental work.

Its times like this I realise what a complete waste of money VHI/any medical insurance is.

georgieporgy

Carpenter wrote: »

A friend of mine got work done in Turkey and he said over here he got a price of 18k over there 2700 now there is a saving and he now has perfect teeth

Have your friend come and see me in a few years and I'll be happy to redo the work for 25k

Carpenter

Have a look at this http://forum.kusadasi.biz/thread3615.html

townale

Carpenter wrote: »

Have a look at this http://forum.kusadasi.biz/thread3615.html

hmm still not sure about this.

Carpenter

townale wrote: »

hmm still not sure about this.

Ok but my friend had his done 4 years ago and still very happy with them it,s up to you

georgieporgy

I guess I won't be getting that 25k then.

Seriously Carpenter, have you ever heard of the Third World?

My first post to you was meant to be a joke. But I think dental tourism has been done to death on this board.

I'm new on boards.ie. From what I have seen of the posts from regular contributing dentists I think they are offering pretty darn good free advice in order to help out the average reader.

My own brother had implants done in Spain (twice). Now he is asking me if I can recommend someone who will redo them again. He is down 9k so far.

townale

georgieporgy wrote: »

I guess I won't be getting that 25k then.

My own brother had implants done in Spain (twice). Now he is asking me if I can recommend someone who will redo them again. He is down 9k so far.

Why don't you do them?

bladespin

I know several who went to Russia for the work, from recommended dentists, great jobs for about a10th of the Irish price.

Dentists here love to take a bite out you (sorry had to do it :P) How do they come up with their pricing? Where would the average person find €7500 even in the tiger years?

Carpenter

georgieporgy wrote: »

I guess I won't be getting that 25k then.

Seriously Carpenter, have you ever heard of the Third World?

My first post to you was meant to be a joke. But I think dental tourism has been done to death on this board.

I'm new on boards.ie. From what I have seen of the posts from regular contributing dentists I think they are offering pretty darn good free advice in order to help out the average reader.

My own brother had implants done in Spain (twice). Now he is asking me if I can recommend someone who will redo them again. He is down 9k so far.

Fair play to you for not putting them down

ODD-JOB

lol !!!!

Yes nice come-back !

Well , only the dentists will advise you to spend the money in ireland !
Rip-off ireland is dying by the day and the dentists are still holding out !

What the hell are the dentists going to do when nobody can actually pay 25k - 30k to get their teeth done.

This country hit a low-high point when somebody paid 30k to get their teeth done !!! good luck to you , I got charged 400+ to get a tooth out 7 years ago , and that was additional to the consession from welfare. it took 25 minutes.

I also know people who have had thewir teeth done in ireland and still ask about having the work re-done. That is not exclusive to foregin dental work.

If u are stupid enough to line these deep pockets with 30k to get your bite back then by all means !!!!

LOL

georgieporgy

townale wrote: »

Why don't you do them?

Excellent question. My brother lives in Cork. He neglected his teeth all his life. Now he hasn't any. furthermore most of the bone has withered away from his lower jaw. He is the type of case i would normally refer to a specialist. I gave him the names of 2 excellent guys i know in Cork and told him 9 or 10 k should sort him out. (implant supported dentures with some artificial bone buildup). He has plenty of money.

Unfortunately he listened to his buddies in the pub and took their advice.

georgieporgy

ODD-JOB wrote: »

lol !!!!

Yes nice come-back !

Well , only the dentists will advise you to spend the money in ireland !
Rip-off ireland is dying by the day and the dentists are still holding out !

What the hell are the dentists going to do when nobody can actually pay 25k - 30k to get their teeth done.

This country hit a low-high point when somebody paid 30k to get their teeth done !!! good luck to you , I got charged 400+ to get a tooth out 7 years ago , and that was additional to the consession from welfare. it took 25 minutes.

I also know people who have had thewir teeth done in ireland and still ask about having the work re-done. That is not exclusive to foregin dental work.

If u are stupid enough to line these deep pockets with 30k to get your bite back then by all means !!!!

LOL

How do you all expect us dentists to buy big houses and fancy cars if we don't rip people off?:rolleyes:

One of my patients (a Russian) had crowns done in Moscow a few years back. He paid $700 each for them. They were absolutely fantastic crowns. (My fee at that time was 700euro). A professor in the dental school made them and charged him privatelt. You can also get great work done in lots of other countries and pay well for it.

townale

georgieporgy wrote: »

Excellent question. My brother lives in Cork. He neglected his teeth all his life. Now he hasn't any. furthermore most of the bone has withered away from his lower jaw. He is the type of case i would normally refer to a specialist. I gave him the names of 2 excellent guys i know in Cork and told him 9 or 10 k should sort him out. (implant supported dentures with some artificial bone buildup). He has plenty of money.

Unfortunately he listened to his buddies in the pub and took their advice.

Thanks for the advice George,
Another question, I have the alternative of crowns. I've been told veneers last 5-10 years and thats my main concern with this investment, that it's just a temporary fix. I'd rather pay more for a permanant solution. How long do crowns last?

samhail

VHI may be able to cover some of it... or at least some of the 4k+ bill one of the guys from work got. worth looking into.

townale

I checked and they dont cover it. You have to have specific dental cover and even thats a joke. It doesn't cover veneers and only covers up to 500euro worth of crowns a year (half a crown thats worth the premium! Yeah right, great cover VHI.

georgieporgy

townale wrote: »

Thanks for the advice George,
Another question, I have the alternative of crowns. I've been told veneers last 5-10 years and thats my main concern with this investment, that it's just a temporary fix. I'd rather pay more for a permanant solution. How long do crowns last?

Remember now I haven't seen your teeth and am just going generally on what you have posted. I am guessing you are under 35 with good teeth (not a lot of fillings or decay esp in the front teeth being veneered).

What you want then is the most conservative option where the least amount of your natural tooth is drilled away. That will be veneers. The dentist has to remove more tooth structure for crowns.

As to whether veneers or crowns are stronger.... well you can break both! Likewise both can last many many years. It just depends on the situation in your mouth. If you are a grinder it would be wise to get fitted for a nightguard when the work is done. That's the best thing you can do to protect your investment.

Another concern is the buildup on your back teeth. As it's being done in white filling material, it will wear down over time and you will eventually end up putting more stress on the front ones as a result. Wearing a nightguard will help offset this. It sounds to me that your dentist (who has seen you) has opted for a conservative approach, and that is good. Any further questions on specific treatment should be addressed to him.

I know it's a big expense but compare it to buying a car. Expensive, lots of options, you get what you pay for, and life expectancy is influenced by how you treat it.

And in response to some other posts here, I agree you can get crappy dental work in Ireland also. I practised abroad most of my career. What I see in Irish mouths is generally of a high standard.