The internet is full of offers of cheap dentistry. Is this always a good idea?
In fact it could be a disaster. I was recently asked to see the patient of a colleague referred to me by the dental technician we both use.
The patient's entire upper set of teeth had had to be removed, as they had come to the end of their life.
I did not see him before they were removed.
He did not wish to have a denture plate, which is not so unusual today. His choice was to have
all of his top teeth replaced with a removable bridge supported on dental implants.
He elected to travel to Spain for a cheap solution. He had 10 implants placed in his upper jaw bone (so far so good) and plastic replacement teeth, on a metal bar, fitted onto these implants. All of this was carried out in a very up-market clinic (he told me) 2 years ago.
Now one of the plastic teeth, near the front, had broken off and he wished to upgrade the plastic teeth for better quality porcelain ones. Fair enough.
He came to see me for what he thought would be an easy quick fix to his problem. "Just unscrew the
bridge and get your technician to make up a porcelain set. You can do it in a couple of days" he said.
I explained that I could not just unbolt the bridge and fit on a new one- like a pit-stop tyre change without checking the implants were sound first.
I could see that all was not well with the bridge. It was poorly constructed and finished and some of the implant work that I could see was suspect.
An initial panoramic 2D x-ray revealed that at the very least 2 of the 10 implants at one end had failed and would need to be removed together with the three end teeth of the bridge.
Given his problem, my immediate advice was to return to Spain as the clinic/ dentist/Oral Surgeon were best placed to do this work for him as they were used to the implant system, which frankly I had never heard of.
His story was that no-one at the clinic spoke English except the head-honcho who could not be contacted as he was travelling the world lecturing.
That being the case I then suggested that he seek the opinion of an implantologist, as I am a general dental practitioner who utilises dental implants but it is not my full-time speciality.
I sent him a detailed written report of my findings and recommendations , in particular that he should have a detailed survey, using a 3D Cat (actually CBCT) Scan, of the entire upper jaw bone and implants, to check all of the implants. I have no interest in this company but their website shows more details about
3D dental CBCT Scans
Well after a delay of about a month, I have finally heard from him. He took my advice. Had the dental scan done and now finds that
ALL of his implants have failed and they all need removing, together
(as I had suggested) with a number of his lower remaining teeth, which by the way had been left in a poor state, whilst the upper implant work had been carried out - a no-no in my book.
He now needs extensive reconstructive surgery with bone grafting from his hip bone. As an added complication, as a result of a heart condition, he is in the middle of a one year course of anti-blood clotting medication, so will not be able to have the surgery for at least 6 months.
The cost both emotionally, and in time, energy, effort, surgery as well as hard cash, are enormous.
He thought £2-3000 would give him an new upper set of porcelain teeth as another quick fix. I dare not guess the cost of the full remedial reconstruction but £20,000- £50,000 could easily be a ball park figure.
To use his words, this had been disastrous. I do feel desperately sorry for him as a person but with hind-sight it was a poor decision, based on what seemed like a good a idea. A quick, cheap fix.
The problem with dental tourism is that there is no relationship with the people carrying out the work. You are just another number on a conveyor belt. Moreover IF there are problems, it will mean repeated journeys back to whichever country was chosen to rectify the problem, sometimes just for short visits or paying again, often many times the original fee to rectify a problem here.
Incidentally this is not the first such case I have seen. The previous one I referred to a Professor in London as the poor woman's life had been ruined by inappropriate dental implant surgery in Eastern Europe. He could not suggest a solution other than starting all over again, as with the case I have outlined above
People undertaking dental implant work must ensure full continuity of care. Please check this link to the
General Dental Council where you can download a detailed account and check list of issues to consider before going abroad for the cheap option. Caveat Emptor (Let the buyer beware!)
