Dental treatment abroad

[sweetfluffybunnies]

My father needs to have several dental implants which will cost him thousands of pounds. He is thinking of going abroad for treatment as he thinks it will be cheaper.

Has anyone had any experience of this, or can recommend a clinic that they or someone they know has used? I am concerned about the quality of treatment and the cost of doing this, I really do not want him to get ripped off, or to come home needing even more repair work.

Can anybody help?

[khm1998]

Hungary is meant to be world leaders in providing dental treatment. Most of their clinics are state of the art and their dentists are exceptionally well trained and really experienced, they work with the latest materials, too. I know for a fact that in Budapest and pretty much anywhere west of the capital, dentists deal with a lot of dental tourism. The one below is just one example of their many clinics, but if you do a google search it will bring up loads more:

kreativdentalclinic.eu/

I have had a lot of dental work done in Hungary and I am going there again this summer for dental implants. My dentist quoted me around £300/implant + £180/zirconium crown. But this is in North-Eastern Hungary where prices are cheaper.

[ukatlast]

www.dentalfearcentral.org/forum/showthread.php?9487-Be-very-careful-about-treatment-abroad

You are right to be concerned. Far less risky to go to someone reputable in UK.

[MrsMorton]

I saw a patient at my OOH clinic who had implant treatment in Hungary, I have no interest, experience, or qualifications in implantology. These bad boys had gone horribly wrong and this really rather unpleasant man had been given no way of accessing follow up care in this country so had to turn to the NHS to bail him out. I'm not sure what happened to him in the end but it was absolutely demonstrative to me that overseas dentists can do whatever they like and not have to answer their phone ever again!

[khm1998]

Undeniably, OP has to do a very thorough research when looking into having dental treatment abroad.

Implants are a risky "business" anywhere. There is a lot that can go wrong, or not necessarily wrong, but each patient reacts differently to this type of treatment. This is not necessarily the fault of the dentist. My dad, mum and I have all been going to the same dentist for years. So far, my mum and I have had no problems whatsoever, whereas my dad has encountered everything and anything under the sun. However, he has the advantage of living near the dentist and the opportunity to go back for further rectifying treatment. A reputable dentist (and there are lots of those in Hungary!) will keep on treating you under normal circumstances. With regard to patients who travel from abroad.... well, there is always two sides to a story... I firmly believe that 80% of the time it is the patient who decides not to travel back to the original country if problems occur after treatment. The main reasons for this are:

• the further costs involved (treatment, travel expenses, accommodation, etc...it adds up!)
  
• lack of time
  
• the possible language barrier which they may have encountered the first time around.
  

Isn't it far more easy to blame everything on the foreign dental clinic and spread bad reputation?!? After all who is really going to check these claims??

[AKissIsNotAContract]

I've seen a few patients with dodgy restorations that were carried out abroad. It's a big risk to take, especially with implants.

[AKissIsNotAContract]

Also with implants you need to know which system is being used. Not all implant systems are equally as good. I'm always shocked at the number of patients who have implants placed and don't bother to research the different systems, or even ask which type of implant is being placed.

[ripsishere]

I would research research research, then do a bit more research.
We live in KL. DH is convinced he needs a crown and since he's going to Bangkok next week thought he'd have it done there.
I pointed out that if something goes wrong, he's at least an hours flight away.

[sweetfluffybunnies]

Thanks for your replies everyone. I will be doing lots of research into this, you hear so many stories, good and bad. I guess if it works out then its fantastic, but if it goes wrong it's horrendous - not much middle ground, so you have to weigh up whether the amount of money you are saving is worth the risk.

khm1998 thanks for the link, I will look into it. And thanks too, akiss, I didn't even know there were different systems so I'll look into that too.

[doradoo]

Is there an option of using and NHS teaching Dental hospital to do the work - would that work out cheaper?

google search

[AKissIsNotAContract]

It wouldn't be worth the risk for me. The uk has very stringent cross infection control measures. There are not many countries where I would like to have surgery. The ones where I would, the prices are similar to the uk

Even to buy components for implants costs more than £300 in the UK. The parts are all gamma irradiated and meet with stringent criteria. That's before you pay for a skilled surgeon to place them. Remember, an ordinary dentist can place implants after doing a weekend course (the GDC are cracking down on this now though). Will the person you see in Hungary be a dentist who has done a short course on implants or one who has spent years training to do implant surgery?

In short, if you want to have something drilled into your jawbone, I'd make sure that it was made to the highest standards and placed by a skilled person. If you do it on the cheap then I think you're foolish.

[doradoo]

an not and.... fat fingers.

[danielshaw]

although from the UK originally, I have been running an English speaking dental implant clinic near Bratislava, Slovakia for the past 7 years (www.dentalholiday.co.uk) and most of my staff have worked as dentists and dental assistants in the UK.
I can assure you that having dental treatment abroad in a reputable UK accreddited clinic will certainly save you money and time.
Dentists in such clinic do many dental implant cases daily, not just weekly or monthly as do some smaller clinics in the UK, so you can usually be sure of a high level of experience.

[MrsMorton]

None AFAIK footle !!

[sweetfluffybunnies]

Thanks for your reply danielshaw, can you clarify what sort of accreditation your clinic has? I am genuinely interested, my father really needs the work done (he can't eat much at the moment and can't get on with dentures) but he is 75 and a pensioner, and really doesn't have tne money to spare.

I think it would be foolish to assume that you can't get good treatment abroad, just because it's cheaper, but I would need reassurance- possibly independent reviews?

[higgle]

I'm having treatment at the Brighton Implant clinic in Hove at the moment, I had two implants placed in Nvember and I'm going back on Tuesday for impressions and check up to see how they are going. I'm a regular poster on here so not an advert check them out because with all the travel savings they do a very reasonably priced service.

[ripsishere]

I'd be reluctant to trust anyone who just pops up in the middle of a discussion about implants.
How did Daniel find the conversation?

[Willdoitinaminute]

It is well worth paying for an initial consultant in this country to see if your father is suitable for implants. Many of 'specialist clinics' servicing the dental tourism business will be more than happy to provide you with implants regardless of whether you are suitable or not.
A number of dental hospitals run lengthy MSc courses in implantology. Look for a dentist who has trained on one of these courses. A good dentist will be more than happy to provide you with details of any qualifications they have. They will also not attempt any treatment on patients who are unsuitable.

[gorazd]

Hello,
We run a dental clinic in Ljubljana, Slovenia. This is our website:
dentistslovenia.co.uk
The staff is fluent in English. Please contact us if you need any information.

[PoshPenny]

My mother had some implants done abroad, in Spain. Local Swedish dentist, recommended by many (they have a place out there). Long story short. She found it very traumatic, and after the first lot were done, she decided to spend more money and have the rest done by the local specialist implant guy back here in UK. I believe the Swedish dentists work was fine, but she just found it rather brutal, never really got to the bottom of what she meant by that. My instructions for her funeral are for the coffin lid to be open and her smiling, so the very expensive implants are on display.

[thelittlebooktroll]

I would go abroad. British dentists are hardly at the forefront of dentistry. In my home country we usually refer to British teeth when we mean bad teeth.

[Mrsmorton]

Hahahaaa, nice one booktroll I find that highly amusing.

I have enjoyed seeing multiple patients from Poland and India over the bank holidays this festive season. Their dentistry has been fucking abysmal. Oh, and they didn't fancy nipping back there on boxing day to get their toothache fixed, oddly enough they thought they'd let the NHS do the job this time.