speedygonzales

Hello SN'ers

My partner is considering having dental surgery, shes mid 20's and has crooked front teeth, personally they dont bother me but shes adament she would like to get them looked at. The average price seems to be about £500 per tooth in the UK and depending on the shape of your jaw and teeth, even if they dont look too bad at first and you think you might only need say the front 2 looking at you could end up with having 10 teeth done so it can be a fairly expensive procedure.

Shes looking into going abroad for treatment, mainly Prague or Budapest. Im worried about letting her go ahead with it, we've all seen the programs on C4 and C5 in the evenings of surgery going wrong etc and worried it might not come off as she hoped. Does anyone have any experiences of going abroad or even better using a company for such types of treatment? It seems the price difference is massive (£150 per tooth in this case) and she will only need to be in the clinic for one day and allowed to leave straight away although she will have to visit the clinic for the following week a few times so we could tie in a weeks holiday over there and its comforting that they want you to hang around for a week rather than saying the job is done and away you go. The companies she has been looking at also have ties in the UK but I dont know if thats to pray on people for business or if its a genuine thing.

Any advice would be appriciated, thanks guys

SJ_Skyline

YHPM

speedygonzales

so do you

DCI Gene Hunt

Why don't I...........

Kyl3cook

I had the gap in my two front teeth reduced by crowns (pretty much the same as veneers). Cost £425 each with Denplan, and it was great service. I'm not sure how they'll get it done in one day, as with mine they took moulds of my original teeth, then did the grinding down, and put the temp molds on whilst they sent away for models of what the new ones would look like. They then tried the new ones on, adjust them to which looked best in both mine and the dentists opinion. Then sent off for proper doubley 'ard ones, which were spot on. To be honest, it changed my life, and gave me so much more confidence. It's what initiated my losing of 4 stone too!

One thing I would be wary of if having them done abroad. They can break or possibly come off in freakish cases, and a local dentist would be so much more conveniant. Also, if they do come off...it looks even more hideous than can be imagined, so better the dentist is close at hand.

speedygonzales

The dentist she is looking at has link in the UK who would cover the warrenty on any work done so any future problems isnt the issue I dont think, more so her being ripped off by dodgy companys and dodgy surgens is my worry and her coming out looking worse off for it too.

Kyl3cook

Whereabouts are you based....I can reccommend my dentist in Nottingham

Varboy

veneers don't last forever pal

My wife had laser whitening on her teeth, again it doesn't last forever but at £500 for the whole mouth she can afford to have them done whenever needed.

It's great, I can now see her inthe dark if she smiles

paulr

If they are in good shape but crooked why not get a brace fitted. Nothing can beat having natural teeth. My sisters teeth were very crooked and she had 2 back ones out,then a brace to move them all round. She had it on for nearly a year and it was a pretty big job to get done but she now has perfect teeth and they are natural. I thought braces were only for youngsters but she is 39 and the amount of movement has been lots to say the least. Cost £600 all in.

Far better than veneers imo.

BlkKnight

I had vaneers done on my front top two teeth when I was 15. I'm 30 now and they are still going strong.

I no longer have a gap the size of an old 50p done the middle

speedygonzales

Paul, not a bad suggestion although Im not sure if shes keen on the idea. Shes not the type to wait for something when she knows what she wants. PLus the teeth are not 100% perfect, she broke one of the front ones when she was younger and currently has a cap fitted to make it look like a whole tooth.

Thanks for the replies so far peeps, Shes found some of the information very helpful

peterpeter

I am a cosmetic dentist based in the UK.

You certainly can get a decent job in other countries and it might be cheaper.

However, you must look at their portfolios to make sure that they have done lots of high quality cases. If they dont have many case photos on their website, walk away. The photos should be good quality and not be trying to hide the teeth.

There is also a huge difference in the quality of the veneer systems used.
Some porcelains cost peanuts, some are expensive. You need to check.
A good quality high strength system is "Authentic" pressed ceramic.

The time factor is important too.

I very rarely prepare and fit a veneer case in just a week unless a patient is rushing me.
I use the temporaries as a preview that we adjust over 2 or 3 weeks so make sure the patient is totally happy and so that any swelling from the initial preparation procedure has gone away. This way we can copy the outline of the temporaries exactly so the patient gets teeth that have been custom made for them and are not just a generic set up.

Nice veneers can be done in a week, but it is not the best way.

Some dentists also suffer from high veneer failure rates. Not many will admit their percentages, but the fact is that they can fracture and you should take that into consideration. I guarantee all my veneers for 5 years. Make sure they do too.

A price difference of £150 per tooth is really not that much when you are considering doing something this potentially life changing.

try this organization. Many of the dentists have websites that have decent portfolios.....www.bacd.com

Good Luck!!!

speedygonzales

Thanks for the comments Peter, sounds a fair call, the company we were looking at is www.vitaleurope.co.uk They seem to be OK going off their web site, she sent off an enquiry form yesterday evening and they rang her this morning and sent her an email by dinnertime in reply, seems good service so far.

spectrum48k

You might be interest in this - something I came across...
http://www.invisalign.com/generalapp/gb/en/

I'd be curious to know what peterpeter thinks of this. Its come over from the states and looks pretty good.

paulr

Peter,do you know of any websites that give basic dental care advice. I have some questions such as....

1. Is it better to clean your teeth before breakfast (to protect them as you eat) or after breakfast (to keep them clean throughout the morning)

2. Can you clean your teeth too much ie wear away the enamel.Is there an optimum number of times per day.

3.Are there any foods which are good for your teeth.

4.My teeth have a habit of decaying not on the eating surface but between the teeth,anything i can do part from dental floss.

I know these may seem trivial but dental work is now so expensive i'd like to try and take more care of them. Also my dentist always seems too busy to spend time answering questions and having a numb mouth isn't the most condusive to good conversation.

Thanks,

Paul.

paulr

(Subscribing to thread)

peterpeter

Had a look at their website..

basic treatment looks ok.

However Iam not impressed by the standard (and lack of many pictures) of their veneers.

These sorts of places are ok if you need gaps filled at the back and simple treatment like whitening etc., but if your girlfriend is particular about her appearance, its so important to go to someone who specialises in veneers, and not the cheapest option.

Believe me, I have treated so many patients who have had cheap veneers and regretted it.

Incidentally, they are also being very dishonest with their price comparisons..

e.g. they are saying Zoom and Britesmile whitening costs £950 in the UK...
That is totally wrong. On average most dentists charge between 450-550 for this whitening.

As I look down the list I can find more examples of totally wrong UK prices.

the only thing that looks cheap is the implants, but there is no way of knowing how good or bad their labs are.

Sorry to be a doommonger, but as I said , if its cosmetic treatment, they HAVE to be good!

peterpeter

do alot of these, and they are good in some situations,

however,

I am using something much quicker and cheaper, which you will hear about next year.

(I am the only dentist in the UK using this new technique...)
watch this space.