Has anyone ever had a tooth implant?

[babylonsister]

I just returned from dentist; need a bridge built for a tooth that the crown broke off from, either that or an implant which was my brilliant idea.

Anyway, I asked dentist to figure cost both ways as I am on a fixed income and do not have dental insurance.
Well!! The estimated total for the bridge is $4782. The total for the one (1) implant is a staggering $7192!!


Thought I'd run this by anyone here who might have had either procedure done as imo that's ridiculously high. Maybe it's not but I can google implant and see a lot cheaper rates, though don't know if these companies are competent. My dentist has a private practice so not a big corporate company, but damn! Flabbergasted I was and am.

Thanks for any feedback!

[intrepidity]

1. Bookmarking

Am in similar boat and want to see what everyone thinks.

I've had people say that it's cheaper to pay for a trip to, say Mexico, to have such work done.

Speaks so poorly for American health/dental care that medical tourism is such a real thing.

[louis-t]

2. I would check around. $7,000 for an implant seems high.

Like, double what it should be. I went to a dentist who told me a "deep cleaning" would cost over $2,000. I changed dentists and this one says $600 and my insurance will pay half.

[Effete Snob]

3. That is why many people go abroad

There are people who find that the savings from getting implants done abroad - e.g. Thailand, Dubai, or various places in Latin America - more than pays for the cost of the trip.

Of course, there are issues with liability coverage if things go wrong, etc., which is part of why it is less expensive elsewhere.

I had a dental emergency (filling came out) in Thailand one time, and was referred to a local dentist by my hotel. Not only was I able to walk in for inexpensive treatment, but it was by far the most well-equipped and comfortable dental office I have ever visited, period.

As far as domestic options go, it's like any service business. How much does it cost to have someone wax your car? Well, that really depends on the type of customers that detailer is used to working with.

[Jirel]

4. Yes.

The implant is definitely more expensive. I have dental insurance, and it still cost me something like $1,500 out of pocket for the copay.

It's a much more difficult and actually dangerous procedure, so I don't begrudge that it's almost double what it costs for the bridge. I think we should have single-payer healthcare, and prices should be forced down into a rational range for both, but the implant definitely is reasonably a higher price.

Here's what was involved, and I think you can see why:
1. Visit to the surgeon (and imaging) to have the tooth removed.
2. Healing time, 3 months or so, while the bone recovered and filled in.
3. Visit to the surgeon and imaging to make sure the bone is ready to go.
4. Another visit to the surgeon, imaging, and surgery to implant the base.
5. Another visit to the surgeon to remove stitches and check that the implanted base is in place, not infected, etc.
6. Wait 6 months for healing.
7. Go to the dentist to have a fake tooth made.
8. Return to the surgeon to have them image the base again, and if all is well, do another surgery to open up the base and...
9. Send you to the dentist's office to put in the peg and install the new fake tooth.

So yeah, LOTS more complexity, and mine was simple, since they didn't knock me out. Surgery always carries risks, and full anaesthesia, if you feel you have to go that route, is even more expensive and risky.

[TdeV]

13. $7,000 is not out of line for this process

[Midnight Writer]

5. I got an estimate last year for a molar implant for a total of $3000.

This is from a periodontist in private practice.

I've been going to him for 20 years and he is supposed to be the best in this area for implants.

[3catwoman3]

6. Do you live near a dental school?

Upper class students, supervised by their professors, do high quality work for considerably reduced prices,

[RegulatedCapitalistD]

7. What they do not tell you is

That crowns have a life expectancy of 10 to 15 yrs....and that an implant doesn't mean you won't need to Service it. I just went through 6 months of trying to determine what kind of Implant I have so the dentist could find the right screw driver to tighten my implant from 15 yrs ago that went loose. Always ALWAYS find out what kind of implant it is so you do not have to go through what I just did....Keep it in your fireproof documents. I had no idea how important it was to know which kind it was.... and at that time I had 3 implants done...and it cost me over $20,000!

[orthoclad]

8. I've seen 2500 to 4k for an implant

[markie]

9. mine was $3000

I need a couple more but it entails bone grafting which, while I don't know the exact cost, will be more $$$

I have no insurance and I chose a superduper (wonderfully nice and good at what he does) good dentist!!!

[Warpy]

10. That's actually not bad for an implant

or maybe the price has come down since I considered them years ago.

A third option to consider is a partial denture, which can be a little cheaper than a bridge. You might ask about it.

Here's a fact sheet on bridge vs. partial: https://northsidedentalco.com/bridge-vs-partial/

[DURHAM D]

11. $3000 is what I paid for an implant.

It included bone graft.

[Daylily]

12. I've had 2

Mine were right around $3,000. Fifteen hundred dollars to the endodontist to remove the tooth and set the implant stud and $1500 to my dentist for the crown.

[Hugh_Lebowski]

14. When you live in AZ it kinda just makes sense to go to Algodones

7K seems quite high unless you need addt'l work like bone grafts

I plan on doing so in the near future, along w/a coworker/friend who needs some implants as well.

Costs are like $1500/tooth, it's right over the border, only a few hours drive from PHX, about the same from Tucson, care is supposed to be mostly excellent, and everyone says physically it's very safe (though we'll possibly park on this side of the border). Plus we're guys, and not small ones.

Even if we have to go there twice, still way cheaper than the usual 3-3.5K coupon offers for implants I get in the mail all the time.

I know my cousin's BF has been there many times for treatment and wouldn't go anywhere else for what he gets for the money. Plan to get a referral from him before we go.