I have family that lives in California and they are about a 3 to 4 hour drive from Mexico. Several of their friends go over to Mexico for affordable dental implants. They don’t all see the same dentist but I have been told that it’s easy to find a dentist who is U.S. trained and fluent in English. I visit my family every other year so I have met 2 of their friend who got dental implants for a less than half of what they cost in the U.S. I was ready to schedule an appointment but last week when I spoke with my cousin to schedule a time to fly out and visit, she mentioned that one of their friends is starting to have problems with his implant. It’s infected and his face is swollen. Now I am getting a little nervous, but as my cousin mentioned, the same thing could happen to a patient in the U.S. or anywhere else for all that matters. How do I know that the other people who seemed to have successful dental implants won’t start having problems, too? Is it common to have to replace dental implants? How often do affordable dental implants go bad? Thanks ~ Dayo
Dayo,
When you are looking for options to make dental implants affordable and are considering options outside of the U.S., you have to consider the risks involved.
The U.S. regulates health care providers and medical devices. It’s a precaution that makes dental implants in the U.S. more expensive than other countries. U.S. providers need insurance, and they are accountable to a medical board. In certain countries, including Mexico, there are fewer regulations and greater risks. If something goes wrong, you’re on your own.
High-quality dental implants require careful planning, a lot of skill, and quality implant fixtures. Dental implants have a 98% success rate, but a wise patient doesn’t want to introduce variables that could reduce the rate of success.
We don’t know the reason for the implant failure of the person in Mexico whom you’ve mentioned. An implant infection could be related to the implant fixtures, the skill of the surgeon, or even a patient who isn’t a good candidate for implants.
We highly recommend that you find a few skilled prosthodontists in your area and request a consultation. A prosthodontist will discuss your options for affordable dental implants and let you know what you expect with of them. You will be given information on financing, payment plans, and where possible, doing the work in phases. Affordable dental implants from a skilled provider will last. Insist on quality.
This post is sponsored by Naperville implant dentist and American board-certified prosthodontist Dr. Anthony LaVacca.
