If you have considered dental treatment abroad you may want to be aware of the potential risks involved. Just like any form of cosmetic surgery – there are a number of risks and outcomes people have experienced while trying to cut costs abroad.
In today’s blog, Advanced Dentistry takes a look at some of the issues surrounding dental treatments sought from abroad and why you should be extra aware of the risks.
There are actually no official statistics as to how many people travel abroad for dental treatment. However, it may surprise you to know that in a survey from a leading consumer association a few years ago, dentistry was actually one of the most popular treatments for UK residents abroad.
Treatments have included things like crowns, bridges, veneers and larger reconstruction treatments involving dental implants. In fact, only yesterday a programme highlighted the issues one man had with the latter by going abroad and the misery the treatment had caused him.
More and more people assume that because dental treatment can be less costly abroad that they’re making an important saving. However, there are difficulties with communication and aftercare, as well as no real way to check whether someone offering dental treatment is actually experienced enough to do so.
False claims are easily made when seeking treatment outside of the UK too and it does happen. A nice website, seemingly excellent customer service and photos that portray a long list of happy customers are all reasons people have chosen to go abroad for dental treatment. However, in buying into the marketing the reality is that many people are just taking a leap of faith, because what lies at the other end is unknown, potentially risky and worse still, can lead to expensive ‘fixes’ should something go wrong.
Things to consider
Where it comes to finding dental treatment outside of the UK you need to consider that there might be cultural differences, language differences and you may not get the kind of reassurance you are used to from your dentist in the UK.
A fundamental aspect of good aesthetic dental treatment is also the aftercare. We’ve written about this many times, but when you do have a treatment done you should make sure you maintain an adequate level of aftercare to ensure your treatment is effective. This can be really difficult if you’ve travelled thousands of miles for your treatment.
While it’s entirely up to the patient as to where they go for treatment and while there are very good, internationally recognised dental professionals – it is vitally important to make sure you really do your homework. Equally, if something seems a lot cheaper than you’d expect you should be suspicious!
As with any dental treatment in the UK or abroad, you should always check the credentials of your chosen dentist, who will be happy to supply them if he or she is experienced. If in any doubt don’t jump in! Make sure you speak to a professional dentist who can explain things for you.
