£105 for 1 filling!!

bootman

I went to the dentist today for my 6 monthly check up, she said she would really like to replace an old filling that I had years and years ago, it's giving me no trouble but she felt that there was a very small gap appearing in one place on the same tooth. The tooth is UR 5 so not even a biggie. Ok I said.

I went to reception to pay my £25 for the check up £40 hygienist £11 for 2 small x - rays and when I come and have my filling next week £105 for a 35 minute appointment to fill it!:eek:

I nearly fell over. It's going to be a white filling, not solid gold!

Toothsmith

It's not the material you're paying for!

35 min appointment plus about 5 mins to do the cross-infect control between you and the next patient means they're operating at about £150 per hour to pay all staff and overheads.

Not bad for a modern healthcare establishment.

Paparika

should you really have this done if its not giving you any problems?

Toothsmith

Paparika wrote: »

should you really have this done if its not giving you any problems?

If by 'problems' you mean pain, then, yes - you should have things done before you get problems.

The nerve is right in the middle of the tooth, so by the time you start feeling things, it's often gone a lot further than it needed to.

This is the advantage of regular, thorough check ups. Things get caught early, and all repairs are as small as possible.

Small fillings last a lot longer than big fillings, so the amount of times it will need replacing are cut down, and the size of each replacement will be smaller.

So yes, it's quite right to replace it at the first sign of failure.

bootman

Thanks Toothsmith, Feel a bit better about it now.

Toothsmith

There's a big difference generally between a good dentist and a cheap one! (Although you can't always go on price alone)

I think you have a good one there.