root canal treatment - NHS and private costs & pros and cons

rembrant

Thank you toothsmith for your prompt reply, which is much appreciated.

The surgery is in the city centre and the facilities are OK. I have been going there for years and, by comparing notes with friends and relatives, have come to the conclusion that his charges are a bit on the high side (I paid £115 for a check up, polish and X ray recently), but have used him for the convenience and because I think he knows what he is doing.

My partner thinks it sounds high and is advising me to shop around. However, if i get it done, I would want it doing properly, so I am edging towards using him (and the odontist (right spelling?) he recommended, that if i decide to get it done at all (its a right upper molar, so its probably a good idea to keep it).

Toothsmith

City Centre places are always going to be a bit dearer than out in the sticks.

If you've used him for ages, I would stick with it. His prices are not unreasonable.

acheekymunky

Hi,

Just though I would do a little post telling you my dentist trouble at the moment!!

Hadnt been for years coz im a very nervous patient....so back in January I went to a private dentist...he said I needed 13 fillings!!!! Obviously there was no way I could afford this and never went back. Lately though I have had trouble with my teeth so I managed to get back on the NHS books for a dentist I was in years ago. He told me I need 5 fillings, a crown and a root canal. I insist the fillings be white as I need so many I didnt want a mouth full of metal. The dentist is the top dog in there but he told me that the root canal was too complicated for him and would need to be performed by a specialist. The dental hospital books had closed so he said I would need to find a private specialist to do this and would cost me approx £500!!!

The fillings and crown are costing me £450 and I have to pay for the specific treatment I have had done on the day. Its a nightmare.

I so wish I never took free dental treatment for granted when I was younger!!!

Does anyone know anything about fishersealing?? My mum thinks this is what has made my teeth so bad...I dont drink fizzy drinks, i floss , i brush, i use oraldene....its a mystery!!

Toothsmith

Fissure sealing helps to protect the teeth, but only one surface. Although it is the surface that most commonly goes first in kids. It doesn't make the teeth sugar proof, but it doesn't do any harm at all.

Fizzy drinks aren't the only thing that rots teeth.

Any sugar will.

Sugar in tea & coffe, biscuits, tomato ketchup, anything that has sugar in it.

The teeth can recover from 3-4 well spaced sugary attacks a day. So eat & drink what you like at mealtimes.

In between meals, when the teeth are trying to repair, THEN you must keep things sugar free.

Brushing the teeth makes little difference to decay. Brushing prevents gum disease. Oraldene regularly is probably a waste of money.

It is unlikely that the root filling is beyond the skill of your dentist. It is just that on the new NHS dental contract it is not worth his while doing it. It is a very grey area whether an NHS patient should be referred to a private specialist, and there have been a couple of case of PCTs making an NHS dentist PAY for the private referral in order to stop them exploiting this loophole.

I would ask what is so complex about it, and take the matter to the PCT if unconvinced.

rembrant

Hi toothsmith,

Thanks once again for your posts. I have been reading through them, as I only joined the site yesterday, and find them to be very useful and interesting.

In relation to the point about what is so complex about root canal work which requires referral to a specialist, my dentist said that the odontist? uses a special microscope to ensure that all things which might cause problems are accounted for. He said he didn't have the equipment himself and said it was best done by people who had done a lot of similar work.

Toothsmith

Endodontist is the name of the specialty.

What your dentist has said is all true, and endodontists do have a higher success rate than a general practitioner.

A general practitioner giving himself the proper time and using standard equipment can get a very good result in all but the trickiest of cases.

The dentist wouldn't refer every person with a bleeding gum to a periodontologist (Gum specialist) and your doctor doesn't refer every sore throat to an ENT consultant.

Unless the root is particularly curved, or there are some other complications, I would still suggest it should be well within his skill level.

If he can show you on the x-ray that it is quite a curved root, I would ask a few more questions on the need for a specialist referal.

(He might well be right - just convince yourself it's not just a way of him getting out of doing it on the NHS)


EDIT - Sorry Rembrant, I was mixing you up with the other poster - acheekymunky.

In your case, the fee for a specialist doing the job will not be that much higher than your private dentist doing it. But if you're spending £1100 on saving the tooth, then you REALLY want it saved for as long as possible, and having a specialist do it will be worth the extra cash in the long run.

rembrant

thanks toothsmith, much appreciated again.

This is what i thought - for £1100 I would want to be reassured that there is a pretty good chance of it lasting. The dentist said that there were no guaranttes, but mentioned a 95% success rate or therabouts. This info might help me avoid more earache from my partner, who is nagging me to get another estimate (I've said if i do that, I wouldn't really be comparing like with like anyway in other words, I porbably could get it cheaper, but it might not be as good).

Toothsmith

rembrant wrote:

(I've said if i do that, I wouldn't really be comparing like with like anyway in other words, I porbably could get it cheaper, but it might not be as good).

Very true.

Plus, you'd have to pay somebody for that estimate, which would just be more money down the drain, especially if you still let dentist 1 do it!

Better the devil you know!!!

rembrant

Hi toothsmith, thank you once again for your comments, which are much appreciated.

I have another question. I asked my dentist about tooth whitening and he recommended somethig called brite Smile and quoted various prices, including £400 for the cheapest, to over £600 for the basic treatment plus some pieces of home kit. Is this about right?

Toothsmith

Yes it is.

Personally I'm not a big fan of Brite Smile. It is great for a few weeks, but fades back to the original colour rather quickly. This is why you were offered the home kit stuff as well.

I tend to use just the trays and gel home kit method, as although much slower to get the result, I feel the result is much more stable.

I would have another chat with him about the options.