Dentist - Honest Opinions Please

aggypanthus

I am happy with my NHS front crown.
I was offered private, the dentist assured me his professional standard of work would be the same in either case, the only variable bring the material used for the crown. He sent me to the lab for them to colour match.. the technician showed me round, showed me her work, said the same thing.. that her standard of work would be the same.i saw how she paints the colour on!

That was 4 yrs ago
I was quoted private costs of £800 for 2 crowns and 2 veneers. I chose NHs

justme111

First suggestion - try to fi.d someone who is really good with building teeth up. I obviously don't know , may be 6 months at a time is the most that can be achieved , I know many dentists who can build up the tooth from 1/3d of it and it would last year's with an excellent result and an option to go for crown after. Most uk dentists do not have that skill though as it requires long time to producessuch a "fillimg" and would not be cost effective , the public would not like paying £200 for example for "just a filling".
In your estimate dentist probably included root canal treatment , check it. Discuss how necessary it is .
I would not have dreamt of going to NHS dentist I don't know. The same standard is political b.....t , it all depends on how conscious the dentist is , if they provided the same standard they would live on minimal wage. We are not allowed to say it is a different standard though , anyone doing it would face being struck off the register so its up to you whether you would believe "the same standard" line knowing the circumstances. Not to say that NHS crown can not be brilliant , often it can be. Up to you to decide whether you want to play this lottery. Not to say it can not be lottery with private dentists as well but your chances of winning it with NHS are less because they have less time , they know you can not be that demanding and the lab will definitely use cheaper materials and do it quicker.

CharllieSays

I had 5 fillings, a root canal and a crown put on by my local NHS dentist this year (job stress completely wrecked my teeth). The crown went on yesterday morning. The fillings were £50 in total (had them all done at once), the root canal and crown was £168 in total. I have issues with the injections (they don't work on me), so I'm very fussy (terrified) about dentists, and have had no issues whatsoever with any of the work. My dentist is brilliant. The tooth cracked in half due past the gum line, and I was worried about how the crown would look, but it looks/feels great and blends in very well with my other teeth. I'm a trained artist, so can pick up any subtle differences in colour, and the crown is a very close match to my other teeth.

I've mostly had NHS dentists and have never found them to be any worse than private. My brother and sister both have private dentists and always pay far more than me for exactly the same procedures.