Anybody got any idea when dental implants will be cheaper to have?!
Question: Anybody got any idea when dental implants will be cheaper to have!?
I desperately need them but I cannot afford the $12,000 I was quoted for the things and insurance does not cover it!. I have such a shallow palat I was told that that is the reason I have to have such a long back piece on my top plate that gags me all the time so I wonder if anybody knows about a cheap way or when they might drop in price!.Www@Answer-Health@Com
Answers:
Unfortunately, probably not anytime soon (in my opinion)!. Implants are a lot more complicated than having fake teeth screwed into place, and the associated costs are bound to be high!.
Even before the surgery itself, you will have to go through a number of appointments to have impressions and x-rays taken!. Somebody then looks at these models and x-rays to figure out what size implant to use, and what angle it should be inserted at, etc!. With the models of your teeth, they build an apparatus that will guide the surgeon!. So part of the cost incorporates lab fees (which are sky high), cost of the materials used (also sky high), and a small portion goes toward the salaries of the people who are doing the work!. (Hygienists, assistants, lab techs, etc!.) Everything is done by hand!.
A large portion of the cost is because of the surgical nature of the procedure (including anaesthetic!.) It involves cutting into the gum, then drilling upwards into the bone at the EXACT angle for correct placement of the implant!. This also must take into consideration the location of your nerves, blood vessels, etc!. The surgeon, in many cases, is also an MD, or at the very least an oral surgeon!. In some cases, when there is not enough bone present, the surgeon will have to add more before going ahead with the implant, which adds another stage of surgery and a higher cost!. (Even more so if you have it done in a hospital operatory)!.
The implant itself is fairly expensive, as it is made from a material that is designed to integrate with your bone without causing bone resorption or infection!. There is always research being done on dental biomaterials, and creating one that is "perfect" is not a cheap process!. Consequently, they cost a fortune to the people making implants from them, and that cost is passed on to the patient!.
The crown of the implant is also expensive!. The ones I have seen are hand made, starting with a wax-up and ending with painting on the "enamel" part, layer by layer and colour by colour so it matches your teeth perfectly!. In between there are a number of steps that are a lot like jewellery making!. (There is no computer that does this!.)
Unfortunately, because of everything that goes into the placement of an implant, I can't see the cost coming down a whole lot anytime soon!. (Unless someone invents an expensive computer system!.) Insurance companies may be more accepting of them though as they become more popular!. I think I would be really afraid of anyone who says they can do it for $500!.!.!.I would worry that they don't know what they're doing! But maybe I'm wrong, who knows!. :)Www@Answer-Health@Com
Even before the surgery itself, you will have to go through a number of appointments to have impressions and x-rays taken!. Somebody then looks at these models and x-rays to figure out what size implant to use, and what angle it should be inserted at, etc!. With the models of your teeth, they build an apparatus that will guide the surgeon!. So part of the cost incorporates lab fees (which are sky high), cost of the materials used (also sky high), and a small portion goes toward the salaries of the people who are doing the work!. (Hygienists, assistants, lab techs, etc!.) Everything is done by hand!.
A large portion of the cost is because of the surgical nature of the procedure (including anaesthetic!.) It involves cutting into the gum, then drilling upwards into the bone at the EXACT angle for correct placement of the implant!. This also must take into consideration the location of your nerves, blood vessels, etc!. The surgeon, in many cases, is also an MD, or at the very least an oral surgeon!. In some cases, when there is not enough bone present, the surgeon will have to add more before going ahead with the implant, which adds another stage of surgery and a higher cost!. (Even more so if you have it done in a hospital operatory)!.
The implant itself is fairly expensive, as it is made from a material that is designed to integrate with your bone without causing bone resorption or infection!. There is always research being done on dental biomaterials, and creating one that is "perfect" is not a cheap process!. Consequently, they cost a fortune to the people making implants from them, and that cost is passed on to the patient!.
The crown of the implant is also expensive!. The ones I have seen are hand made, starting with a wax-up and ending with painting on the "enamel" part, layer by layer and colour by colour so it matches your teeth perfectly!. In between there are a number of steps that are a lot like jewellery making!. (There is no computer that does this!.)
Unfortunately, because of everything that goes into the placement of an implant, I can't see the cost coming down a whole lot anytime soon!. (Unless someone invents an expensive computer system!.) Insurance companies may be more accepting of them though as they become more popular!. I think I would be really afraid of anyone who says they can do it for $500!.!.!.I would worry that they don't know what they're doing! But maybe I'm wrong, who knows!. :)Www@Answer-Health@Com
Midge, You can drop the price by over 25% right now!. Just become a member of eHealthPlus!. The savings could start immediately!. Prices of dentistry in general are going up but implants are becoming more common and prices of implants might go down over the next few years!. Don't hold your breath if you desperately need dental implants though!Www@Answer-Health@Com