My Visit to the Dentist – Recurrent Decay!
by Karen McConnaughey
When I went to Dra. Ana at Dr. Haro’s office for a check-up
in September, I found that one of my very old dental fillings…at least 35 years
old …was starting to degrade. It wasn’t an emergency, and because of my travel
plans, I was not able to get back in for an appointment until November.
I did a little research after finding out about my ‘degraded filling.’ It
was a term that was unfamiliar to me. I found out that most decay in adults
today is found under and around old, degrading fillings. It’s called
"recurrent" decay because it re-occurs on tooth structure that was
decayed, was drilled clean and filled previously. As recurrent decay progresses,
it eats away the remaining tooth, weakening it and making it prone to breaking
or cracking. This usually occurs without pain until it’s too late. Generally
most fillings need to be replaced once they are about 10-15 years old, depending
on your mouth. The timing depends on things like how much you grind and wear
your teeth, what the old fillings are made out of, how much decay you've had in
the past and how big the old fillings are.
This really does point up the necessity of check-ups every six months,
doesn’t it? You want to find out about a recurrent decay before it becomes an
emergency.
Like most people, I had some decay when I was younger and
most of my fillings came at an early age. Therefore, I found myself quite
anxious about it. I was surprised. I had never been afraid of the dentist and
had been known to fall asleep in the chair! However, it had been many, many
years since I had had a cavity filled, so I truly did not know what to expect.
I was positive that not only had things changed over the years, but I was in Mexico…what was
it going to be like here? I was really stressed.
When Dra. Ana showed me into her room, I remember thinking
how big and bright and nice the room was, and even how comfortable her chair looked. Everything
looked up to date and very modern. I couldn’t imagine it being any better in
the states. I was there to have a cavity refilled, but I had also developed
another problem in the interim. I was having acute sensitivity to ice water on the lower right
side of my teeth.
Dra. Ana immediately started looking for my problem, first
probing, then a sonogram that was immediately displayed on a computer screen,
and when she couldn’t see anything, she asked if I would mind having an x-ray
done. Would I mind? Have you ever been asked by your dentist if you would mind having an x-ray?
They tell you; they don’t ask!
She still couldn’t see anything except possibly a problem
with my bite…I might be grinding my teeth at night, even though she didn’t see
a huge problem there. She ended up grinding about three of my teeth very slightly.
She asked me to adjust to it for about two weeks, then call her and let her
know how I was doing...one way or another, not just if I was still having pain. I love Dra. Ana! And, if I continued to have sensitivity issues, we would
explore further.
The kind of fun part as all of this was going on, based on where I needed to be for the x-ray, the sonogram...whatever...
my chair spun around, up and down, reclining…I truly felt as if I were in a space
chair. Everything is so modern, clean and neat.
Then it was time for the thing I had been dreading most...it was time to get to my degraded cavity filled.
Dental filling materials include composite, porcelain and
silver amalgam, and can even be used to
even out tooth surfaces for better biting or chewing, not just to fill a
cavity.
The cheapest and most common choices for filling small
cavities are silver amalgams (a mixture of silver-tin alloy, copper and mercury
that sets up hard and silver colored) and composite resin (a mixture of acrylic
plastics, quartz fillers and colorants). There are several differences besides
the obviously more aesthetic results of composites over amalgams. A big
difference, which insurance companies seem to consider the most important, is
longevity. Amalgams last up to 20% longer than similar composite restorations.
Apparently, however, there’s a lot of controversy about whether amalgam
fillings cause any harm because of the mercury they contain.
If you are like most Baby Boomers or their parents, silver fillings were the
most popular filling material in the 1950s, 60s and 70s when you where going
through your cavity-prone ages and getting new cavities regularly. I really
wasn’t worried…I’ve read enough now to know that even though it’s been established
that you are definitely exposed to mercury vapor from amalgam fillings when you
chew on them, it appears that the amount of exposure is approximately only one
tenth the amount the average patient is exposed to through various foods (fish
and sea-food) over the course of a year.
First Dra. Ana deadened my gum and cheek with a spray. When that had numbed
me sufficiently, she (I’m assuming…I never look!) put a needle into the area to
be worked on and held it there for about 30 seconds. I never felt a thing…the
worst it felt was if someone was lightly pinching the inside of my cheek!
She worked on me with a high-speed drill that appeared to have a air-water
spray. There was also a suction tube hanging from my mouth. I felt nothing. I
felt myself relaxing and feeling really good about what was going on and
chiding myself for being so nervous about my appointment.
Dra. Ana used a white, bonding-composite resin filling. She showed me
afterward how it blended into the tooth so it was almost invisible because it
looked exactly like the color of my teeth. Made me wonder if I should have
gotten my teeth whitened before this process. I need to look into that.
It was an excellent experience and I now know 
that I need to really stick to
my six-month-visit dental plan. After all, at almost 65, I have a lot of old fillings, and,
again, after all my reading, I found out that almost all dental and medical
sites recommend replacing your silver amalgam fillings after 15 years maximum.
I’ll want to make sure Dra. Ana takes good care of me to make sure no more are
degrading.
So…what did I pay?
Remember…I had a consultation and examination, a
sonogram, an x-ray, a shot and a white, bonding-composite resin filling. What
would you guess that would cost in the States or Canada?
I couldn’t find exact prices for the same things I had done. However, one
web site for Canada
said:
“I
would say that the average fee for that filing will be around $80.00....If,
however, the decay is too deep, you may find
that instead of a filling you
may need a root canal and that
will get into your pocket in the range of possibly $600, providing the tooth doesn`t have to be crowned as
well. A molar root canal in my friend’s office is $975.00. A surgical extraction is $290.00. A simple extraction is $175.00.”
Based on my research, however, I found that you could get
almost any dental procedure in Mexico
at a savings of around 50% compared to U.S. and Canadian prices.
One article entitled “Should I Get My Teeth Fixed in Mexico?” told
of one man’s experience:
Dental
work in the United States
is very expensive. So is the cost of health care and prescription drugs – but
that’s another story worthy of an article or two!
An
example of the high cost of dentistry in the U.S. was when I recently went to the
dentist. I had a toothache which—because of my vast experience with such
matters—I was 99 per cent certain would require a root canal. (Tooth pain,
while pushing on the upper portion of the tooth, almost always means a root
canal or extraction will be required.)
When
I got to the dentist, they took an X-ray and the dentist examined my teeth for
five to 10 minutes—and sure enough he told me I needed a root canal. Duh, I
could have told him that! The dentist charged me $200 for this visit alone, and
the subsequent root canal procedure, after multiple visits over a three-month
period for an abscess that needed much treatment, cost another $1,500 or so.
Ouch, that hurts like heck in the wallet!
This gentleman did more research after his procedure and came up with this information:
Internet
Web sites advertise savings from 60 to 75 per cent when you get dental work in Mexico, and the
payment chart I’ve included in this article seems to indicate that this is
indeed the case. Check it out, and you may be amazed.
I also read some testimonials regarding dental work in Mexico. Some
people think they spent their money wisely while others didn’t. But isn't that always the way whether you're in Mexico, the United States or Canada? And, of course,
American dentists have a particular point of view and it’s generally not
favorable, and Mexican dentists have theirs as well. So do some
research and make up your own mind. My stepmother stayed with us for six years
a couple of years back. Her dentist quoted $10,000 USD to do the work she needed
done. Dra. Pilar (also a dentist in Dr. Haro’s office) did everything for
$2,800 USD…a considerable savings for anyone, let alone someone on social
security. She was so happy with the work that she invited Dra. Pilar and her whole family to visit her in Ste. Genevieve (an hour south of St. Louis).
Also keep in mind that if you don’t live close to Mexico, you’ll
have to pay for travel, hotels, meals and other expenses. However, if you’re
coming down for a visit (as my stepmother did), it’s definitely something to
consider.
What did I pay?
Okay, let me repeat what I had:
I had a consultation and examination, a sonogram, an x-ray, a shot and a white,
bonding-composite resin filling. And, for this wonderful experience, I paid
$900 pesos…less than $75 USD and CAD. I wish I had asked for a picture of my
new tooth…it’s just beautiful and well worth the money, to say the least.
Hector Haro D.D.S.
Tel 765-6974 San Luis #83
Riberas Del Pilar.
While the dental office of Dr. Haro is my dentist choice, there are many fine choices in the Lake Chapala area. And, please, if anyone wants to brag on their dentist with an article, we would be happy to print it. I only have my experience to talk about! For a list of dentists in the area, please click here.
Karen
McConnaughey:
Operations Manager for FocusOnMexico.
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