# paying for good dental care



## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

I'd be grateful for information about paying for dental care here in Spain. My OH has just returned from a visit to the dentist and has paid almost 700 euros for two sessions. She has no insurance here in Spain as yet and we both have always paid privately when in the UK and the Czech Republic (the recent work was to repair work done in Prague with defective materials).
I'm thinking it's time I took myself off for a check-up and as I have health insurance here I was wondering if that would offset some of the cost.
Thanks for any help you can give.


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

mrypg9 said:


> I'd be grateful for information about paying for dental care here in Spain. My OH has just returned from a visit to the dentist and has paid almost 700 euros for two sessions. She has no insurance here in Spain as yet and we both have always paid privately when in the UK and the Czech Republic (the recent work was to repair work done in Prague with defective materials).
> I'm thinking it's time I took myself off for a check-up and as I have health insurance here I was wondering if that would offset some of the cost.
> Thanks for any help you can give.


It really does depend on your health insurance company. From what I can make out, some include dental, some don't. My policy is with ASSSA and they don't but you can add it on as an option, even then you have to go to one of their dentists and still pay some of the fees (all be it heavily subsidised). I believe you can buy dedicated dental policies but it would be best to speak to an insurance broker, although I am sure someone here will have one they can tell you about!


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

steve_in_spain said:


> It really does depend on your health insurance company. From what I can make out, some include dental, some don't. My policy is with ASSSA and they don't but you can add it on as an option, even then you have to go to one of their dentists and still pay some of the fees (all be it heavily subsidised). I believe you can buy dedicated dental policies but it would be best to speak to an insurance broker, although I am sure someone here will have one they can tell you about!



I don't have private insurance, just health cover from the Junta de Andalucia...


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## gus-lopez (Jan 4, 2010)

No , dentistry is not covered under the health card for anyone. I've always found it to be about 1/2 the price I paid in the UK , even root canal only cost me 280€'s. I think the prices vary dependant on the region as fillings here are 35/40 €'s.


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## country boy (Mar 10, 2010)

I use a wonderful Swedish, lady, Dentist in Alhaurin El Grande. I cannot recommend her enough. I think it is €40 for a first go, examination and plan. Then it's 30 or 40 euros for a filling, depending on size, and she often will do two for the price of one if they are close together. I had a difficult crown and that was €400 if I remember correctly. Happy to PM the details if of any use.


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## xicoalc (Apr 20, 2010)

mrypg9 said:


> I don't have private insurance, just health cover from the Junta de Andalucia...


Ah sorry, misunderstood when you said you have insurance


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

country boy said:


> I use a wonderful Swedish, lady, Dentist in Alhaurin El Grande. I cannot recommend her enough. I think it is €40 for a first go, examination and plan. Then it's 30 or 40 euros for a filling, depending on size, and she often will do two for the price of one if they are close together. I had a difficult crown and that was €400 if I remember correctly. Happy to PM the details if of any use.


Thanks, much appreciated...but Alhaurin is an hour from us and uphill most of the way...well, going there...


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## gerrit (Jul 15, 2008)

I too am looking for this but I have "large works" that need to be done. I heard from my neighbour from Brazil that she flies to Brazil for dentist works because even with the flight costs included it's cheaper there than the same works in her own city in Spain  I also heard Turkey and Cuba are receiving a fair amount of Spaniards who come specifically for cheap healthcare (including but not limited to dental care)

If I'd know a good one within Spain who is affordable I'd be happy to travel to Andalucia or Galicia or so ... Because here in the area I haven't come across any that's within my budget range.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

gerrit said:


> I too am looking for this but I have "large works" that need to be done. I heard from my neighbour from Brazil that she flies to Brazil for dentist works because even with the flight costs included it's cheaper there than the same works in her own city in Spain  I also heard Turkey and Cuba are receiving a fair amount of Spaniards who come specifically for cheap healthcare (including but not limited to dental care)
> 
> If I'd know a good one within Spain who is affordable I'd be happy to travel to Andalucia or Galicia or so ... Because here in the area I haven't come across any that's within my budget range.


We used a dentist in Prague who had brochures in English , German and Spanish so I'm guessing his clients came chiefly from these places because dentistry is expensive in their own countries.
Our Little Azor broke my OH's upper jaw (hairline fracture) when giving her a kiss (un beso peligroso...) so much dental work was required. She decided to go ahead and have full cosmetic work -veneers, implants and so on -and paid £4000 equivalent for work which was costed at £12000 in the UK.
However......the workmanship was excellent but as is often the case in the CR the materials used were of poor quality. Pins broke, cosmetic fillings eroded hence the 700 euros visit to the Spanish dentist.
Loads of people fly to Prague, Budapest, Warsaw and similar places for dental treatment because it is cheaper than in the UK, Germany and Spain and dentists are extremely competent. But although some treatment is definitely VFM -I had to have an extraction as a pin on a crown put in in the UK had become defective -after almost ten years though! - and it cost under £100 for a complicated operation involving broken roots - I would advise extreme caution especially if the treatment is cosmetic.
Routine stuff I'd say is no problem. Combine a holiday in a great city with private dental care at lower prices where you will be treated like a king/queen. 
But beware of the more 'fancy' stuff.


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## gerrit (Jul 15, 2008)

Depends what is considered "fancy". I have a few teeth that would need to be replaced but some say that getting them all out (for free in Spanish healthcare) and getting false teeth would be cheaper than just replacing the few that need to be replaced. Maybe so, but I don't really like the idea ... If I'd know that a travel to Brazil or Cuba would make it affordable to do the nicer option (= just repairing the ones that need to be repaired) then I'd not mind the travel ; the problem as you say is: what about the aftermath if something's not done well? Then you need to visit your Spanish dental center anyway and pay the costs you tried to avoid in the first place after all....


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## george.kelly (Dec 6, 2010)

It's good to see consciousness about oral health, I have had veneers enhancement from a dentist in san francisco and I am having no problems or what so ever. thanks a lot to him.


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## razzo57 (Jan 30, 2012)

*Dentist in Andalusia*



country boy said:


> I use a wonderful Swedish, lady, Dentist in Alhaurin El Grande. I cannot recommend her enough. I think it is €40 for a first go, examination and plan. Then it's 30 or 40 euros for a filling, depending on size, and she often will do two for the price of one if they are close together. I had a difficult crown and that was €400 if I remember correctly. Happy to PM the details if of any use.


I wonder if Country Boy could sent me the detals of his Dentist. I am expat to the Uk from Aus but have a small filling that needs fixing prior to returning to the Uk in 2 months time. Thanks


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## country boy (Mar 10, 2010)

CLINICA EUROPA DENTAL


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## Solwriter (Jan 10, 2012)

The thing about Dentistry in Spain (which I have found, anyway) is the mañana syndrome.
I need a couple of implants done urgently and, after comparing a number of dentists in Granada and the CDS, went with my local dentist, as he is accredited by the University of Granada for implant dentistry and works in several surgeries in the Granada region with (so I have found, knock on wood....) excellent results.
One of the reasons I went with local in the end is because implant work can be a little traumatic, and I didn't want to undertake a long journey home after treatment, plus, he has done work on my teeth before with good results.

However, even though this is agreed to be urgent treatment (ongoing infection), the preliminaries are going on and on...and on.
I have had several consultations, a TAC scan, upper jaw xray, and smaller xrays of the area involved.
Now I have to return next week for what I hope is the final consultation, before the work actually begins.

I know this is probably good, as the dentist wants to be absolutely sure that the work he is doing is correct and safe, but because he runs several surgeries, I have to wait at least a week between each consultation and the infection persists, despite tons of antibiotics!

The price will be less than half that quoted to me in the UK and I _think_ I have confidence in this guy to do a good job and use good materials.
But I am beginning to wish I had chosen a CDS dentist (many of whom are Swedish, I believe, multi lingual and trained specifically in cosmetic dentistry), as I´m sure I would be much further along the way by now.


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## fergie (Oct 4, 2010)

Inpants do tend to take 'ages'. I had mine done in HK where I lived at the time, from the actual 3hr op, which I chose to have under sedation because I don't like dentists, just for preparation and bone inplants, to actually getting teeth attached took 8 months,
In between there was loads of check ups, they opened my jaw again (one and half hours), that time without sedation, to add the 2 titanium inplants and some more bone, loads of antibiotics and stitches 'in and out', not pleasant. I finally got the 2 teeth with a bridge added in late June last year and I am still getting used to having those teeth in my mouth, because they seemed to be missing for such a long time.


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## Solwriter (Jan 10, 2012)

fergie said:


> Inpants do tend to take 'ages'. I had mine done in HK where I lived at the time, from the actual 3hr op, which I chose to have under sedation because I don't like dentists, just for preparation and bone inplants, to actually getting teeth attached took 8 months,
> In between there was loads of check ups, they opened my jaw again (one and half hours), that time without sedation, to add the 2 titanium inplants and some more bone, loads of antibiotics and stitches 'in and out', not pleasant. I finally got the 2 teeth with a bridge added in late June last year and I am still getting used to having those teeth in my mouth, because they seemed to be missing for such a long time.


Thanks Fergie.
Yes, I know implants take ages and have read all the nasty info about them. 
That´s why I chose close to home to have the work done. But it would be nice to actually get started (I think... lol!)
Enjoy your new teeth.


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## razzo57 (Jan 30, 2012)

*Dentist in Andalusia*

Thanks Country Boy. I got an appointment the next day and had it done this afternoon. It was not big or major and only cost 33euro


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