Combine Your China Trip with Your Dentist Trip and Save Big
Many Chinese students studying abroad wait until they return to China for the summer before visiting the dentist. The reason for this is that dental work in China is generally much cheaper than it is in the west.
Personally, I have been to the dentist many times since living in China and have had a few small cavities filled. To have a cavity filled at a Chinese hospital in Beijing costs about $10US, altogether. All I can say about the quality is that my family dentist in the US has looked at the fillings I had performed in China and said there was no problems with them that he could see and that they looked good.
Most recently, I had a root canal performed. Compared to costs in the US, it was cheap, at about $300 altogether, including the root canal and a gold crown covered in white enamel. I had it performed at Beijing Number 3 Hospital, 北医三院, by a Chinese dentist who had studied dentistry for a while in Germany.
Warning: this is not for the faint of heart. Dentists in China tend not to use anesthetic, and I can say, first hand, that a root canal without anesthetic is pretty damned painful. On the other hand, you can request anesthetic if you really want it.
If you are planning a trip to China and also just happen to need a root canal done you could get the root canal done in your home country and then get the still expensive, but less important crown done in China. You could also save big on something minor, like a cavity. If you are brave and want to save this might just be a good solution for you.
February 21, 2007 at 1:58 pm
I am as cheap as anyone, but I don’t have the guts for this, so I usually just stick to bringing over a pair of pants that need mending.
February 21, 2007 at 2:33 pm
lol
February 26, 2007 at 2:09 am
Well, I’m delighted to get to share my story on foot of this post, you see I have a bad dentist story. I lived China, Sichuan, Suining at the time and my friend who was a civil servant for the foreign affairs bureau in that city recommended when I complained of toothache that I should visit a certain dentist. That dentist was located in the city hospital whcih was a clean, newly built and modern facility. He saw to me straight away, whixh is the only bonus of the dental treatment as usually in my home country of Ireland there is a three week wait for dental treatment. He had a look at my tooth, didn’t take an x-ray when I more or less insisted he should, then he didn’t give me an injection and put a filing somewhere inside my mouth. The pain stopped and I very happily handed over 90 yuan and agreed I wouldn’t eat hard things, did hard things include peanuts I asked, and ‘No’ was the response. So that is a good story right?
Then I came back to Ireland and one day eating my dinner the pain started in exactly the same place! Why I wondered never doubting my fabulous Chinese dentist. the pain was so bad that the next morning I got my regular home dentist to see me immediately. He took an x-ray and told me the bad news. The Chinese dentist had given me a filing but had bothered to take out any of the decay so only sealed the decay inside my tooth. That was very surprising! So y dentist needed to drill the wole lot out and very nearly had to extract my tooth, he said that the way the dentistry was performed I was asking for root canal treatment.
All I can say then, is that there will be good stories and bad stories. China is a developing country, it is not subject to the rigours of professional practice panels, becoming disqualified, malpractice and so on that exist in the west. They are remote notions and the quality of what you get as happened in my case depends on who you get. To blithely state that all of China’s dentists are good is foolish, that is common sense when you know what your dealing with.
February 26, 2007 at 9:47 am
Declan Lohan, great story.
I have found that Chinese dentists tend to treat the specific problems I raise, but pretty much ignore the rest of my mouth. I have tried to go for regular checkups but the dentists just look at me oddly, “What’s the problem?” they ask.
“No problem, yet. And I want to make sure it stays that way. Will you clean my teeth and check for any cavities?”
Dentist looks around my mouth for a bit, poking me with his little pain device, scraping off some excess plaque here and there and exclaims, “Your teeth are clean. No problems.”
“Um, maybe you could take some X-Rays just to double check that things are ok?”
“That’s unnecessary,” he replies.
Yeah. Well, I’d just like to point out to anyone reading this that I never would have had to have a root canal done if my dentist in Weifang had done what I asked. Dental treatment in China can be fine, as my experience shows, though one should keep Declan Lohan’s experience in mind too, but there is little concept of prevention as yet (you could apply this formula to so many things in China it’s not even funny).
July 10, 2007 at 8:08 pm
Hi Kevin, great post.
I hope you don’t mind if I openly promote a dental tourism service operating from Canada to China (Nanjing and Suzhou in particular), on behalf of my client?
The service – The InciDental Tourist – caters to both Westerners looking for the trip of a lifetime to China, as well as expats currently residing in China. All dental procedures are performed at top-notch facilities in Nanjing, at Western standards, and all at excellent rates.
You can learn more at the website, http://www.incidentaltourist.com, where there’s also a number for those currently residing in China.
Cheers,
Jon
October 19, 2007 at 5:16 pm
I’m planning for my son and I to go to China in May/08. Looking for a good dentist thats resonable for repairs and alot of implants. Can you advise me if theres a city or certian place to start the procedure. I’m going to see a local dentist before I go, would it be recomended to have the basic work done here or e-mail a treatment plan? I don’t know if you can help me with my concern. Thank you, Gordon Michael
October 20, 2007 at 2:14 pm
Sorry, Gordon, but I don’t think I can really help you out, except to say that I wouldn’t expect much from email. It would probably be better to post any documents and follow up with phone calls.
December 9, 2007 at 11:16 am
I am now looking for a dentist in China. I need a implant, and birdge.
Plese recommand a dentist.
thanks in advance.
December 23, 2007 at 11:28 am
[...] instance, while living in China I wrote about seeing the dentist and getting a root canal without anesthetic. By contrast, I had a root canal here in the US last [...]
February 10, 2008 at 10:03 am
Yo ho ho, I would like to giev you all the name of the dentist i am going to see, but alas, i dont know his name.
But, heres the story.
I met a chinese dood and missus at a local restaurant, and over several years got to know them very well. One day there was mention of dental work whereupon andy showed me the 8 teeth he had implanted. I was surprised to see that the work was very good, and had lasted so well over the last 8 years.
Recently, he mentioned he was going back to china to visit, and his wife was also going back (not at the same time), whereupon I mentioned that i wanted to go to guangzhou too, to get my teeth done.
The wife came back a few weeks ago, and i immediately ripped over to her place to have a gander at her ivories. She had 5 implants. They were excellent, and cost NZ$400, or 1,900rm.
Not bad when you consider that it generally costs around $1,200 – 1,600 for just ONE implant here in NZ.
So, 2 march i fly out to meet andy in guangzhou. He will take me to meet his friend the dentist in lingmun,
I plan to be there for 3 weeks to get my teeth done at a total cost of around NZ$600. A saving of at least $4,500.
I would love to be able to help anyone who is interested, because I see it as not only helping the dentist increase his business, but also to save the patient from being ripped off by exorbitant local costs.
Ric
July 25, 2010 at 7:28 pm
hi Ric,
do you have the name of the clinic or the dentist name now???
thanks for the reply
December 3, 2010 at 9:56 pm
Hi Rick, just wondering how you went with you teeth, my husband is needing an implant and we are wondering how long it would take to have this procedure for 1 tooth only and if you could give me the details of the dentist you used, are you happy with the work done etc. Thanks Kaye
December 22, 2011 at 2:38 am
So, what happened, was the dental work a success?
sundance1926@hotmail.com
March 11, 2012 at 12:02 pm
Good day,
I wonder if you can help me I’m from South Africa and I need dental care +- 8 crowns,
I’m 60 years old in lives in Dana Bay (Cape Province)
Can you please advice me who I can contact in connection with abovementioned.
Dental care is very expensive in S.A.
I would like to know the costs involved.
My daughter taught in China a few years ago and she was very impressed with the quality and cost of your dental care.
Thank you
Manda Louw
March 11, 2012 at 5:35 pm
I will give you my experience regarding dental work in China if you like.My experience has been good. Send me your email or write me at the one I have given.
April 15, 2008 at 3:27 am
Hello,
Re. Ric’s letter… I too want to go to Guangzhou; at the same time I hope to be able to find a reliable dentist in order get a new set of false teeth… so any feedback/ recommendations would be very welcome.
Jane
May 9, 2008 at 3:42 pm
DER SIR
PLES SEND CATALOGEST AND LIST PRIEC ALL PRODUCT DENTAL
May 23, 2008 at 11:45 pm
i am missing two lower jaw tooth and will like them replace with implants . please send me your price list.
thanks
June 29, 2008 at 6:10 am
First off, let me say that I am a dentist trained in the west, so I understand if you automatically feel I’m “the bad guy”
………………………..
Most people usually want only two things- no pain and low costs. So you, the patient, think it’s fantastic in China- no pain, and it was 90% cheaper than what it costs at home.
But I’m going to get technical why dentistry in China is usually bad.
Firstly, they pay low attention to details. Often crowns have what are called Overhangs. This means that where the crown or filling ends- instead of being smooth with the tooth, it sticks out. There is no obvious visual or pain problem from this. But it traps plaque, which has bacteria to cause decay and also causes Periodontitis- makes your tooth loose.
So in the beginning- yeah, it’s great- cheap and no pain.
But you have just allowed yourself to be a candidate for extraction and denture in 5 to 15 years.
They sometimes do not do the proper procedure. Sometimes they put fillings in without removing the decay first. Sometimes crowns are done without completing the root canals properly.
And they often cheaper because they use much weaker and cheaper materials. So called “proper” crowns are just aluminium with tooth coloured plastic around it, instead of porcelain around gold or titanium alloy.
You truly do get what you pay for. Dentistry in China is generally quite low standard compared to the west.
Think of it this way.
I think many of the readers of this article are university educated. Thus they know that there is a lot of information within their own profession that the general public isnt aware of, and that the general public also have their own perceptions of that profession, be it accounting, engineering, medicine, computer programming etc.
So dentistry is no different. You simply will not be aware of the bad parts until much later.
Sorry if this is too long. Just wanted to explain why you shouldnt base your decisions based on price and eyeballing.
I think a reasonable compromise would be to get dental treatment in Singapore. It’s still cheaper than US/UK/Australia, but the standards and education is mostly on par with the West. They do use cheaper metals for crowns than in US/UK/Australia though.
November 15, 2009 at 11:22 am
You are right Adrian. My dad just recently had his dentures done by a China lady whom he met in the streets. Yes it is cheap but the whole problem is his lower set of dentures are permanently fixed to his gum. I doubted this is the normal procedure and I am very worried that it will give him serious problems. Now we are taking him to a proper dentist to assess the problem. As for the upper set, food gets into the dentures and it hurts whenever he chews. Adrian, can i hear your opinion in this case? Tq (My dad is 72 yrs old, heart patient)
August 6, 2008 at 1:28 am
Please advise if you can do tooth inplants. Require one font tooth inplant.
Question:
1 Cost of ths proceedure
2 How loing dose thge proceedure take
3 Can this be preformmed on a holiday trip
Regards
Grant Klempel
grant.fw@bigpond.net.au
July 20, 2009 at 7:43 pm
Hi good day to all, I’m looking for a list of expert dentist there in China can somebody help me out on this? thank you so much for your time..
July 21, 2009 at 6:03 pm
[...] c’è chi la consiglierebbe vivamente. Kevin Smith scrive sul suo blog dedicato alla Cina che molti degli studenti cinesi preferiscono aspettare di [...]
February 24, 2010 at 8:16 am
Tooth pain could be a symptom of many various things. It can be caused by inflammation of the gums, a pustule ( an infection that develops in the tooth root or between the tooth and gum ), a cracked tooth, a dislodged filling, or the most common culprit, a cavity. However, sometimes a toothache is due to something as simple as besieged food between the teeth. The particles of food can irritate the gums and the discomfort can radiate into the encircling teeth.
Read More from Dentist in Finchley
April 6, 2010 at 8:54 am
Hi everyone, Welcome to Guangzhou China.
If you have any dental problem, come to see you then.
http://www.gzstuff.com/profile/GZDentist
May 7, 2010 at 9:25 pm
Hello everybody. I am currently searching for a dentist to completely re-do my entire mouth. I am 61 with more missing teeth than I care to admitt.
I obtained a treatment plan with x-rays in the USA before I came to China and I am now e-mailing them to get a basic sense of the prices. I am also interested in the responses from the sites I am sending them to. I want to qualify the appropriate choice by paying attention to the level and clarity of response to formulate their remommended treatment plan.
I Hope to gather information by contacting as many as I can before I go to the trouble of visiting them. I can weed the no responses out as well as the difficult to understand and be understood replys.
I used this approach when I got plastic surgery last year and I found it to be very effective to sort through the numerous choices.
If anyone has a site I can include on my list I would surly appreciate it.
Good luck to all.
Mike
November 7, 2010 at 3:35 pm
Hi Mike,
Did you get very far with your search for dental experts in China. I’m in the same kind of boat as you. I know this is an old post, but if your still around let me know what you found, drop me a line to davewoodhouse916@hotmail.com
December 22, 2011 at 2:34 am
It ids interesting to read these posts. The most interesting is none of those going to China for dental work ever write a follow up daying they went and their results.
January 23, 2012 at 4:50 pm
I had all my bottom teeth crowned in China with the inci dental tourist. They looked great and the price was very good. Now after five years i am discovering that they installed the crowns too deep which cause infection and cavities to the bones of my jaw. Now I am facing a $20,000 bill for the periodontist to remove bones from my jaw (crown lenthening) and after 6 weeks of healing time they will remove all the crowns from china to install new ones.. I had 3 dentist telling me that i didn’t have a choise but to do this right away. Diane Grudzinskas
January 23, 2012 at 5:49 pm
You went to the wrong dentist in China. There are a few in Guangzhou that are very good. I had some implants done in China about 6 years ago, as well as crown work, The work was done very nicely. The dentist I use in U.S. was impressed by the work. On investigation I found out one of the two Chinese that performed the work was graduate of Columbia U. The other had received his training in HK. There can be problems with dental work done in U.S. as well. I Remember reading
numerous complaints regarding u.S. dental work as well.
I do think though dental work in U.S. is better regulated by the American Dental Association. I have no idea how it is monitored in China.
February 7, 2012 at 2:22 am
Hello, I am so relieved that you have found the dentist that you’re happy with. My husband is thinking of having the implants done as well. Since he is going to need minimum of 4 done and quote around Au.$23,000.and look like he is not going to to do it. Would appreciated if you could kindly recommend the name and contact of the dentist that you deal with.
February 7, 2012 at 7:27 am
I am out of town at this time, but will return next week.
Please send me your Email or contact info. I will send their Email address, physical address, and number on my return.
May 20, 2012 at 11:28 am
Do you happen to have the name of any dentists in China. I live in Guilin and from what I’ve seen i would much rather go to a bigger city to get any type of dentistry.
I cracked my back molar about a week ago and its been bothering me. I will be in China for another 6 weeks and would like to get this taken care of. Thanks!
May 20, 2012 at 12:32 pm
Dr. Lu in Guangzhou is your best bet. Get off at Guangzhou Dong train stop, he is only a short walk from there.
February 10, 2012 at 5:09 pm
Hi Anonymous,
Thanks very much for your reply. Also can you please tell me
- How long would the treatment take.
- How much it cost ?
I can be contacted on
helena.phb@live.com.au
February 10, 2012 at 7:08 pm
For people out there looking for a good dentist/dental hospital in China, West China Hospital in Chengdu is a good place to start. They are (one of) the best dental hospital in China.
—Someone grew up in Sichuan and has been in US for 6 years
March 20, 2012 at 11:39 pm
I’ll be coming to china soon… and i need to get my teeth fixed properly.. Any ideas on dentists in shenyang, liaoning?.. or maybe a close state.. Pls also detail me with the cost range.. thanks