Wish me luck. Surgery is Friday morning. For the commenter who asked me what I was doing and why it costs so freakin’ much, I will explain. I think it might help people who are considering dental replacement work understand the costs and options.
I am having two titanium implants put in for an upper tooth and a lower tooth. The description in the Wikipedia link is pretty detailed and will give you an idea of what is being done. I have to have an additional bone graft and sinus lift for the upper tooth so the implant will have a proper setting. There is a minimal thickness that has to be met for the implant to be seated correctly and where your upper jaw is under your nasal cavity, the bone thins out and it might not be enough without the lift and graft.
As noted in the Wikipedia entry, you can go to a general dentist, but in my case, my regular dentist sent me to an oral and maxillofacial surgeon for the work. My surgeon has been rated one of the top oral surgeons in the DC area by Washingtonian Magazine’s survey of other doctors. He also teaches the implant procedure with several institutions, so he’s no slack. On top of that he is really nice and kind. I asked him a ton of questions. He’s always given me extremely detailed answers to my questions and shows me exactly what he’s going to do and why things have to be done in a certain way. He shows me what he sees on the x-rays and is very clear in his explanations. He’s one of the best doctors I’ve ever seen for anything. (Please email me if you are in the NoVA/DC area and I will give you his name.) In this way, I think that he’s worth every exorbitant penny. I have proof of his good work in the form of last year’s implant. I’m extremely pleased.
So the breakdown of fees goes for anesthesia, the bone graft, the sinus lift, two titanium implants, two abutments, and other various fees for the surgery. I will have at least 2 follow-up appointments, for which there will be no extra charge. The surgeon’s office is extremely helpful and provides a detailed list of charges for me to review. I know exactly what each item costs. No other doctor I’ve had is so thorough. In addition, I have three prescriptions. Two for generic drug formulas which are covered under my regular insurance plan, and one for Peridex, which is a special oral rinse. Peridex should be easy to get, but it isn’t. If you need it, make sure you go to a pharmacy at least a week in advance. The Target pharmacy I first went to did not have it. The CVS that did have it, needed a few days to get it. I ended up getting it from my regular dentist this time, and it was probably cheaper that way.
On top of the $6K, I will also spend about another $2K on the permanent crowns. Somoene asked why I was getting implants instead of cheaper bridges. Because of where my teeth are located, I wanted implants instead of bridges. Bridges pop out and have to be cleaned daily, pretty much after every meal. My parents have them and they are gross and disgusting. Sure you can save a lot of money by getting a bridge, and it’s a significant amount of money. But I do not look forward to 40-50 more years of cleaning dental appliances three times a day. Think about that and the time alone will be worth the cost. (Think about it some more and you’ll see that buying dental floss and USING IT is MUCH CHEAPER.)
I am lucky that a good portion of the procedures will be covered by insurance, but not as much as I would like. I have about $4K left in my Medical FSA right now to cover the surgery and the medications. That will be almost enough to cover the remaining amount, but not quite. Then I will pay for the permanent crowns fully out of my own pocket, but not for a few more months. Hopefully that will give me enough time to save up some cash. Makes me wish I hadn’t promised my mom I’d fork over my bonus to help her with her house repairs. Fortunately after this set of work there’s no more dental work beyond my regular cleanings, which are fully covered and maybe one more filling replacement to remove the last of my silver/mercury amalgam ones. Next year’s Medical FSA will be for laser eye surgery! WOO HOO!
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I spent $2k fixing up my teeth last year, mostly spent on crown work. I waited way to long to get my teeth checked up. I regret that I didn’t take better care of my teeth when I was younger, but now that I’ve gotten all this work done and I know my mouth is healthy I think the $2k spent was well worth it. Or else I would be lying awake at night wondering what else was wrong with my teeth. It was really painful paying that bill, but I got over it very quickly.
My mom has had dental implants done and she loves them. You are smart to go to an oral surgeon, I know and worked for some great dentists in the past and a good dentists knows that this work is best performed by a specialist.
good luck and I hope you have a speedy recovery!
My husband got the laser eye surgery and he loves it. I should have him blog about the experience. http://www.philrosati.com but it may take him awhile to get around to it. Good luck with your procedures. It takes a brave soul to handle major dental work. I’ve had about 20 fillings in the last 4 years and I’ve dreaded all of them, but I am lucky that’s as far as it’s gone.
Mapgirl,
Good luck on your surgery. Hopefully, the recovery won’t be too bad. The worst that I ever had was wisdom teeth removal & fillings, so I can only imagine.
Take care!
So that’s what cost so freaking much.Good luck with your surgery.
I might be getting 3 implants after my wisdom teeth surgery is done. I’m sure mine won’t cost as much but it will still be expensive. I really don’t want to have a bridge though.
Smart move to go with a surgeon, I hope you have a speedy recovery
Good luck with the surgery! Hope it goes well and you feel better soon! take care!
Best wishes for a no complications and a speedy recovery!
Hack again?!