Ok so I need to get rid of my wisdom teeth as soon as possible. I have been quoted $1950 for all 4 to be removed under a local anesthetic by a dental surgeon. I was told that there were no flexible payment options and the full amount had to be paid on the day. Unfortunately my savings are a fair way short of that. I'm now in a job where I'm not working much overtime anymore and my salary isn't what it used to be and don't start me about the cost of living at the moment. I have a couple of credit cards but they are maxed out otherwise I would have had it done already. Does anybody have any suggestions?
Need Wisdom Teeth Removed
LOBEY YOUR MASTERS on 19/11/2012 - 16:53
Comments
Alot of Codeine…
regards to your financials problems I've got nothing sorry..
if it is just pain, sometimes it goes away after a few days so you can save for it but if they need to go they need to go…I need all 4 out aswell, noo good. A friend of mine is getting his done soon and was quoted $2400, so seems like you've got a reasonable price.
Unfortunately I can't really put it off for too much longer. Once they get infected and cause an abscess to form it's not advisable to keep them there. I'm no doctor but I wouldn't be surprised if the infection is what's making me feel like dirt lately. I guess my only options are to sell some stuff or try to get another credit card.
You could always try a dental school in your state.
Whilst it was over 2-3 years ago, if you live in Melbourne, go to Footscray "Future Medical Imaging Group" around Hopkins St.
I got 4 wisdom removed for ~$1200 which includes general anesthetic from an anesthetist.
The dental surgeon is very skilled, in fact when I woke up, I felt absolutely no pain/discomfort and no post surgery bleeding.
Forgot the dudes name, though.
The dental school is a good idea. Its near Central station in Sydney I believe. Of course if its really a problem there is a little known item called a dental care plan. Most GPs don't like doing the paperwork but if you have a medical condition eg diabetes or something that necessitates good dental hygiene then you are likely to be eligible. I'd certainly discuss it with your GP and request that they suppy you with a dental care plan. Many older Australians are unaware they are eligible for cheaper dentures this way. There are also group coupons on occasion eg scoopon etc.
just curious,how do u go for treatment at a dental school? GP referral? just call? wont they still charge similar amounts?
NSW Health only applies if you have a health care card. Otherwise you are not eligible for dental school treatment in NSW, barring the CSU school in Wagga Wagga.
Miss Dior, with all due respect, please stop giving dental advice. You are not qualified and are providing substandard advice.
Also FYI Medicare CDDS no longer exists for new referrals. Good riddance, most rorted system ever.
CDDS finish on 1 DEC this year. all work much be done by then. i total wish i would found out about 3 years ago. went i had to pay 2,000 for work be done. i know uni do work people very cheep i got 10,000 worth of work down for just 1,000 only if they have student to do it. call local uni with dental school.
Costed me $1500 to removed 4 wisdoms under local anesthetic from a dental surgeon on Collins St, Melb and it hurts bad!!.
go to thailand and have it done.
i know some had that done not very safe but if pay bit more never get cheep guys to do it.
Obviously you check out the reputation of the hospital you are going to,there are discussion forums on that you don't go to some quack in a back street.There would be very well trained doctors in almost every country in the world, even in Africa.for $ 2000 you'd get a cheap holiday and work done and probably get a bit of change
Dose up on codus (high strength aspirin) before and after - it gets you through, though you will look like someone hit you in a fight for quite a while afterwards - at least a couple of weeks for some people due to the swelling.
If you want to keep bleeding for a significant period of time after your extraction, by all means follow this advice.
If gtrdude is medically fit, then taking aspirin won't make a significant effect on bleeding during the procedure. But if he was taking medication like warfarin, then your advice would not be helpful. Hence, you shouldn't be offering it unless you really know what you're talking about.
I am not a dentist, so take this with a grain of salt, but is based on my patient experience.
If you have an abscess it is a bacterial infection and the pus from that causes pressure on the nerves, hence the pain.
Regardless of your schedule to have the teeth removed your dentist should have prescribed anti-biotics to make the infection go away. When these kick in, after a couple of days, the pain will lessen.
Your dentist wants you to have the teeth removed because the rotting area will be liable for another infection in future.
Once the infection clears up you will have some time to organise the removal, possibly months but at least weeks.
One option you might consider is removal with only local anesthetic. I have had a single wisdom tooth removed like that, and while it was unpleasant, it was all over in 15 mins (probably less). The charge was under $300. Perhaps call a few dentists, explain financial issue and ask? Also, it seems likely that three of the removals are being done as a preventative to stop future infection, which makes sense if you are having a general anesthetic, but it might be better for you to get just the troublesome tooth removed now, with a local, and the others later when you have saved up.That all sounds like really good advice. I too had it done under local anaesthetic. Felt no pain - that only comes when the anaesthetic wears off, hence the codus. But that can happen with a general I guess. Yes it does seem like advice to prevent infection. Initially I was told to have all 4 removed, but after the surgeon got 2 out he left others as they were too close to a nerve. Twenty years later I still have them. Guess you've got to know the right questions to ask.
Yes the dentist did prescribe Anti-biotics. The amount they quoted me actually did include a local aesthetic not a general. $1700 for 2 and all 4 for $1950. Yeah I think I might need to make a few calls to different places. btw, I need a surgeon not a dentist.
Incidentally, dental surgeons and dentists are exactly the same thing.
Ignorance is hilarious.
The term dental surgeon and dentist is interchangeably useable. I can call myself either a dentist or a dental surgeon.Great neg there!
Cost me $1200 to get all 4 removed under local in Adelaide. 2 were impacted, 2 were straight - I think that effects the price a lot.
Try this website smile.com.au, heard on the radio today that they are cheaper than most dentist. I have not been to any of those dentist not not sure if it is cheaper than other dentist.
Three/fours years ago someone I know had 4 removed wisom tooth removed under local anaesthetic cost around $900 ie out of pocket.
Consult a couple of other dentists. Impacted upper wisdoms can be safely left in place if not symptomatic. Lower impacted wisdoms are better off taken out, as a generalisation. Depending on difficulty, you may find a few general dentists that may take it out for you under a local anaesthetic. Extractions, non surgical can start from $100+ depending on where you go, surgical extractions $300+. My guess is that your wisdoms do not need an oral surgeon to take out otherwise you would have been referred for wisdom teeth removal under general anaesthetic as not many OMFS surgeons like to do that sort of procedure under local.
I am a dentist.
Such crap, dental care should be on Medicare and pricing regulated. When you entertain the idea of heading to Thailand in order to get infected teeth extracted, there is something wrong with the system.
Ok, that's a whole different can of worms, but I disagree with that sentiment. It's not that I charge through the nose or anything, but when you see what cut price dentistry means in Australian society, you really don't want dentistry on Medicare with price regulation. Shit work will get shittier. Enough said.
I was in Japan a month ago (in Shizuoka prefecture) and thought I'd try one of the dentists there as I needed two fillings. Most dental treatments apart from implants are available on national insurance (Medicare) in Japan.
They certainly take their time. I said I had a cavity (mushiba) and they gave me a cleaning and scale and sent me home and told me to come back in a week. Then they did x-rays (3 sets) and told me to come back tomorrow.
Finally I got in the dentist's chair, the guy looked in my mouth and curled his lip. "Some of these fillings are massive", he said "I have no idea why some dentists remove so much tissue." He said he couldnt use amalgam as it wasn't permitted there but he could do polycomposite and I said fine because the fillings were near the smile line anyway.
The total cost was $70 AUD. I asked my wife how it was so cheap and she said: competition. There were two other dental surgeries within walking distance of her house. She said unlike the Australian government, the Japanese government wasn't afraid to train as many dentists as the country requires and to let medical professionals go broke if they were hopeless. "Its a lot easier and faster to let the market weed out bad practitioners than to try and sanction them". Can't argue with that really.
Supplier costs are also ridiculous in Australia compared to overseas. Dental supplies are already expensive, but Australia is just highway robbery. I bought a dental headlight for $1100 from USA parcel forwarded. Expensive as it is, for a light with a battery pack. Australian supplier quoted some of my friends $2200 for the exact same equipment from the same manufacturer.
Medicare scheme is difficult to enforce. Current CDDS scheme which is ending at the end of the month was not properly introduced, hellish situation with the paperwork for a while, also every Joe Blow and his dog could get the scheme even though the scheme was for chronic disease sufferers who really needed to get their mouths back on track. Somehow people with mild asthma and supposed mild clinical depression managed to get it for orthodontic work or veneers or whatever. Old people somehow got it as an entitlement because they were old, and would come in demanding treatment that was stopgap and would last for say months rather than agreeing to treatment that would put them in stable situations for years to come. Others would demand a new set of dentures every year because of messed up expectations of what their dentures should be like, compared to reality. Worst of all were the dentists that thought that since the government was paying for it, they could afford to give patients substandard treatment and re-do it later for more work.
I'm not against dentistry on Medicare, but I hope someone really thinks it through properly before introducing it, otherwise it's a waste of all our taxpayer money and I might just rage quit dentistry as a result of all the headaches that Medicare brings.
I don't disagree with you. I think if they want to provide dental coverage to the wider population they should do so comprehensively and transparently, rather than through lurks, perks and loopholes, as was the case with CDDS.
Because the dentist is offering to take out all 4 under local anaesthesia, one could assume that they wouldn't be that difficult to pull. Only an ass would put a patient through the trauma of 4 difficult wisdom teeth extractions under just local anaesthesia. But it's hard to say without examination / xrays.
In any case, you should really consider giving your nearest dental school a call. If they're not particularly difficult, a final year student or even 4th year student could tackle it. If they charge anything like they (dental schools) do here, then it would be significantly cheaper. But I'm pretty sure all the students are on holidays now. Worth giving it a shot though. Otherwise, you could still see a professional dentist working for the dental school and get a quote from them.
If that doesn't work out, give other private dental clinics a ring. Do keep in mind that dentists have varying levels of skills for wisdom teeth extractions. If your case is difficult, some dentists may just refer you to someone who is capable. Also ask around friends / family / online regarding any good recommendations for dentists. If you were in Brisbane / Gold Coast, then I would be able to help you out a bit, but I am guessing you are from Melbourne?
I can appreciate that this is a very uncomfortable situation and if I were in your position, this is the course of action I would take.
By the way, are your wisdom teeth causing you a lot of pain right now?
Oh, I forgot to mention a vital bit of information … are you sure the pricing your dentist quoted is correct? To have it done under local anaesthesia i.e. just under a dental needle, not sleeping gas? $1950 sounds more like the price one would charge for all 4 teeth under general anaesthesia.
What about private health insurance that lets you claim straight away?
I had a wisdom tooth extracted by my dentist with just local anaesthetic. I got an instant refund from health insurance and only paid the gap which was about $50 I think.
Didn't know there was such a thing??? Who are you with?
They sometimes have specials where they waive the waiting period
Surgical wisdom teeth are always under major dental coverage which ALWAYS has a waiting period.
Only normal tooth extraction is covered under general dental which is the only part of the insurance that has no waiting period under health fund promotions.
Health funds are rather pointless if you're not getting a tax rebate/avoiding the medicare levy surcharge. Even then, on average you pay more in premiums than you get back.
Health funds are rather pointless if you're not getting a tax rebate/avoiding the medicare levy surcharge.
Unless, of course, you need to have gall bladder surgery in a fortnight and end up having to wait 8 months instead. You can lose a lot of weight during that time if you're unable to eat much other than vegetable broth.
Sorry, referring mostly to extras cover.
Elaborate?
I pay 17.50 a fortnight for gold extras.
The 2 annual tooth cleans/checkups + yearly xrays etc pretty much cover the yearly fees.Plus the occasional physio etc from sports injuries.
To be fair i might not have gone as often if i was paying 100% of these costs, but yeah.Most people barely break even with extras cover. Also people who pay their premiums out for the waiting period to get work done are kidding themselves. Better to pay out of pocket.
My bad I didn't read the fine print.
When they say they waive the waiting times it actually has a clause in the fine print saying that major dental still has a waiting period of 12 months.
I am with HBF.You can get basic extras cover for $213 per year after 30% rebate so it's pretty easy to break even. It all depends on personal circumstance though. If you don't need Dental work, Optical, Physio, etc then you can easily do without it. But if you do need any of this on a regular basis then it makes sense to get it, because it will save you money.
I got all 4 removed in two goes ( left/ right) at Logan Hospital (public hospital) all for free with my health care card. it's a lottery draw sort of line up everyday so expect to wait about 6 hours on the day and not sure about how long wait it is for the appointment.
6 hr wait to save $1500+ sounds good
Ask your dentist if you can have them removed in the chair, a side at a time. This is what I did as I was given the option of all 4 at once costing $1200 or $300 a side. This was 8 years ago so I'm guessing the cost is a bit more these days. Anyway I think they are way gentler with you when you haven't been knocked out. Also you can get the worse side done, eat still on the other side of your mouth and when you are all healed and got some money again you can book in the other side. So overall cheaper and less painful!
fly India, you will get 5 star treatment in best hospitals without waiting in queue or waiting for appointment as low as $10 for all four removed.
$10 for 4 teeth seems scary cheap. i prefer thailand. is bangkok smile dental reputation still good as few years ago?
silom dental quality isnt that good anymore.
i need a bridgeU can have it free as well as there are many hospitals doing charity work. I told you $10 rate for lavish hospital. When I was kid, I had my three deciduous teeth removed by best dentist in my city for just $2 - $3.
when i lived in Japan I had a bridge fitted for $120.
It was under their national health insurance scheme.
ill do it for cheap although you might end up with the wrong teeth missing, a black eye and broken nose.
But really, it might be cheaper for you to go with private health insurance like ahm, then get it done in a couple of months.
Also, the GF had hers done about a year ago, Im pretty sure it cost less then 1K
i heard it's cheaper having it done overseas (philippines or thailand) with all those dental holiday packages.
thats what i plan to do but most reviews i find on google are from 2008-2010 so need more recent ones, thanks
Depends on what you're doing, but complex work if done poorly will cost you close to double the initial Australian quote to fix. I've been shown one from another dentist where the patient went to Turkey and paid AUD$2500 for 6 implants with crowns and bridges. It's going to cost the patient upwards of $40000 to fix with a prosthodontist.
Good luck.
http://www.wisdomdentalemergency.com.au/pricing
check the above place->950$ for all 4 or may be less if you are uni student.
Located in Melbourne CBD & Sydney.
I was in same boat as you last year, was told to get all 4 WT rmoved by surgeon and surgeon quoted me near 3K$ and later I found above dentist.
I got appointnmnt booked but got it cancelled due to work commitment. So far am good without extraction, will get it removed sometime next year but Dentist seems geniune to me.
This looks interesting. I'd just about be willing to give it a crack.
that seems expensive. I got all 4 of mine out for i think $1100 inc anaesthetic and everything - by the guy recommended by my dentist (this is in geelong). I would say shop around - get quotes from multiple oral surgeons.
I had 4 removed in 2009, I probably paid too much but 2 of them were less than 1mm from nerves so it was probably more complicated than most (pinch those nerves and risk half your face dropping for life) had to go to hospital under anaesthetic. The breakdown was the following:
Surgery: $1,150
Anaesthetic: $423
Operation: $780TOTAL: $2,353
I forget what came under "Surgery" and what came under "Operation", just quoting what I'd put in my budget software.
Just do one that causing trouble, and the rest later
As a pom, I just went back to pommieland at xmas and had my wisdoms out for 0$ in hospital with a full anesthetic bet trip to the dentist ever.
As a fellow pom i'd be very interested to know how you went about doing that? Isnt there a long waiting list to get it done under the NHS?
Stupid question here, but why are wisdom teeth so expensive to remove compared to others?
Long story short, dentists charge not so much on a case to case basis, but more so on the amount of time and effort we project that we require to spend on the particular procedure. Wisdom teeth depending on circumstances can be either some of the easiest or most difficult teeth to remove in the mouth, and often times can be deceptively difficult. I've had cases where I've sworn the tooth would come out in 2 minutes and it's taken 2 hours to get out, and other cases where I've expected a difficult procedure and it's come out pretty much instantaneously.
Basically we try and even out the charges so that we mitigate our risks across a number of cases rather than charging this particular patient 100 bucks and the next patient 800 bucks etc.
the audi and/or bmw out back needs insurance.
Everyone's so cynical. There are plenty more lucrative and less soul destroying career options than being a dentist.
Also, the typical dentist car these days appears to be a VW Golf.
Do you think so? I've often thought it compares well to being a lawyer (ahem). Sure you have to stare at people's mouths all day but at least you can deliver a tangible benefit to people in the hour they spend in your chair.
The grass is always greener, I suppose.
Lawyers and dentists, most hated professions in the world. My partner and I not too far behind, dentist and auditor… Some days I just want to punch some patients in the face for being such morons.
I don't even drive a Golf. I'm driving an Astra that a lady gave to me because she couldn't pay her bill.
Wait for the MK7 lol…
I had all four wisdom teeth removed in two sessions spread out over a week at Yanhee Hospital, Bangkok, Thailand, in 2003.
Then, during the same trip I had initial fitting of orthodontic braces in Bangkok. Follow up visits over two years were done by a Sydney orthodontist.
I can't remember the costs other than the overall savings paid for airfares and two weeks in Thailand.
The Yanhee Hospital extractions went smoothly without complications. They gave me antibiotics and I toured Bangkok between each session - going between the ice machines at the 7/11 stores and holding bags of ice against my jaw to reduce the swelling - which eased fairly quickly.
Yanhee is also known as one of the world's leading hospitals for the Thai lady boys to have their sex change operations. Apparently Yanhee has done more such procedures than any other hospital.
So, if you explore this option… Just make sure you go to the correct floor in the hospital…. Or otherwise you could risk having more than just wisdom teeth removed! :-)
I have nothing but praise for the treatment I had there. :-)
Try Singapore, very reputable for doctors and dentist, you can email them for a quote, I had 4 wisdom tooth removed and 1 molar replaced with new crown and did root canalling for about $1800 Singapore dollars. Hope this helps
To be honest, Singapore is comparable in cost to Australia in terms of dental treatment. You just need to shop around in terms of locality and surgery. Certain suburbs cost more than others, eg of course you're going to pay through the nose to see a dentist in the CBD compared to out in the suburbs.
If you know someone in China then you are in luck. The hospitals there may not have the most expensive equipments in the world but they sure have some of the most experienced doctors/dentists.
I work in an ethnic practice where a lot of patients go to China for their dental work. I'm not against it, but I always recommend finding a good dentist in China. I see far too many dodgy jobs from China, half finished root canals with crowns, super long bridges, crowns that don't fit, rushed fillings with gaps, untreated gum problems, foreign dentists telling patients that cleans and flossing damage the gums… So no I wouldn't say experienced Chinese dentists are of any major benefit. By the same token I've heard of a guy on Macquarie St Sydney who is super old school. I've seen a few of his patients who come in which untreated gum issues who tell me they've never been told about it. Experience is not such a big thing.
To OP, I believe there is an option to have it payed through Medicare, pease don't quote me, but I believe the process is to go to your general practice and say its so painful that you cannot carry out daily duties, eg work etc an its affecting your quality of life etc, if you at overweight or have another medical condition eg diabetes or asthma this may assist our case.
Please don't neg, I know it's vague but a friend of mine did it. Worth investigating though.
Al the best
Note: a GP that is known for easy scripts and Certs would probably be the go…"Chronic health problems is also some key words"
Scheme is over and I have reported people in the past for fraud. Don't rort the system.
Medicare won't pay for dental procedures.
Get a creditcard and get it done.. it's only 2k.
For a lot of people, even $5 is a lot of money. God forbid they spend money on their teeth when there are thousands of dollars worth of Apple products, accessories, jewellery, fine dining to be spent on.
1200$ is a usual price for 4 wisdom teeth extraction. You should shop around a bit.
$2200 for me to have all 4 removed under General in Adelaide, about 8 months ago.
Or increase your limit on your existing credit card. Consider a zero balance 12 month credit card transfer after that and get it paid off quick. Heart disease is associated with gum infection. Don't muck around.
Had anyone tried the wisdom professional? http://www.wisdomdentalemergency.com.au/pricing is the shown price as $970 reliant, anyone had experience with them?
Yes I think they were mentioned higher up in this thread. I did go there for an initial consultation. Be aware that they will charge you for this consult as well as xray fees. He took an xray and told me that he would not do the extraction in the chair. He wanted me to have it done in a hospital because it was "too risky" to be done in the chair. To have it done in the hospital would cost an extra $1000 or so.
Do u remember how much the X-ray cost? Is it done within their clinic.? Thx
I can't remember how much it was for the xray sorry. It is done in their clinic though. Any dentist can do this though.
lol i paid $800 for all my 4 wisdom teeth. Also local anesthetic by a dentist.
If your in Sydney, pm me and ill pass on the details.
i've got two wisdoms that have to come out and i think the cheapest quote i got was $500
I might get eastern culture's contact but I'm putting it off because its not critical and i'm a chickenshit
Apparently I should have mine out as well, but putting it off because they are not giving any trouble and not keen paying out nearly 2k for it.