Job Discussion Forums

[Mark Beckman]

Heading to China early next year and I need to get a filling or 2 done.

This raises my question, what are the opinions of Dentists in China ?

Are they easy to source and are they reliable ect. ?

Or should I put in the do not basket and get it attended too before leaving ?

[naturegirl321]

Hmm, I got two white fillings for about 12 dollars each. Three months later I had to get them redone here in Peru because they fell out. The first chinese dentist I went to looked in my mouth for about 10 seconds, told me nothing was broken and that I didn't need anything to be done. . . .

[Sinobear]

There are some excellent dentists here with modern equipment and affordable prices. Do a search for dentists in the China Off Topic Form for some more information.


Cheers!

[Mark Beckman]

Thanks for taking the time Guys

[Roger]

Most dentists work in offices with a glass wall to the streetside so you can actually watch as they extract their patient's teet...

Good dentists are not so easy to find, I believe. Anyway, those that are reliable operate in big cities; I would recommend my Guangzhou dentist because he trained in Hong Kong and the U.S.A.
And the bridges he is trying to sell in China are imported ones. Not Chinese knock-offs.

[Sinobear]

Roger, I just have to say this here and now...

I wish I had access to some of the drugs you must be doing sometimes!





Cheers!

[nolefan]

you can find some pretty good dentists in the bigger cities (beijing, Shanghai.....) I went to King's Dental in Beijng and I have to admit that I was impressed with the equipment as well as the doctors and nurses. They were pretty darn good. Check out my full review in the China off topic forums

PM if you have any questions.

B.

[shenyanggerry]

One of my colleagues had a root canal done a week after he arrived in China. I haven't heard any complaints since. He did go to a dentist recommended by the university.

[Mark Beckman]

Thanks Guys I have further info from a Canadian in Chongqing who has a dentist that did 2 caps and a bridge for $300 and excellent work in modern surroundings.

I guess I will make an appointment when I get there and I know at what time of the day too....

Tooth Hurty.........

[Old Dog]

Some say there are good dentists here. My problem is that I haven't found them. In our town, dentists do like the shop with the big glass window and like to prop their patients up in a chair next to the window for the benefit of passers-by. My first broken tooth took me to the No. 1 Hospital dental clinic - no patients there, the dentist discussing "business" with a friend and the place so dirty that I was more than ready to agree with the dentist that I'd get used to the break and nothing really needed to be done. I was returning home a few weeks later. That would do me, I thought, since the place was just too dreadful to contemplate.

My second broken tooth demanded an internet search for the names of good dental clinics in Shanghai. Off to the Foreigners' Hospital section of the Ruijin Hospital in Shanghai. Such a lovely building! I was introduced with no wait to Doctor Wang, a sturdy lass of about 50. She got stuck into my tooth, effected some sort of procedure and charged me about $50. Then I began to wish I'd just decided to put up with the break and wait till I got home. Dr. Wang filled the tooth with some sort of old-fashioned plastic that horrified the dentist at home and took him an age to remove. Then she had glued the broken tooth to the teeth on either side - a common Chinese dental practice it seems. For stability, apparently. But my teeth, at least, were not accustomed to being "fixed" in threes. I think they expect some degree of independent mobility. As a result, I had to endure a dull, non-stop ache in my upper jaw until I could get home and have whatever Dr Wang had done undone.

After these experiences, I would never go to another dental clinic in China. I'd find a western trained dentist in Hong Kong and go there regardless of inconvenience and cost. Or I'd fly home. For me, those streetside places are out, dirty people's hospitals are out and the Shanghai Ruijin hospital is out. At home, I can trust the procedure, the materials and the skill of the dentist. I now feel that before anyone has any work done here, apart from checking on hygiene aspects and the level of training of the dentist, they should want to know what procedure would be followed and what materials would be used in the procedure. You are, otherwise, at risk of a minimally-trained dentist, with no access to modern materials and probably without access to info. re modern developments in dentistry, imposing on your fangs crazy procedures with materials that went out 30 years ago in the west. As far as dentistry is concerned, cost is but one of the factors to be taken into account - for me, anyway.

[Roger]