Question About Studies On Thailand Dental Care

[californiabeachboy]

I spend part of the year in Thailand, and may decide to get some dental work done there. I have read through the forums here on recommendations etc., but I wonder if any organization has done any study about the quality of the dental care in Thailand vs other countries.

I love to complain about the cost of dental work here in the US (having just come back from paying the dentist $1200 US for a crown), but the fact is that over many years of dental work here, I have never had a serious problem. The US dentists tend to "oversell" here, but at least in my case, they have done a good job

Does anyone know of any such studies by an objective organization? I did a google search but didn't come up with anything. Also, I assume dental malpractice insurance is not common there - is that correct?

Thanks

[lopburi3]

There is little need for insurance as nobody sue's to any extent. Dentists are trained in both US and Europe so there is some difference in procedures I believe (not a dentist) but from better hospitals/clinics the quality is as good as anywhere and I suspect better than most places as almost all are specialist (as with other doctors) so expert at the procedure they perform. As to cost my last caps here at high priced facility was about half the US price you mentioned. Not as cheap as many expect but believe as good any available anywhere.

[Sheryl]

No, there has been no such study and I can't imagine who would fund one nor how it would acquire the data.

And as Lopburi3 said, malpractice suits are very rare here.

There are some very good dentists in Thailand, but like anywhere, also some mediocre and poor ones.

[maxme]

I always go to some reliable clinics or hospitals even if they are more expensive than Thailand's average .

[californiabeachboy]

Thanks for the responses. I guess the biggest concern for me is not the quality of dentists, as there are good ones and bad ones everywhere. But I do worry a bit about the recourse that a patient may have in the event of a serious problem. That tends to keep the dentists in line a bit more.

I have a couple of friends in Thailand so I will get recommendations from them and try to develop a relationship with a dentist I trust.

Cheers.

[RobCarter]

Out of all the research I did, I decided to go with Dr. Sunil. Hes not just a dentist, but also an artist, which is important if you want to have nice looking and strong teeth. I just got 6 crowns and laser whitening from him, and am very impressed. He caters to mainly foreigners, and will pick you up and drop you off anywhere in bkk. Cost for 6 crowns, laser whitening, and corrective surgery... 90,000 Baht.