The price difference of a dental implant is tens of thousands of yuan, can it be reduced?
Why are dental implants expensive? What's new in the inclusion of centralized procurement? Reporters interview industry experts
It costs 10,000 or 20,000 yuan to plant a tooth. "A good tooth, a BMW". The high price of dental implants has always been a pain point for people's livelihood. The centralized procurement of dental implants has also been widely concerned.
Recently, the "Notice of the National Medical Security Administration on Carrying out Special Treatment of Oral Implant Medical Service Charges and Consumables Prices" was officially announced, which clarified that oral implants will be collected collectively, dental crowns will be auctioned and listed on the net, and dental implant medical services will be price controlled. The target of the whole-process regulation and control of medical service prices in tertiary public hospitals is 4,500 yuan per tooth.
Why are dental implants so expensive?
On the occasion of the "National Love Teeth Day" on September 20, the reporter interviewed industry experts.
Yangzi Evening News/Ziniu News reporter Lu Yanlin and Yang Yan
case
Planting a tooth more than 20,000 "meat pain" and distressed
"Expensive" is an inseparable keyword for the experience of dental implants on social media. The price comparison posts of various mainstream implants also have high traffic.
Citizen Ms. Shi did half a month of homework online and chose a public dental hospital in Nanjing to complete the dental implant.
Ms. Shi told the Yangzi Evening News reporter that her tooth condition has not been very good, and she has also had root canal treatment.
The problem this time was a tooth that had been root canalized as a teenager.
At that time, the treatment was not standardized. After root canal treatment, no crown was worn, and the tooth gradually fragmented. There were often small pieces of "dregs" until a piece of ribs was bitten. residual tooth roots.
What Ms. Shi lacked was not the front teeth, and it didn't affect her appearance. She thought she could make do with missing teeth, but after about half a year, the entire row of teeth became loose.
This put the treatment on the agenda, but the inspection found that it was no longer possible to fill the teeth, and only dental implants could be done.
"I only heard that dental implants are expensive, but I didn't expect it to be so expensive." Ms. Shi signed up and chose a medium-priced imported brand. The implant cost 12,000 yuan, and the all-ceramic crown added 3,200 yuan.
Ms. Shi's oral conditions are not yet suitable for direct implantation. "The doctor said that the height of the alveolar bone is not enough, and it is necessary to do maxillary sinus lifting and bone grafting powder, which will cost at least 3,000 yuan. In addition to the previous teeth cleaning, blood test, and inspection, a total of It is estimated that a tooth will cost more than 20,000 yuan." Ms. Shi has not completed the whole process of dental implantation. In the early stage, she had a maxillary sinus lift and bone grafting powder. After the anesthesia was withdrawn, it would be painful.
"It's really 'meat pain' and distressed." Ms. Shi said.
Ms. Xu needs more teeth to be implanted. "One on the left and two on the right. If you choose a medium-priced one, you have to prepare 50,000 yuan!" Money is only a part of the factor. Screws", Ms. Xu said that she had to do some psychological construction before she had the courage to get dental implants.
Clinic observation
From more than 6,000 yuan to 16,000 yuan
The basic price of dental implants can be tens of thousands of yuan
The reporter visited a number of public hospitals in Nanjing and learned that the cost of dental implants of the same brand in the top three hospitals is not much different, ranging from more than 6,000 yuan to more than 10,000 yuan.
The implants mainly come from imported brands such as South Korea, Germany and Switzerland.
Judging from the implant price list provided by a hospital, the cheapest domestic brand provided by the hospital costs 6,000 yuan for surgery + implant + porcelain crown. There are also two Korean brands within 10,000 yuan, Switzerland, Implants in Sweden cost more than 10,000 yuan.
The above is still the price of the porcelain crown. If you need to replace it with an all-ceramic crown, you need to make up for the difference of more than 3,000 yuan.
This price does not include pre-operative examinations, medications, bone grafts, etc.
That is to say, the cost of filling a missing tooth with dental implants alone can range from more than 6,000 to more than 16,000 yuan, and the difference is 10,000 yuan.
If you choose digital planting services such as precision planting guides, you will need to pay another 2,000-5,000 yuan.
The reporter learned that many private dental medical institutions have also launched promotions for dental implants, including "plant one, send one", "imported dental implants from South Korea 2,688 yuan", "100 yuan deducted 10,000 yuan" and so on.
It seems that the price is a lot lower, but there are also consumers who have doubts, mainly focusing on "I don't know what inspections and treatments are included in this price", "I don't know the brand and name of the implant", "Worry about the 'after-sales' treatment after implantation", etc. .
Doctor's detailed explanation
Why are dental implants so expensive?
In addition to expensive materials, dental implants also have technical fees
Dental implants are also considered to be the "third set of teeth" of human beings.
Fu Zhen, director of the Department of Stomatology of the Fourth Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, introduced that the method of filling missing teeth has gone through many "iterations".
Initially, removable, hooked dentures (removable dentures) could be fitted after missing teeth, which would need to be removed for daily "brushing" cleaning.
After development, porcelain teeth/bridges (fixed dentures) have gradually become mainstream.
"For example, if one tooth is missing, grind down the two good teeth on both sides, and make a 'porcelain bridge' brace to keep the three teeth together." In the opinion of Director Fu Zhen, this kind of more mainstream more than ten years ago Although the method can achieve a more comfortable state, the disadvantage is to grind off the good teeth on both sides.
Therefore, in recent years, dental implants, which are closer to natural teeth in terms of function, structure and appearance, have gradually entered people's attention with the advantages of beauty, practicality and comfort, and have become the mainstream restoration method favored by patients with missing teeth. .
The reporter learned that the cost of dental implants is mainly composed of three parts: medical service costs, implant consumables costs, crown production and material costs.
Many people think that dental implants are expensive, in fact, because "planting a tooth" is not just as simple as "planting" a tooth into the mouth.
Director Fu Zhen said frankly that if you want to plant a tooth in your mouth, you first need a doctor to evaluate the hard and soft tissues of the oral cavity.
"The so-called hard tissue is to evaluate the bone. Use CT to see if the height, width, and density of the bone can be implanted. If not, some increments and bone grafts must be used to allow it to be implanted." The so-called soft tissue refers to It is to evaluate whether the gums are healthy and whether there is periodontal disease.
The technical content of dental implants is relatively high. First of all, to become a mature clinical dental implant doctor requires repeated specialist training and exercise. Undoubtedly, the technical cost of professional doctors is relatively high.
After perfecting a series of treatments to ensure that the patient's "oral soil" is suitable for implanting a tooth, the doctor also needs to make a precise design for "how to plant".
"A nail should be driven into the bone in a three-dimensional direction. Is it buccal or lingual? How deep is the tooth implant after avoiding blood vessels and nerves? All these need to be designed by the doctor in the early stage." The reporter learned that during the implant surgery After 3-6 months, a second-stage treatment is required, and the implant crown is placed in the mouth and the occlusion is adjusted.
"The process of dental implants does not end when the teeth are implanted." Director Fu Zhen pointed out that after that, it is still necessary to conduct regular follow-up consultations on the use of teeth and whether there are complications.
It is understood that the current general treatment process for dental implants requires patients to visit at least 4 to 5 times, and the entire treatment process takes at least 4 to 5 months.
From the perspective of implant materials, although the development of domestic brands has become more and more mature in recent years, Director Fu Zhen bluntly said that most of the implants are still imported, which is also an important reason for the relatively high cost of materials.
"The original implant as a high-end consumable costs about 4,000 to 6,000. It is expected to be reduced through centralized procurement in the future."
Market Outlook
4500 yuan to plant a tooth?
That's a misunderstanding, but price cuts are the trend
Recently, the "Notice of the National Medical Security Administration on Carrying out Special Treatment of Oral Implant Medical Service Fees and Consumables Prices" was officially announced, clarifying that oral implants will be collected.
The "Notice" clarifies that there will be centralized procurement of dental implants, bidding and listing of dental crowns, and price regulation of dental implant medical services. The target of the whole process of price regulation of dental implant medical services in tertiary public hospitals is 4,500 yuan per tooth. Yuan.
After the news was released, many people felt that the cost of 4,500 yuan for dental implants in the future was "one size fits all", and some people said, "I have half of my teeth implanted, can I return it and start again?" Director Fu Zhen said that there is a misunderstanding here. The regulated target price of 4,500 yuan is the cost of medical services for a single implant, including the sum of medical services such as outpatient examination, biochemical examination, imaging examination, implant placement, and crown placement.
According to news reports, the average cost of medical services for dental implants in China is more than 6,000 yuan, and some provinces and cities cost more than 9,000 yuan.
It should be noted that the price of 4,500 yuan of medical services should be understood as a price regulation, not the only unified standard. For some regions or medical institutions that meet certain conditions, there is still a 10%-20% targeted relaxation.
So, how much can a dental implant be reduced after the collection?
Industry experts said that since the prices of implants and crowns will also be generated through centralized procurement and bidding, it is currently impossible to calculate the overall price limit for surgical service fees + implants + crowns.
However, the original high-end brand implants cost about 4,000-6,000 yuan for import, other implants are also 2,000-3,500 yuan, and the price of dental crowns is 1,000-2,000 yuan. down to a certain extent.
The price reduction of dental implants is the general trend. Centralized procurement can allow patients with missing teeth to restore their oral health at a lower price, improve their lives, and truly benefit the people. At the same time, in the long run, it is also conducive to the development of domestic dental implant brands.