nice surprise in dental fee

[menthe]

Yes, arrived at that time in life when teeth fall out without any apparent reason.

Got an appointment at very short notice.....nice, isn't it, but that's not the only nice surprise.

The dentist is going to put in a crown for me and his assistant prepared the devis.  She said because the crown will be visible when I smile, I will get the maximum remboursement from CPAM!

I know that dental fees were recented altered but I have had no need to look at them too closely.  Has this clause about visibility of a tooth when you smile always been there or is that new?

I had a crown done about 10 years ago and the cost was nearly twice of what I am expecting to pay this time.

[Lori]

I'm not sure if the color of the crown is part of a new thing or not.  I had to have a crown replaced last December (2022) and the Dentist offered me the option of paying for the 'white' one or having the visible one covered by the carte vital.   I chose to pay for the 'white' one.  It was nice to have the option though.

 

 

[Un autre Gallois]

Just had a crown, ceramic, fitted at the front - 850€! After CPAM & mutuelle contributions my charge was 280€. A temporary one was fitted (60€) pending the definitive one (600€) - I did have one above the standard basic type so expected to pay a bit!

Just to be clear Menthe - is it a crown or an implant you're discussing?

UaG

[Lori]

Couldn't be an implant as that is an entirely different ball of wax.  OH Going through that now.

[Un autre Gallois]

I understand the difference, but confused by the OP referring to  teeth falling out (not broken); where is the crown fitted in this case?

UaG 

[menthe]

Gallois, when I said teeth, I used the word loosely.  Actually I did think it was my tooth that had fallen out or sheered off.  I wrapped it up very carefully and took it with me, thinking in my simple mind that maybe he could sort of stick or cement it back.  When I unwrapped it to show the dentist, telling him it was a treasure, he said no, that is not your tooth and it's of no use. 

So you see, I was confused as well.  Actually, now he's cleaned off all the filling and black (I presume lead) stuff, there is underneath a half nice white tooth stump.

Certainly not an implant.  I had 2 of those about 6 years ago and they cost about 2000 euroseach.  That did not include the 100 euros I paid for a scan of my jaws.

A friend in the UK is also now having tooth problems and would have liked an implant but apparently he does not have enough bone in his jaw.  So it must be pretty routine to have a bone scan before taking it any further. 

My last crown done in France would have been about 12 years ago and I remember it cost well in excess of 700 euros.  Seem to remember that, in those days, the contribution from CPAM was neglibible.

I'm likely to have another crown redone but I have always promised myself that I'd pay whatever the cost to have whatever work is necessary for my teeth. After all, if you had something wrong with your house or your car or your dog, you'd just go ahead and get it done, wouldn't you? 

 

[Lehaut]

12 hours ago, menthe said:

black (I presume lead)

Mercury amalgam I hope!

[menthe]

Lehaut, please excuse my ignorance but....is mercury not even more poisonous than lead?😫

[Lehaut]

Indeed menthe, mad hatters and all that.  Roman ladies used lead mixture to whiten their faces (knowing it was poison), lead was used to sweeten wine.  Mercury was used to tread syphilis and many other ailments for over 3000 years.

Most heavy metal poisoning with mercury is by inhaling the vapour.  Inhalation of lead  tetraethyl in leaded petrol has killed tens of millions of people, far more then mercury. 

Dental amalgam is a mixture of metals, consisting of liquid  (elemental) mercury and a powdered alloy composed of silver, tin, and copper. Approximately half (50%) of dental amalgam is elemental mercury by weight. The chemical properties of elemental mercury allow it to react with and bind together the silver/copper/tin alloy particles to form an amalgam, which the dentist pushed into the clean cavities - you might remember hearing the slight squeaking noise as he worked it in (I do). it then sets hard.  No lead is used.

In teeth it is quite stable, though some people are convinced it is not so.  Some are also concerned when bodies are burned in crematoriums as it turns the mercury back to vapour, 1.2 grams per body on average.

Mercury is more poisonous then lead, you are correct.

[menthe]

Wow, Lehaut, just wow!

Actually, I don't think he will use this amalgam stuff.  Don't know what he will use instead, certainly something that won't show.  He seems very fussy about the colour of the crown so I don't think he will fill it in with any old grotty amalgam!😳

[Judith]

Menthe, there are other products they use now, at least if they anything like up to date.  It is set by heat, and I have had quite a few, it also matches teeth now too I believe now.  I don't think many dentists would use mercury amalgam now unless cost is the major consideration which who knows, it might be, in France??  I'm pleased ot say that over the years anaesthetics have got more efficient too, and less long lasting with fewer side effects.

Edited October 1, 2023 by Judith

[menthe]

Well here I am proud as punch of my new crown!  Don't get ideas, it's not crown as in queen's accessory, just the one the dentist put in.  Note to self: remember to smile broadly and show it off whenever opportunity arises!

Thought I'd come back and let folk know what 100% prise en charge means.  If you are as lucky as I am and you need a crown on a tooth that is visible when you smile, your total amount to pay is 84€.  I couldn't believe it but sometimes seeing is believing and I still couldn't believe it until I had a closer look at the bill.

My next 2 crowns will however, be "prémolaire" (that's what they are called in French!) and will cost nearer  to about 500€ each .  Still 3 for 2 which is better than most supermarkets are offering at the moment😆

Judith, the materials making up the crowns are ceramic with metal core.  The devis says "céramométal".

[DaveLister]

Well done Menthe smiling all the way to the bank 😁

[Lori]

I did not know that Menthe.  My last crown (Dec. 2022 - back molar) was 500€  It would have been 250€ had I not chosen the whiter color.

Glad this one is done for you Menthe, and it didn't break the bank.

A crown in the U.S. runs about $1700, sometimes more.  What, if anything, you get back from insurance will depend on your coverage.  Typically you are stuck paying at least 50% of the cost out of pocket.

 

[menthe]

Lori, I didn't know that either and that's why I posted. Looks like the 100% is for front teeth.

Dave, your post about smiling has put some ideas into my head.  Imagine, if dentists were as numerous as the punaises on the Paris underground and everybody had access to one without driving distances and then feeling like you have won the lottery if you found one who would treat you?

At one stroke, you could put an end to mental health problems (that's the illness du jour, right?) and people would go around smiling at everybody with their full complement of teeth.  They wouldn't have to be embarrassed about gaps and stumps of decaying teeth.  Their breaths would smell better too.

People would be able to eat and chew better.  Old folk in the maisons de retraite would be able to eat food other than pap like mince and mashed potatoes.  The Brits can crunch on orange pippins and celery and the French would be able to crunch on their baguettes instead of dunking them in their coffee.

If you were a politician, you could simplify your manifesto.  No need to talk about the economy or pouvoir achat, you'd simply say "Dentists for ALL" and watch the other candidates fall like skittles while you smile all the way to Downing Street or the Elyssé or the White House.

If you were a voter, you would no longer have to worry about politicians looking down on you and labelling you a "sans dents" as Hollande so shamefully did (and him a socialist!!)

You have triggered all these thoughts, Dave, because I can tell you that of all the half dozen or so medical visits I have had in recent weeks, I haven't smiled so broadly as when I came out of the dentist's with my new crown!

[Lori]

You said it Menthe !! 

The candidate who brings Dentists to all will get my support.  And, if he promises GYN's to all the ladies and GP's to all, well life would change completely.

 

 

[Judith]

22 hours ago, menthe said:

Well here I am proud as punch of my new crown!  Don't get ideas, it's not crown as in queen's accessory, just the one the dentist put in.  Note to self: remember to smile broadly and show it off whenever opportunity arises!

Thought I'd come back and let folk know what 100% prise en charge means.  If you are as lucky as I am and you need a crown on a tooth that is visible when you smile, your total amount to pay is 84€.  I couldn't believe it but sometimes seeing is believing and I still couldn't believe it until I had a closer look at the bill.

My next 2 crowns will however, be "prémolaire" (that's what they are called in French!) and will cost nearer  to about 500€ each .  Still 3 for 2 which is better than most supermarkets are offering at the moment😆

Judith, the materials making up the crowns are ceramic with metal core.  The devis says "céramométal".

Menthe,

Thanks, I was thinking more of the actual fillings they do, which are certainly now almost all white and "fixed" by dry heat .. happy that you are happy with your crown, interesting pricing regime the French have!!