Dental Implants in Vietnam: Cost and What to Check
The short answer.
Implants in Vietnam can cost less up front, but check the dentist's registration and implant experience, the implant brand, and what the quote covers. Plan for healing time between stages, follow-up visits and the cost of travel.
Missing teeth can affect how you eat, speak and smile, and dental implants have become a common and effective solution. Lower prices draw many Australians to look at implants in Vietnam. This guide covers the types of implant, what to ask a clinic before you commit, and the costs to plan for. If you’d rather explore treatment closer to home, read about dental implants at Dental Spot in Croydon.
Explanation of Dental Implants
Dental implants are a widely used way to replace missing teeth, offering a long-lasting, natural-looking result. Unlike dentures or bridges, dental implants are designed to fuse with the jawbone and provide a stable base for replacement teeth.
Getting dental implants typically involves multiple steps and appointments with a dentist. After an initial consultation and examination, the implant is surgically placed into the jawbone and allowed to heal and integrate with the bone over several months. Once the implant has fused with the jawbone, an abutment is attached to the implant, which connects the implant to the replacement tooth or teeth.
Dental implants can be made to match the shape, size and colour of your existing teeth, and you can brush and floss them like natural teeth. Your dentist will check whether you’re a good candidate and talk you through the benefits and risks.
Types of Dental Implants
Endosteal implants are the most common type of dental implant and are typically made of titanium. They are surgically placed directly into the jawbone and allowed to fuse with the bone over time. They can support one or more replacement teeth.
Subperiosteal implants sit under the gum but above the jawbone. They are used for some patients who don’t have enough healthy jawbone for endosteal implants.
Zygomatic implants are an option for some patients with severe bone loss in the upper jaw. Rather than being anchored in the jawbone, they are anchored in the cheekbone. They need advanced surgical training and are used only in particular cases.
All-on-4 implants use four implants to support a full arch of replacement teeth, and are an alternative to traditional dentures for people missing most or all of their teeth.
The right type for you depends on the amount of healthy jawbone, the number of teeth to replace and your overall oral health.
What to Ask a Clinic in Vietnam
The dentists who place implants in Vietnam, as anywhere, have different levels of training and experience. Before you book, ask:
- About the dentist: their registration, their training in implant dentistry, and how many implant cases like yours they treat.
- About the implant: the brand and model they use, and whether you’ll get its details in writing to bring home.
- About the planning: whether they take a 3D scan (CBCT) before surgery to check your bone.
- About infection control: how instruments are sterilised.
- About aftercare: how many visits are included, and what happens if the implant doesn’t integrate.
What the Cost Covers
Before you compare prices, check what each quote includes: the scan, the implant post, the abutment, the crown, any bone graft, and the follow-up visits. Add the cost of flights, accommodation and time off work, possibly for more than one trip, since implants need several months of healing between stages.
In Australia, CHOICE’s guide to dental fees (updated 9 March 2023, using the Australian Dental Association’s 2022 fee survey) puts the average fee for placing one implant at $1,334 to $3,000, and for the abutment at $400 to $1,404, depending on the state. The crown is extra: the survey’s closest item, a veneered crown on a natural tooth, mostly costs $1,250 to $2,100. Scans, extractions and bone grafts add to that. These are published Australian figures, not our fees: your quote depends on your teeth, so ask us for a written one if you’d like a like-for-like comparison.
Australian private health insurance generally doesn’t cover treatment overseas. In Australia, some extras policies pay a benefit towards implant treatment, so check with your fund.
Aftercare When You’re Home
Implants need regular check-ups and professional cleaning to stay healthy. If you have treatment overseas, plan where you’ll have these visits once you’re home, and how you’ll reach the treating dentist if something needs attention. A dentist at home can look after an implant more easily when they know its brand and size.
Before You Book
Smartraveller, the Australian Government’s travel advice service, notes that elective procedures can cost much less in some countries, and that while many hospitals overseas are of a similar standard to Australia’s, quality and standards in some countries can be poor. Its advice before you book treatment overseas includes:
- check that the dentist is registered with the local authority and has indemnity insurance;
- check whether your travel insurance covers complications from the treatment;
- get copies of your records to bring home.
For other destinations, see our guide to dental implants overseas.
Talk to Us
If you’re weighing up implants in Vietnam, we’re happy to explain what treatment here would involve and cost, so you can compare like with like. Read about the different dental implant procedures (another site) on healthdirect.
Sources
- How much does the dentist cost? (another site), CHOICE, updated 9 March 2023
- Medical tourism (another site), Smartraveller
- Dental Implants. Part I: Biological basis, implant types, and the peri-implant sulcus (another site), Journal of the New Zealand Society of Periodontology, 1994
- Dental implants (another site), Oral Health Foundation
This guide is general information, not advice about your own teeth. Your dentist can tell you what applies to you, including the risks of any treatment.
Any surgical or invasive procedure carries risks. Before proceeding, you should seek a second opinion from an appropriately qualified health practitioner.
