Dental Care

[Carolyn]

Okay, I know that dental care is NOT covered under the medical system here, and that you can go to a private dentist and it's going to cost a LOT of money.

However, I know there's a folktändvård, which is like a community dental system, but no way of knowing how this works.

Can anybody here tell me what happens when you NEED dental work (pain, broken tooth, etc.) and you don't have a job or a lot of money? Are you supposed to suffer until your face rots off or can you make a payment plan or is there any way you can qualify for low-income dentistry?

[Brandy]

I could be way off on this, but I think it costs the same for everyone. It can't be done any cheaper. However, there could be a special program to apply for through försäkringskassan, such as the ones for bostadsbidrag, etc. That's where I would begin.

Hope someone can help better than I could.

[Carolyn]

Thanks for the help. I know dental care is a LOT cheaper than in the U.S., but I know so little about fees and such. anders found a website showing what standard fees are, and at the moment, I guess we need to put off any visits until our economy stabilizes. Seems odd that it wouldn't be included along with medical, but I guess you have to draw the line somewhere.

[nancy]

Carolyn,
I can recommend a good private dentist to you here in Örebro. He did my entire mouth 1-2 root canals(and I much prefer how they do them here) one of which had gone gangrene, several fillings, some redoing of fillings, cleaning the teeth as well as under the gums which were in serious trouble. Took me more than four visits, my mouth was a mess. He had lustgas available, perfectly willing to use it when requested. Whole thing only cost me 5000kr and he let me just come in and make the payments that I could. He even speaks english, which was great since I went to him back in 2000 before I could speak swedish. His office is in stortorget. There's a little group of tandläkare there, I'm really sure it's the guy named Håkan Wass. Tho I'd really have to take a peek inside to be positive I'm giving you the right name. Which I can do next time I'm in the ao.

[Cake Guru]

isn't LUSTGAS just the best in the whole world! I had it when I had my wisdom teeth pulled.......

I have a dentist appointment tomorrow at 7.30 am. Just my six-month check-up.

[Carolyn]

Wow, Nancy, thanks for the recommendation. You can tell me more when we meet up for fika.

I used to be terrified of dentists and when my father died in 1992, I broke a tooth and HAD to go to a dentist and since I had my inheritance then as well, I found a great dentist, who used the gas, and had tons of work done. It was in the States and having a crown done, lots of old fillings chipped out and new ones put in, plus the deep cleaning ran me well over $6,000 at that time.

And it's always great when somebody has already been to a dentist and can give you a first-hand recommendation as well.

[Sabeine]

I need to have one and possibly 2 wisdom teeth pulled. Both of them are impacted, half below gum line. I asked 2 co workers of mine that have had wisdom teeth pulled that laughing gas or administering gas here is not common. That using novacaine was still the preferred method. Is this true? I would like the gas, and have been putting of the pulling of my teeth out of fear. My co-workers said that only in rare cases would a dentist here use gas. Have any of you heard this? It sounds like I was seriously misinformed after reading the other posts. Can anyone use the gas, or is it only for root canals? I really don't want shots.

[Carolyn]

Well, when I had that kind of work done in the States, the dentist used both the gas and the shots. I don't think you'd want things done with only the gas of the level you're talking about. maybe he could give you a shot of the gas first so you didn't mind the injections so much.

[Brandy]

Just wondering if anyone has had out-patient surgery done for impacted wisdom teeth in Sweden. I had it done for removing 4 impacted wisdom teeth (in the States). I highly recommend it if you're terrified. Remember nothing, but nauseus (sp?) from the anesthesia.

Good luck on those impacted teeth. Get it done quickly, no more pain and discomfort. (Mine were all infected to boot! Post operation was a breeze!)

[Sabeine]

The odd thing is that, they are half way in, and still half below the gum line, and yet they don't hurt at all. They never have. They have been like this for 3 years at least. They never came in more, just stayed there. The bummer is my formerly very straight lower teeth pushed in a bit because of this (in the front of lower teeth). I cannot use a retainer to push them back until I get the wisdom teeth pulled. How is it possible that they don't hurt?

[Brandy]

They probably aren't pushing on anything with any noticeable pressure. Do you get earaches or any facial discomfort, ie sinus.

If you're not to concerned about the crowding and are uncomfortable about the procedure, it's most likely something you don't have to fix. Impacted just means that they are surrounded by bone. It's also rare that past one's twenties they cause problems. There have been the few occasions however.

Mine were causing many problems for several years.