Budgeting for dental care may be challenging at times, especially when you don’t have an idea of the treatment cost.
There are a number of dental clinics in Nigeria including both government dental centres and private clinics offering different kinds of dental treatments. The cost of treatment also varies from one dental clinic to another. Also, the type of procedure goes a long way in determining the cost of dental care.
In this article, you will discover the average cost of common dental procedures in most of the dental clinics across the country. The aim is to help you know how much you are likely going to spend on dental treatments when next you visit a dentist.
Registration and Consultation
When you visit a dental clinic, the first thing you will be asked to do will be to pay registration and consultation fees. The cost of this usually ranges from as low as ₦3,000 to as high as ₦30,000. The amount you pay for registration and consultation will depend on the dental facility you are using. For example, government facilities are usually way cheaper than the private dental facilities.
Investigations
There are certain investigations that a dentist has to do to determine a dental problem and also plan the treatment. These investigations are majorly radiographs. They include periapical x-rays, orthopantomogram (OPG), cephalometric radiograph and cone beam computed tomography. While periapical radiographs are routinely done for most dental problems, the other imaging systems are done on request.
While these investigations are important in dental care, especially for making diagnoses and carrying out treatments, their costs also vary. Periapical x-ray can range from ₦5,000 to ₦40,000 depending on the location of the clinic and the technology in use there. OPG radiographs cost between ₦15 000 to ₦45 000, while cone beam CT costs even more.
Tooth Extraction
Tooth extraction is the removal of a bad tooth from its socket within the jaw bone. It is a common dental procedure. The tooth for extraction and the extraction methods are among the factors that determine the cost of the treatment. While removal of milk or baby teeth doesn’t cost so much, surgical extraction and removal of retained roots actually cost more.
The average cost of tooth removal in the dental care facility ranges from as low as ₦10,000 to as high as ₦100,000. In some dental practices, you may spend more for a tooth extraction procedure.
Scaling and Polishing
Scaling and polishing has to do with removal of dental plaque, calculus, and stain from the teeth. These debris tend to accumulate on the teeth overtime. The accumulation is even more where there is poor oral hygiene practice. This is the reason periodic teeth cleaning at the dental facility is very important.
Scaling and polishing is an important dental care procedure that can cost up to ₦50,000 in private clinics. Whereas in government dental centres, the procedure can go for ₦10,000.
Teeth Whitening
In recent times, teeth whitening has become one of the commonest dental procedures in this part of the world. Almost everybody wants to have white teeth. It is a cosmetic procedure that involves lightening the colour of the teeth using certain bleaching materials.
Teeth whitening costs between ₦50,000 and ₦100,000. It may cost more in some premium dental clinics.
Deep Cleaning
This is a procedure that involves cleaning out periodontal pockets, that is, openings between the gum and the teeth caused by bacterial activities. These openings are not normal as the gum is supposed to wrap around the teeth without any space. However, when this opening forms, it is filled up by debris, bacteria and bacterial products causing further damage to teeth supporting structures.
Deep cleaning is a gum treatment, the cost of which ranges from ₦10,000 to ₦40,000 depending on the dental clinic, the location, and the quality of care offered.
Dental Fillings
Cost of dental restorations varies mainly based on the type of material used and aesthetic concerns. Amalgam, although no longer in use in many dental practices, is generally cheaper compared to the tooth coloured materials.
Fillings used for dental care can cost as low as ₦15,000 and as much as ₦50,000. Like every other dental procedure, factors like location, type of practice (government or private) also determine what amount is charged for the treatment.
Root Canal Therapy
Root canal therapy involves the careful removal of infected pulp tissue alongside necrotic tissue and microorganisms causing infection from the tooth root canals using special instruments and irrigants. After cleaning and shaping the tooth, the canals are filled up with root filling materials. The tooth is crowned afterwards.
Root canal is relatively an expensive procedure because of the time and processes involved. The total cost of complete RCT and crowning for a single tooth ranges from ₦160,000 to ₦500,000. Factors that affect the cost of treatment include the tooth involved (molars cost more than premolars and anterior teeth), type of materials used, type of crowns, expertise of the dentist and location of the clinic.
Crowns and Bridges
Crowns are tooth coloured, tooth-shaped caps that are cemented on a tooth after preparing it to receive a crown. They come in various forms. Usually, the more aesthetic the crown, the more the cost.
Crowns are placed where aesthetics and strength are required. They are used after RCT to protect and strengthen the root treated tooth against fracture. They can also be used to restore a broken tooth, malformed tooth, and for cosmetic reasons such as restoring a discoloured tooth.
Depending on the type of crown, crowns used in dental care cost between ₦100,000 to ₦500,000.
Bridges are fixed restorations like crowns. They are also tooth shaped and tooth coloured and are used to restore a missing tooth. The cost of fixing a bridge depends on how many units that are involved. For example, a 3 unit bridge will cost up to ₦500,000 or more. In government facilities, the cost might be less.
Removable Dentures
Removable partial dentures (RPD) are used for replacing missing teeth to restore function, speech and beauty. They are called removable because you can remove them at will. You shouldn’t wear RPDs to sleep.
Your denture should be in a container with water when not in your mouth. This prevents the material (acrylic) from shrinking and causing poor fitting.
Cost of getting a RPD for a single tooth ranges from ₦15,000 to ₦60,000. Acrylic dentures are cheaper than flexible dentures. Another factor that determines the cost of the denture is the number of teeth to be replaced. Other dental care procedures that need to be done before delivering the denture like scaling and polishing also affect the overall cost.
Implant
Dental implants are surgically placed within the jaw bone where they fuse with the jaw bone after healing. The part that replaces the missing tooth is screwed onto the implant. Implants are a very good option for replacing a missing tooth.
Cost of dental implants is between ₦1,000,000 to ₦10,000,000 depending on the number of implants, number of missing teeth and type of implant in use.
Orthodontic treatment
Teeth crowding, over spacing or malpositioning can interfere with function, speech or cause beauty concerns. Orthodontic treatment seeks to correct these kind of problems. Achieving this treatment can be either with removable or fixed appliances depending on the type of malocclusion and the age of the individual.
Orthodontic treatments cost from ₦1,000,000 and above.
Conclusion
Many factors are responsible for determining the cost of dental care in Nigeria – the type of practice, type of treatment indicated, location of the dental facility among other factors. The different costs of treatment given here are not exact. They can be higher or lower depending on some of the factors already mentioned.
