How Long Should a Dental Crown (On Implant) Be Guaranteed?

My wife had dental implants with crowns on her eye tooth and cuspid 5 yrs ago. The cuspid crown recently broke off while she was eating toast. She went to the dentist that did the work and he charged her $100 to do an exam..said it would cost around $3,500 for him to fix it. We left his care about a year ago as he no longer accepted our insurance. He said had she stayed with him it may not have occurred as he could have watched it. Shouldn't something like this be guaranteed? Advice PLEASE...

Tags:

duration long-lasting

Comment on this

5 Doctor Answers | Asked by VR

Doctor Answers (5)
Community Comments (0)

No True Guarantee

There is no true guarantee for any dental or medical procedure. A lot of the post-op results are due to good maintenence on the patient's part. This includes regular visits to your dentist or doctor for them to monitor everything and ensure that the treatment (ie: crowns, implants, etc) is well maintained. It's also important that hygiene is up to par and that there are no signs of bruxing (grinding and clenching). There are also a lot of other factors that can affect the prognosis of your... more

Warranty vs Gurantee in Dental Medicine

There are two differences legally between a waranty and a guarantee. A gurantee is offered by the manufacturer and if the product fails, you can get your money back. A warranty is provided by the seller, which would be the dentist, stating if the product fails because of a defect, you will be able to get the product repaired.. Some dentists are willing to give their patients a warranty on a crown, providing the patient stays a part of their dental... more

Dental Crown Guarantee

How long does your physician guarantee that you will live after receiving a clean bill of health at your annual physical? In the world of medecine there are no guarantees. We all, hopefully, try to do our best at what we are trained to do, but once the patient leaves the office, there is no telling how that restoration might be abused!

How long should a crown last?

In medicine in most cases we can not make guarantees... I suggest you express your concerns with the dentist and perhaps something can be done. Keep in mind you and all pt. should have dental radiographs every 1-2 yrs. and exams around every 6 months to help prevent these types of issues. Good luck Kevin Coughlin DMD, MBA, MAGD CEO Baystate Dental PC

Warranties

I am sorry to say inform you, but I think he is reasonable. I do the same with my patients. I warranty my work as long as they remain recular patients and follow protocol (e.g. no smoking with implants). The law and the boards do not require any warranty of dental work. If you have medical procedures of other types (e.g. heart surgery, spinal surgery, cosmetic surgery) none have a guarantee for any period of time. You can die during heart surgery and the surgeon... more