How Much Time Will I Need ?

How much time will you need to spend in Mazatlan for your dental work ?

This really depends on what you need to have done. Minor things like single extractions, cleanings and bleaching can be done in an hour, but here are a few examples of work that is more involved.

Veneers, Crowns and bridges, without root canals

Most teeth are prepared for crowns, bridges and veneers quite quickly. If you need 4 crowns, the teeth can be prepared in 1 to 2 days. The biggest wait is for the lab to complete the actual crowns and bridges. This usually takes about 4 days, but since this is a technical procedure involving electrical equipment, there may be delays. Things can malfunction and cause a delay of a day or two.

These labs know that you are only here for so many days, and they specialize in this type of work, so they have your best interests at heart. They really do try to make it work, but occasionally they do have delays. How many? Well, out of 10 jobs we send them, there are delays in 2 of them, so an average of 20% is common.

Crowns, bridges, some root canals

Whenever we do root canal work, additional time is necessary. Depending on the extent of the infection, it may be necessary to complete the root canal in 2 visits. In this case, you will need an additional 3 days.
In some root canals, it is necessary to use a post before a crown can be put on the tooth. Posts are placed after the root canal is complete, and adds an additional day. So, in this example, if you need 3 crowns, and 2 of those teeth require root canals and one tooth requires a post, the total time needed is 12 days.

Day 1. Consult and treatment planning. If you are ready, we would start the root canal treatment in the 2 teeth.
Day 2. Wait for treatment to take effect in the root canal.
Day 3. Complete root canal treatment.
Day 4. Morning. Take impression for the post, and send to the lab. Evening, cement post.
Day 5. Prepare teeth and post, take impressions, send impressions to the lab.
Day 6-10. Wait for lab to complete work. A great time to do all of the activites that Mazatlan has to offer.!
Day 11. Cement crowns, adjust bite.
Day 12. Fly out.

Remember, this is a best-case scenario. You can count on a 2 day delay 20% of the time, so giving yourself 2 extra days is better. You can always change your departure date to leave earlier.

Extractions and dentures

Whenever we do extractions and permanent dentures, the time necessary varies greatly, depending on the health of the patient. Usually, if you are in good health, you will heal quicker from extractions. In order for us to provide a great fitting denture, we would need about 4 weeks in total. The biggest delay is while your mouth heals from the extractions.

It is very difficult to make a well fitting denture while you are still sore from extractions, because when we take impressions, you will be required to bite own hard on a wax sheet. If you still have pain, you will not be biting hard, or favoring one side of your mouth because of pain, and the bite impression will not be accurate, and the denture will not fit properly. We can give you anesthesia in your gums, but this also does not give us an accurate bite.

Most people do not want to take this long with their work, so there are a few options. One is to have all of your extractions done, and be fully healed before you come here. In this case you would be fitted with a temporary denture while you heal. After you are fully healed, you would come here to be fitted with the permanent denture. If you opt for the MDI denture, we would be able to place the implants at this time, and you would need to come back in 6 weeks to put the attachments into the denture.

The other option is to come here for the extractions and a temporary denture which may not fit very well, and return in 6-8 weeks for the permanent denture.

Implants

Dental implants can be done rather quickly. The surgery itself takes about 40 minutes per implant, but if you need them on the upper and lower arches, then we would do them in 2 surgeries with a 1 or 2 day break in between. We like to have you here for a week for observation, but we have had many people leave the day after surgery. In these cases, we would use sutures that come out on their own after 5 days, so that you don't need to see a doctor or dentist to have them removed.

Your time required can vary greatly, so we suggest that you call us at 1-503-213-3779 (Please leave a voicemail and we will call you back) to discuss your case and to give you a better idea of how much time you will need. Many people will try to negotiate us on how many days they need to stay in Mazatlan, or go by a best-case scenario, and are then disappointed that they have to stay a couple of days past their intended departure date. It is better to give yourself a few days of buffer time to make sure there are no delays. You can then change your departure date or use it for more fun in the sun in Mazatlan!