Dental Implants with Low Monthly Payments
Dental implants are one of the best options for people who are seeking to replace one or more missing teeth. Implants are secure and strong and can dramatically improve the quality of life for the wearer, allowing them to eat all the foods they love and to speak and smile with confidence. While dental implants are strong, stable, medically beneficial, and long-lasting, however, they can also be expensive, and, despite the fact that they are one of the best solutions for many different scenarios involving missing teeth, dental implants are not covered by many dental insurance policies. Implants can cost as much as $4,000 per tooth, and dental implant treatments cost even more when surgery is required to restore gum tissue or replace missing bone in the jaw before implants can be placed. Other peripheral procedures that can add to the cost of dental implant treatment include office visits, x-rays and other imaging technology, and the type of dental implant that is recommended by the doctor.
Dental implants can support permanent dentures or dental bridges, or they can be used to support prosthetic teeth that snap into place and can be removed for cleaning and maintenance. In general, all dental implant options are preferable to the conventional style of removable dentures, which can be ill-fitting and prone to slippage, and which sit atop the gum tissue and can cause painful friction and even lead to deterioration of the soft tissue and bones in the oral cavity. The term used to describe the state of lacking teeth is edentulism. Edentulism causes the gradual resorption of the bones of the jaw, which often leads to issues with the fit of conventional, removable dentures. This bone resorption also causes aesthetic problems, eventually causing the lower jaw to take on a sunken appearance. When edentulism goes untreated, and a significant amount of bone has been resorbed, it may be necessary to graft new bone in order to support implants. Once placed, however, dental implants do not gradually loosen like conventional dentures do, and, once the dental implant has healed into the bones of the jaw, the implant functions much like the root of a natural tooth, supporting the tooth and also strengthening the surrounding bone and improving the appearance of the face shape. This fringe benefit is not inconsequential and makes dental implants an even more appealing option for many people.
If a person can’t afford to pay for dental implant treatment out-of-pocket, financing options, like CareCredit, are often available. However, the majority of these financing options usually require a solid credit score, leaving about half of all potential patients ineligible for traditional types of financing. When patients have experienced significant bone loss due to the lack of natural teeth, the bone must be surgically rebuilt before implants can be placed; this adds even more to the overall cost of treatment. There are some common financing options for patients with lower credit scores, and these options come with varying levels of risk and benefits. Despite the many long-term benefits of dental implant treatment, it’s important to understand these risks, especially, before taking on any significant financial burden.
The most widely known option for patients who may not qualify for financing options like CareCredit is subprime lender financing. While standard loans require a minimum credit score of 640, subprime lenders examine the patient's entire financial history, considering factors beyond simply the credit score. Subprime lenders review the patient’s income and employment history, in addition to other types of financial information, in order to determine the risks associated with lending to that patient. While these subprime financing plans can help less qualified patients have access to procedures like dental implant surgery, they often come with high origination fees and may also have prohibitive interest rates. This could add to the financial insecurity of the patient and these options should be approached with caution.
Personal loans, either secured or unsecured, may also be a viable option for patients with suboptimal credit. Secured loans require collateral; this can be real estate, a car, or another valued possession. This collateral can help improve the likelihood of approval and can support an increase in the amount of the loan, though the collateral is at risk if the patient defaults or becomes delinquent on the loan. While unsecured loans may be more difficult to qualify for, they don’t require any collateral. Instead, these unsecured loans may be referred to an outside collections agency if the patient defaults or becomes delinquent in paying. These types of loans can help patients afford dental implant procedures, though it may not be in a patient’s best interest, financially, to borrow with such high stakes.
Some dental practices partner with lending organizations, like Healthcare Finance Direct, that allow patients to pay over time. These organizations use complex and varied data, not limited to credit scores, to determine risk associated with lending to a patient and to determine manageable interest rates, reasonable down payments, and loan repayment options. They often offer direct withdrawal payment options that benefit the patient and the dental practice. If you’re interested in dental implants to replace one or more missing teeth but have a lower credit score or other financial insecurities, finding a dental health practitioner who offers these pay-over-time loan arrangements may be a beneficial option for you.
Dental implants may be costly, but the long-term benefits they provide are worth the investment, especially when compared with the many costs of untreated edentulism. Edentulism can be caused by multiple factors, including cavities, gum disease, recession of the gums, smoking and the use of tobacco, grinding the teeth, stress, certain medications or health conditions, poor oral hygiene, and an unhealthy diet. Edentulism can affect the physiology of the face, the ability to chew properly, the effective function of the salivary glands and sensory function of the soft tissue inside the mouth, and the ability of the mouth’s tissues to protect the inside of the oral cavity. It may also lead to neurological disorders that cause involuntary movements of the jaws and face. Because the altered ability to chew effectively affects diet, edentulism can also lead to malnutrition and the many health concerns that can arise from eating an unbalanced diet, like ulcers, diabetes, and gastrointestinal disorders. In light of the many concerns that can arise with edentulism, and the various costs that these concerns can carry, treating edentulism with a long-term solution like dental implants is always the more beneficial option, and it’s worth it to research the financing options that may be available to you.