Part of the attraction of coming to China – or leaving the US, depending on how you look at it – is more affordable health care. With the unknown costs of health insurance premiums, copays and prescriptions that change often, it’s nice to be someplace with more standardized pricing. You can learn the cost of your service before you have it! And so we found dental services down in the Shekou district of Shenzhen.
Comfortable! (Except for the dentist part)
We rode the metro for about 45 minutes and followed a fellow ex-pat’s directions to walk to the dentist. The hardest part, except for actually being in the dentist’s chair with my mouth gaping, was deciding on a direction to walk. Luckily the sun shined on us as we switched directions a few times and finally arrived at the office, which is inside a high rise. It felt like a hospital inside, with color-coded makers on the floor to guide us where we needed to be.
We followed the correct color to this bright and beautiful lobby, where a cheerful and professional receptionist greeted us promptly, with a great smile. Where did she get that smile? Maybe here! I wanted one too.
Toothy Receptionist gave us clipboards to fill out with two pages of personal information. Kim and I wanted routine cleanings. Aubrie would get a cleaning and a consultation for some orthodontic work we would like done, just a little straightening of her top teeth.
Take a seat.
I bravely went first of the three of us. Actually, I completed my paperwork a second before
Kim did and Toothy immediately got up 
to retrieve our clipboards. She was eager to help us go dental. A few seconds later, a dental hygienist came to escort me back to The Chair. I smiled over my plague-y mouth and followed her to where the dentist waited pleasantly.
She told me to put on these glasses and lay back. And then began a routine cleaning and checkup just like we have back home. She and the hygienist looked for new cavities, inspected old fillings and drilled and picked away at my dirty teeth. Read this to see how my teeth get dirty here. I swished and spit and we finished with a nice minty polish. The red glasses worked well as a splatter guard and I left with a mouth that felt beautifully clean. I was ready for a picture and luckily, so were they!
Two out of three ain’t bad, especially for this price
Kim had her cleaning without incident as well although I don’t have pictures to prove that. Aubrie’s cleaning was also a success! Kim and my cleanings were around 200 RMB each, or almost $30 USD. Aubrie was a little more expensive since she had an X-ray to assess her mouth for orthodontics, which brought her total to aroun 300 RMB, or about $44 USD.
We were surprised to find that she is one of the dental rarities with extra wisdom teeth! About two years ago Aubs had her wisdom teeth – 1, 2, 3, 4, FOUR of them – removed. We have the post-surgery video to prove it! Apparently at the time of her surgery, she had two tiny buds of an extra wisdom teeth that could not be seen, dormant in her upper jaw.
In the picture on the left, you can see Aubrie’s four wisdom teeth, impacted in her gums but ready to be harvested. There’s no sign of extra teeth. In the picture on the right, almost two years later, you can see the fifth and sixth wisdoms. And her nose ring.
They’re a little bigger now, but still impacted in her gums. This dentist quoted us a price for orthodontic work that is a little out of our budget at this time, so we will explore other options, emphasis on “explore.” We leave for Thailand this Saturday!
