I have made three trips to Costa Rica for dental impacts and other dental work. Even with travel and lodging I saved about 50% of US estimates. I highly recommend this option.
My D had 3 implants to replace baby teeth where she had no permanent teeth. She had bone grafts at all 3 sites. Then the placement of the screws for the implants a year later and placement of the teeth 6 months after that. She could have had the implant screws placed sooner but we had to work around college schedule and being home.
The bone graft procedure was the worst part. She got nauseous from the anesthesia and pain meds. Pain was pretty bad for about 2 days and then lots of swelling for a good week. If you have to have the bone grafts I recommend being very diligent about icing to minimize swelling. If you don’t need the bone grafts the other parts are not bad. She had minimal pain and swelling when the screws were placed.
Also recommend having an oral surgeon coordinate with a prosthodontist for optimal placement of the implant screws and teeth. There are 2 different ways for the tooth to be attached to the screw depending on the angle and it is optimal for the tooth to attach directly to the screw, the prosthodontist is the expert on that.
Thanks all! You’re (mostly) making me feel better. I’ll hope for the best.
I was told it would run about 3600. One option was a root canal and crown but the dentist said it could still crack later on (as happened to someone here) and I’d be starting over again. Last thing I want is to mess with it twice!
“I was told it would run about 3600”
Cheaper than what I paid so sounds reasonable as far as implants go.
I have had 3 implants with no problems; I did not need bone grafts and all healed quickly. Only downsides were: cost and time it takes for the procedure to be over (remove bad tooth, wait, insert post, wait, etc).
I had a bone graft and implant. Watch out for increased pain a few days after the surgery, this could be an infection. Antibiotics took care of it easily. Otherwise everything went great and I had practically no pain the next day after the surgery. Also watch out for unnecessary muscle tension on this side, together with chewing on another side for a while this made my smile somewhat crooked 
but once I noticed this and started paying attention and trying to relax, everything was good.
Question: Of those of you with RECENT implants–was the implant done immediately after tooth extraction or did you have to wait?
Here’s a diagram of the parts.
https://www.cofamilydentistry.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Dental-Implant.jpg
On mine, the tooth was removed and the fixture was put in on the same day because I had good bone that could be used to anchor it. I’ll go back 4 months or so later for the abutment from the oral surgeon. Then my dentist will put a crown on top of it.
For my mother and my husband, they needed a more significant bone graft, so the tooth was pulled and the bone graft was completed in the first visit. They had to wait for that to heal before any further steps were taken, again 4-5 months.
Maybe I’ll win the prize for 'longest wait for implants". My bicuspids were pulled at age 12, creating decades of airway, palate, and sinus problems.
I’ve waited 39 years for this! Ha - we have the space back, now just getting adjoining roots straightened, and then the screws will be inserted. People ask me all the time when my braces are coming off. At this point, I am telling them “hopefully before I get Social Security”.
Sometimes the dentist extracts and implants at the same time, other times, if there has been an infection, then he may wait until that clears up.
@gouf78 - D is in the middle of this process. She had a tooth pulled and the implant screw placed the same day. Very easy recovery process. Orthodontist provided a retainer with fake teeth the same day. She will be getting the crowns placed when she is home in December.
(Singular implant, multiple fake teeth and crowns. One implant screw will be supporting 2 crowns.)
Tooth pulled and screw put in at the same time.
What @MaterS said!
A few years back I cracked an upper molar in half on the first day of a long weekend out of town with D for a competition. Got through the weekend with smoothies and wine, then saw the oral surgeon first thing Monday. No salvaging the tooth. Also got a second opinion and both said to get the bone graft and a mini sinus lift. Maxed out dental insurance pretty quickly and health insurance wanted nothing to do with it. Took exactly one year from the incident to the day I received the final bill.
Pain was very minimal and easily managed. I’m not sure I could tell you which tooth it was now… looks and functions like the rest of my teeth. Good luck!