Patient Review

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My apologies to the wonderful people at Sani Platinum and, Sani Group for the long delay of my review; its just that I had to return to work, immediately after returning from my dental treatment in Algodones and, did not have much time for anything else. Here is how things worked out for me: I arrived in Yuma, Arizona, from Ontario, Canada, on July 16th and, I was met at the arrival gate by Angel (courtesy shuttle driver for Sani) who spoke perfect English, and was very polite and respectful. Angel then drove me into Los Algodones, which took about 15 to 20 minutes. There was no stopping at the border; we simply slowed down, and waved at the folks in uniform at crossing, and they waved back. Angel drove me first to the "Hacienda" hotel, where again, I was greeted by very friendly (Roman - front desk manager) and helpful personnel - my first room, faced the West, and the sun was not setting too early in July; I requested a change of rooms and, it was taken care of very quickly (thank you) - after checking in and getting settled, for a few minutes; the Sani Dental courtesy van then came by the hotel, to take me to the Platinum Clinic, where I was greeted again by very the pleasant staff members at Sani Platinum. I then waited a few minutes, and got started on my dental treatment process, with a 'panoramic' X Ray of my entire upper, and lower jaw (teeth) after which; I was introduced to Dr. Mikel León. Dr. Mikel was my consultation doctor, who was extremely cordial, and again, spoke perfect English. Dr. Mikel reviewed my X Ray with me, and his diagnosis or professional opinions, came as no surprise to me, at all. I knew before hand, that my teeth were in a very poor state of health (oral health), and that's why I had made the trip to Los Algodones. I have been in need of extensive dental treatment for quite a few years now, but could not never afford (no dental plan and would have had to take a second mortgage on the house) the degree of treatments which I so desperately needed. In Canada; the government and its dental (CDA) cartel, seem mostly concerned about taking as much of your money, as possible - its a country that continues, to neglect its citizens 'Oral Health' - and for decades now to - 'they' however; always seem to have an extremely large reserve of money, to travel off to foreign countries, thousands of miles away, only to bomb them back to the stone age. Oral health is not only an integral part of overall health, but its probably one of the most important parts (first line - eating) of 'the body's' total health system. Canada's so-called "HEALTH CARE" SYSTEM, is more accurately described as a "SICK CARE" SYSTEM - one usually has to degrade to a poor state of health (oral) before getting the medical (dental) attention which is desperately needed - and any cuts to the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT'S budget, usually always includes medicare, and, other important social (seniors) benefits as well - http://www.calgarysun.com/2013/08/31/albertans-beating-a-path-to-mexico-and-other-countries-for-discount-dental-work The REGION where I live, delegates 40% of 'their' entire operating budget (gained from TAXES) to the POLICE - meanwhile; people in the REGION, must wait a minimum of three (3) months, for an MRI appointment, at the one hospital there. So much for my rant, on 'one of the best countries in the world, to live in' - back to my review on the Sani Dental Group: It was determined by Dr. Mikel, that I would need at least three root canals, and several (suggested a complete) restorations of my original remaining teeth (22 or 23) with the distinct possibility of one extraction. After Dr. Mikel's detailed diagnosis, I had to remind myself; this is why I was here, and it was now my time, to have these serious problems with my teeth taken care of - and so; after considerable consultation and consideration, I consented to Dr. Mikel's professional recommendations - it was going to cost (overall) quite a bit more than what I was planning on (another patch job - damage control - this is what I was used to doing, in Canada), but I would only be fooling myself again, and continuing to do more personal injustice - so the plan was to take care of the root canals first, and then move on to the needed process, to CROWN every remaining tooth, I had left...yike$! Due to the overall and, difficult to afford cost of my needed treatments, Dr. Mikel came up with a beautiful (my new teeth) plan; having only 12 front teeth (eye tooth to eye tooth - top and bottom) crowned with Zirconia - they look and feel like real teeth - and includes the teeth in your smile profile - the rest were crowned with "Porcelain Fused to Metal Crown" due to my limited budget...hardly noticed when smiling. The following appointment (by the way: Sani Dental is opened on Saturdays as well) was dedicated to starting my root canal treatments; these were taken care of by the most attractive, and youngest Endodontist, that I have ever had an appointment with: Dr. Jaqueline Cruz (Dr. Jaqui) - I asked Dr. Mikel, if he could give me an idea of how many root canals (after my treatment) Dr. Jaqui might do in a day, and he told me, that she does an average of six root canals per day, and possibly six days per week; this adds up to a lot of experience, and it was very evident in her treatments - and my thanks go out to her assistant, as well. The next step in my treatment, was the preparation for the crowns; which for anyone who has ever had crowns fitted; they will know that this involves grinding down (shaping) of your teeth for the crowns to be fitted and cemented on to. I was informed by Dr. Mikel, that Dr. Javier Muñiz Pérez, would be the one to do the crown treatments for me, and that I was fortunate, that he (Dr. Javier) was 'their' 'Medical Director' - and that he was one, to be very critical, even of his own work...a perfectionist, as Dr. Mikel described him - and he is. I will not try to fool anyone here; this procedure (22 crowns) is not an easy undertaking for any patient. I have what I consider, a higher than normal pain threshold, but this was one of the hardest dental events of my life (58 years old), having 22 teeth ground into the shape, for crowns - and during the treatment, Dr. Javier informed me, much to my dismay, that six additional teeth, were so badly decayed, deep below the enamel, and, so close to the nerves, that I would need these additional root canals - again; I was not too surprised, but still cringed, with the thoughts of the additional cost now facing me. But I have suffered for so many years, with severe tooth pain, having to live on copious amounts of ibuprophen and tynlenol - God knows, that I may now, be only a short time away, from a liver transplant, due to the damaging effects of such drugs. It is documented: "Tens of thousands of people die yearly - and in North America only, from taking 'over the counter' NSAID (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory) drugs". So it was back to the beautiful Dr. Jacqui, for six more root canals - a love hate relation? Just kidding Dr. Jacqui; I don't hate you; it was in the cards (future) for me anyway. Believe it or not; I actually had a day off, from the no pain, no gain, dental vacation, in Algodones - thanks God, that 'they' don't work on Sundays (lol). That following Monday; it was back to see Dr. Javier, to continue the crown preparations and, to be fitted with temporary teeth, which went over my vampire looking teeth - the temporaries are by no means designer teeth, but are very functional - they allowed me to eat, softer foods, i.e. pancakes and eggs for breakfast, and again; soft food for lunch and dinner - I ate a lot of fresh fruit and omelets, with the best homemade salsa ever. To make this already long story shorter; I'd like to comment on some of the negative reviews on the Sani Dental's website, by those who may (claim) have had a bad experience. Nothing on earth is ever perfect, and, there will always be those that may never be pleased, or satisfied. I assure you all; I have had my share of dental disappointments in Canada as well, and specifically; I remember spending two thousand dollars, on the treatment of one tooth (Endodontist - root canal) only to be informed later, by a Periodontist, that the infection (canal having been split open, with "gutter-pro" canal sealant oozing out of the broken root - due to the root canal treatment) was now causing bone decay (due to infection) in my lower jaw, and that I should have that tooth, extracted immediately - and there are more stories as well. My dental treatment at Sani Dental, was more than what I had financially planned for (through my limited budget) and I ended up spending three or four more days, there too, than I had planned for - I was again, personally assisted by Dr. Mikel, on the financial options for my dental treatments, and was also further assisted, with the cost of staying at the hotel as well - I knew that this was my time to do what was truly needed, and it was so evident that the Sani Dental staff (Dr. Mikel) were doing their best to help my situation, that I went for it - and I have had no regrets. I have since received so many compliments on my new teeth; I now smile with 100% confidence, and notice the look of envy on the faces of those I smile at, too. So my heartfelt thanks and appreciation, goes out to not only those mentioned above, but also those that I have not forgotten (not mentioned) - and I trust that you know who you are; for their friendly care and assistance - Thanks Tony; for taking me to the best road side Tortillas in Algodones, late at night, after the completion of my final crown fittings - and thanks also, to Dr. Javier's assistants, for the long hours put in to complete my 'dental make over'. I can truly recommend to everyone; if you are looking for alternatives to the exorbitant prices charged by the Canadian Dental Association (Cartel); look no further than the Sani Dental Group, in Los Algodones - Thank you Sani; I plan to come back in the near future, to have an implant or two, in order to complete the bridge of missing teeth, on my lower (back) right jaw. Best wishes to all - Christopher.