British citizens are suffering from terrible side effects as a result of the “Turkey teeth” dentistry trend, which entails traveling abroad to receive treatment at a significant discount.
The newest cosmetic craze involves filing down teeth and replacing them with crowns or veneers, a look made popular by celebrities like Katie Price and Jack Fincham of Love Island.
The trend is being promoted on social media using the hashtag #Turkeyteeth, which has received more than 100 million views and is meant to leave patients with a full mouth of bright white veneers.
A new BBC documentary examines the consequences of substandard treatment and explores whether traveling abroad for less expensive care is worthwhile.
UK dentists warn that complications might leave patients with enormous medical expenditures to fix subpar work.
A handful of dentists surveyed by the BBC claimed that the NHS handled some of the corrective work.
In one instance, Tiktok user Lisa Martyn detailed how her trip to Turkey for the cosmetic procedure—for which she had already spent 3,500 Euros (£2,960)—turned into a nightmare.
She told the BBC: “They were presented to me as veneers not a whole set of crowns.
I was horribly mislead about what I was having done.
I was fooled into the dream of having a full set of perfect teeth that I was never going to have any issues with.
Nobody sat me down and explained the risks or provided me with alternative options.
I believed that as soon as they inserted my new teeth, all of my dental issues would be resolved.
But I haven’t just endured excruciating pain every day since; it has also cost me thousands of dollars.
It’s the biggest error I’ve ever made.
In an effort to achieve the “Hollywood smile” for her son’s wedding, Lisa traveled to Turkey last year under the impression that she would have 26 veneers.
Instead, she received crowns, a much more intrusive treatment.
The 48-year-old was left in excruciating pain after developing an abscess that almost paralyzed half of her face and is experiencing nerve sensitivity months after receiving treatment.
She stated on her social media page that she had never before in her life encountered something like the project.
They were banging, hammering, and drilling at the time. For two hours, I kept getting up from that chair.
Nobody even offered me a cup of water or inquired about how I was doing.
My mouth was enlarged to the point of being frightening.
Despite being paralyzed from the base of my neck to the tip of my nose, I could still feel the sensation.
I was still unaware that all of my natural teeth had been ground down and that these were crowns rather than veneers.
I didn’t get this information until I got home, from a UK dentist.
“I’m still in pain right now, and I’ve accepted that I’ll have to wear dentures and deal with suffering every day.
I wanted to look good for my son’s wedding, but right now, I’d give anything to just know that day won’t be filled with pain.
She is unable to eat properly and has dropped more than two stone since the therapy, according to the BBC.
Lisa posted her experience on Tiktok to spread the word about the risks of receiving cheap medical care overseas.
She claims that the cost of having her teeth fixed will leave her bankrupt.
Social media influencers and TV stars, including model Katie Price, have shown a preference for the procedure.
She posted a video in August 2020 revealing that before she had new veneers placed in Turkey, her natural teeth had been cut down to points that, in her words, made her appear like a James Bond villain.
Her initial veneers fell off, therefore the procedure was done. She had to return to Turkey, nevertheless, in October of that same year after some of her new veneers broke off.
She had to go back to Turkey to have the work corrected, a spokeswoman for the star informed the Sun at the time.
Before making an appearance on the ITV reality series, Love Island star Jack Fincham also underwent medical treatment there.
The number of Google searches for the word increased when he talked about his Turkey Teeth in 2018.
According to a poll done for the BBC, hundreds of dentists in the UK have dealt with patients who developed difficulties after having procedures done abroad.
Liverpool dentist Dr. MJ Rowland-Warmann informed the BBC that he would lose his license and be expelled if he placed 20 crowns on a 21-year-old patient in order to improve the color of their teeth.
She claimed that although her clinic receives one to three calls daily from persons who have dental problems after traveling abroad, it is unable to provide care for them.
Some people are unable to floss because their crowns are glued together or because their bleeding gums are causing them discomfort.
But refusing to accept that patient is simpler for us.
The issues truly arise after you take on that patient and begin performing any work, at which time the UK dentist is held accountable.
We can’t take that chance.
“This puts patients in really precarious situations as they scramble to find assistance, and trying to repair the damage becomes quite expensive.”
Not all patients who obtain care abroad experience issues. After being compared to Bugs Bunny as a child, Tilly Entwhistle of Manchester told the BBC that she was happy with her work.
She said that after seeing a dentist in the UK, she was informed that they would not work on her teeth because they did not want to be held accountable for any problems with the operation had out in Turkey.