At least 2,544,000 people around the world will search the Internet for dental treatment abroad this year, according to Dublin-based Reva Health Network, a “medical tourism” search engine. In June alone, Reva says, 636,155 dental tourism-related searches were carried out globally by 212,051 unique users on Google, Yahoo!, and Microsoft’s search engines. Of these 6% inquired about braces.
The average value of overseas dental treatments inquired about specifically through Reva (excluding travel) is $4,485, which compares to an average of $12,150 for the equivalent dental treatment in the United States. This represents a saving of $7,665, or 63%. For example, a dental implant in Costa Rica would save an American 60%, and a veneer in Mexico 73%.
Reva is currently receiving 600 dental tourism inquiries per week, leading to an expected total of more than 31,200 inquiries this year alone. The average age of those inquiring about treatment was 42, 51.3% were male, and they contacted their chosen clinics approximately 10 weeks before they intended to travel.
Caelen King, the CEO of Reva Health Network, commented, “There are many good reasons why people are deciding to travel abroad for dental treatment, including long waiting lists and the potential for massive cost savings. Some of our users have saved over $16,500 on the cost of treatment at home.”
