The journey
How it actually went.
Ms. Jenkins had spent years in a cycle she could not break.
Crown after crown. Bridge after bridge. Each restoration would hold for a while, then crack, chip, or loosen as the underlying gum infections continued their slow, relentless damage. By 2025, the 56-year-old from Brisbane had reached a point where her dentist gave her the news she had been dreading: the restorations could no longer be saved. Both arches needed to start from scratch.
The Australian quote came back at $55,000 AUD for full-arch All-on-4 implants on both upper and lower jaws.
"I sat in the car for a good twenty minutes before I could drive," she says.
Twelve months of infections, then a decision
What finally broke the stalemate was not the cost. It was another round of antibiotics for yet another gum flare-up. Ms. Jenkins knew that every month she waited was another month of bone loss, another month of infection, another month where the eventual surgery would be harder.
A friend who had been to Vietnam for dental work mentioned SmileJet. Ms. Jenkins spent a weekend reading through patient stories, then sent off her X-rays and asked for quotes.
Within a few days, she had detailed treatment plans from two clinics in Vietnam. Both proposed the same core protocol: four implants per arch placed under IV sedation using a digital surgical guide, immediate-load temporary bridges on the same day, and a return trip for the final zirconia prostheses after osseointegration.
The all-in figure for both arches: $25,000 AUD.
Trip one: extractions and implants
Ms. Jenkins flew to Vietnam in late 2025. She brought her daughter along for the first trip.
The surgical session was long, just over five hours, but she was under IV sedation for most of it. Eight implants, four per arch, were placed in a single appointment. By the end of the week, temporary fixed bridges were locked into place on both jaws.
"The gum pain I had been living with for years was gone. I kept waiting for an infection to come back. It never did."
She stayed for a week of recovery before flying home. The temporary teeth were fixed, not removable. For the first time in years, she did not have to think about her mouth every morning.
Trip two: the permanent result
Six months later, after the implants had fully integrated with the bone, Ms. Jenkins returned for the final prostheses. The clinic spent three appointments across the week confirming bite, colour, and contour before fitting the permanent zirconia hybrid bridges.
She describes the moment the mirrors came out as unexpectedly emotional.
"I kept apologising for crying. The dentist said they see it every time. I think they meant it as a comfort. It was."
The numbers that made it possible
Total spend for both trips, covering surgery on both arches, all eight implants, temporary and permanent prostheses, two return flights, and accommodation:
- Vietnam (both arches): $25,000 AUD
- Brisbane quote (both arches): $55,000 AUD
- Saving: approximately $30,000 AUD
Six months on
Ms. Jenkins sees her Brisbane dentist for routine check-ups. The implants are stable. The infections that punctuated the last decade of her life have not returned.
She is measured about giving advice, but when pressed she says the same thing she wishes someone had told her years earlier.
"Do not wait until the damage is worse. I waited because I thought it was too complicated, too risky, too far away. None of it was as complicated as another year of antibiotics and a mouth I was ashamed of."
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