DentistsMexico.com
Dr. Cervando Mendoza Client Testimonials
 

Testimonial #1
The Mexican Connection - The Story of a Dental Implant
(By John R. Guthrie)
 
You can read the above testimonial online here

http://hsc.homestead.com/archive/2007/11_05_guthrie.html

Testimonial #2

Dr. Cervando Mendoza My Tijuana Dentist
(By Will Tracy)
 

Over the years people had told me that they went to Tijuana to have their dental work done, but I looked at it like having the tuck and roll upholstery done on my car back in the 60's - that is, something you had done if it would cost a fortune in the states. My first questions would have been what about sanitation and disease, but I realized none of the people would have put their lives at risk just to have a tooth pulled or have their teeth worked on. Going to TJ for dental work just wasn't something I thought about for myself.

Then part of a molar broke and the gold filling which had covered ¾ of the tooth for over 40 years fell out. My dentist couldn't touch it because part of the broken tooth was under the gum. That would require an oral surgeon; but the oral surgeon I was referred to couldn't take me for three weeks. So I called around and finally found an oral surgeon who could take me in just 5 days. However, he canceled two days later and rescheduled me for two weeks later. It was going to cost $160 for x-rays, and $800 for the surgery. Then he hit me with the killer - literally - there would be another $500 for the anesthesiologist.


I can't tolerate general anesthesia, and flat-lined during my last three operations. Of course the oral surgeon understood and could extract the tooth with just a local, but that would cost an additional $1,000, and he would have to do it in the hospital in three weeks at the cost of another $1,800. That was ridiculous. Back before lawyers began suing dentists, and the insurance companies started charging hundreds of thousands for malpractice insurance, I had four impacted wisdom teeth pulled in my dentist's office with just a local. So Tijuana came to mind and I went to the Internet.

I live just north of Los Angeles, and Google brought up hundreds of links. The problem was, nearly all of them only extolled the virtues of the dentist, and few gave a price for the dental work. I called several of the dentists, but was not impressed with what they wanted to do without examining me, until I found http://www.dentistsmexico.com/ in Tijuana. I gave Dr. Mendoza a call and he could take me the next day, a Thursday. The drive to Tijuana was not difficult, even though I have a bad back and had to make stops along the way, and I needed my wife for driving. The boarder crossing was little more than slowing and going through the open gates.

After taking the "loop" to downtown Tijuana, I was on 3rd Street - a one way street. Four blocks later - way later because traffic in Tijuana is bumper to bumper - I was at Revolucion, the main tourist fare in Tijuana. The huge stainless steel arch to the right makes Revolucion next to impossible to miss. I took a right turn on Revolucion, and another right turn a block later on 2nd Street (Juarez) and then down half a block to the Bancomer (bank) building where I parked on the 5th floor.

On a subsequent trip I found easier to avoid Revolution and park in the open parking lot on 3rd street (on the right about 100 feet before Revolucion) and walk to the 2nd street entrance and cross the street to the Bancomer building. We took the elevator to the office on the 6th floor and arrived before my 10:30 appointment, which was the doctor's first for the day. Dr. Mendoza took me right away. It was not an easy pull for him, and he had to take an x-ray part way through the extraction to see why part of the tooth was not coming out. This was an upper molar, and I dubbed him "Sin Dolor Mendoza" Painless Mendoza.

I then had Dr. Mendoza examine my upper teeth and tell me what needed to be done. All of the existing teeth needed full crowns, and I needed bridges for the right and left molars - fourteen full crowns in all. The cost would be $2,660 - the price of 40 years of tooth neglecy. But that was less than what the oral surgeon in Los Angeles would charge for pulling the tooth Dr. Mendoza pulled for $30. My gum would have to heal before I could have the work done.

He gave me a prescription for amoxicillin (amoxicillina) which I purchased 100, 500 mg caps, (without a prescription) at one of the many pharmacies on Revolucion for less than $10 and after buying other meds, we drove home. I went on the Internet and found a bulletin board where I posted my experience. The response was more than I expected it seemed everyone wanted to know about the experience and all of my friends wanted to know how to contact Dr. Mendoza.

My gum healed a month later, but I had another tooth problem, and needed to have another $30 extraction. My daughter went with me this time, and was going to have two wisdom teeth extracted, but the night before we left she got a call from her agent and would have a modeling shoot in two days, so she decided to only have a filling replaced - at a cost of $30. I was surprised when I arrived at Dr. Mendoza's office, as there were six people, all of whom had read my Internet post, and had come from as far way as Canada. However, they all had appointments later than my 11 O'clock appointments, the doctor took me on time. Dr. Mendoza's daughter killing the pain, and it took less than ten minutes for the extraction. My daughter's filling took longer as the doctor wanted to make sure her tooth was perfect.

Three weeks later my gum had healed and I was ready to have my teeth worked on for the crowns. I called for a next-day appointment and got the shocker. So many people had read my post that the doctor couldn't make an appointment until the following week. Everyone wanted to get their teeth done before the Christmas holliday. I could come in and wait if I needed the work done right away, but I set an appointment for the following Tuesday.

The office had half a dozen people waiting for later appointments when I arrived for my 10:30 appointment, and his assistants and daughter took some of those while Dr. Mendoza worked on my teeth. Dr. Mendoza had told me it would take about three hours to prepare my teeth. He was right, and again it was painless, but the full upper tooth cap that protected my teeth until Friday was a bit annoying. The doctor gave me a 3 O'clock appointment for Friday to have the crowns and bridges put in. This was the Friday before Christmas, and traffic was horrible. We arrived on time, and true to what Dr. Mendoza said, half an hour later I had a full set of upper teeth that look and felt as natural as when I was young.

The holiday was perfect for my daughter to have the two wisdom teeth pulled because her last film audition was on Thursday and she would not have another shoot until after New Years. Since she is in demand nearly every day, this would give her time to heal before her next shoot. After the New Year I will have the lower teeth fixed. This will require two implants, one to anchor a bridge, and the other to replace a missing back molar. I will have a bone spur removed before the implants, and there will again be 14 crowns. The total cost for the implants and crowns will be $4,200.

When I returned home, I went to post an update on the bulletin board, but it no longer existed. Instead my post was linked to a site that sells web space. Since my sons have several Internet servers and host numerous Internet sites, I registered this domain so people would know my experience with Dr. Mendoza.

Anyone who has read my writings on Tai Chi or Kenpo Karate knows I am not selling or promoting anything. This site is simply here to relate my own experiences with Dr. Mendoza. Others may have different experiences, though all those I've talked to have similar experiences to mine.

I've talked to people from all over North America at the doctor's office. They all have different reasons for going to Dr. Mendoza, and they all have different ideas on how to get to Tijuana. I personally go to Mexico with a passport, and drive because of my bad back. Others park their cars in the United States and take the trolley or bus or taxi across the border - though one couple paid $300 for a taxi ride - instead of the 300 Pesos. However, anyone traveling to Mexico should first check on Mexican law and consult their auto insurance company if they drive to see if they are covered in Mexico. If not, there are companies selling Mexican auto insurance at the boarder crossing.

I also pay cash, since credit card transactions can run into problems with exchange rates. It's never taken me more than an hour to cross the border from Mexico to the US, but one couple told me it took them four hours. I've crossed both at San Ysidro and Otay Mesa, but the truck crossing at Otay Mesa inspects the car entering Mexico, while San Ysidro is nothing more than slowing to go through the gates; and I found them equally time consuming on the return trip where thousands of cars wait to enter the US.

Many people have contacted me about Dr. Mendoza, and I tell them I am not recommending the doctor for anyone other than myself, and they should contact the doctor directly and make a judgement for themself. His contact information is at www.dentistsmexico.com . Since I'm his biggest fan, you can tell him you read Will Tracy's site. If there are any questions about my experience with Dr. Mendoza not covered here, you can contact me, Will Tracy and I will add it to this site. However, I will not answer personal question outside my experience with Dr. Mendoza, as my back condition is so painful I cannot respond to the hundreds of people I already know or who want information on Kenpo, Tai Chi or me personally.