Maltepe Dental Clinic, a 24-year-old Istanbul-based dental practice, has published The Prep Level Scale, a five-level classification system designed to help patients understand the difference between dental procedures before choosing any clinic worldwide. The framework comes as the dental tourism industry faces increased scrutiny over the phenomenon known as Turkey Teeth, where patients receive more invasive procedures than they anticipated due to widespread terminology confusion.
The clinic's patient intake data from 2023 to 2025 reveals the scope of the terminology problem. Fifty-eight percent of patients requesting veneers were actually describing full zirconia crowns requiring 60 to 70 percent tooth structure removal. Twelve percent confused dental implants with veneers, with one documented case of a patient requesting 28 veneer implants. Over 30 percent believed Hollywood Smile was a single specific treatment rather than a general aesthetic outcome achievable through various procedures.
The Prep Level Scale categorizes dental interventions into five distinct levels based on starting tooth condition and required treatment. Level 1 addresses healthy teeth requiring no-prep veneers with no tooth structure removed. Level 2 covers minor imperfections needing minimal prep veneers with 0.3 to 0.9mm surface preparation. Level 3 handles moderate issues requiring moderate prep crowns with 1.0 to 1.5mm structured reduction. Level 4 involves significant damage requiring full crowns with 1.5 to 2.0mm or more circumferential preparation. Level 5 addresses non-restorable teeth requiring extraction and implant placement.
"The most common scenario we see involves patients with healthy or mildly imperfect teeth receiving full crown procedures when they asked for porcelain veneers," stated Dr. Alper Gurhan, co-founder of Maltepe Dental Clinic. "The Prep Level Scale gives patients a framework to understand their starting condition and identify when a recommended treatment doesn't match their actual needs. This isn't about defending or attacking dental tourism - it's about giving patients the vocabulary to make informed decisions regardless of which clinic or country they choose."
The framework addresses a critical consent gap in cosmetic dentistry where social media has created dangerous terminology confusion. Platforms like TikTok and Instagram use the word veneer as a catch-all label for virtually any cosmetic dental result, mixing veneers, crowns, composite bonding, and full-mouth rehabilitations under the same hashtags. This confusion leads patients to request one procedure while expecting the results of another, with some clinics proceeding without clarification.
"Invasiveness is not inherently good or bad, but it must be appropriate to the initial tooth condition," explained Dr. Yusuf Ilhan, co-founder of the clinic. "A Level 1 patient receiving Level 4 treatment represents the pattern behind most dental tourism complaints. Our scale helps patients recognize this mismatch before irreversible procedures occur."
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Maltepe Dental Clinic operates a five-floor facility in Istanbul with seven treatment rooms and an in-house dental laboratory. The practice has treated over 14,000 patients from more than 85 countries since its founding in 2002. The clinic became the first Turkish dental practice to establish its own London partner facility in 2022 and maintains a 4.8 Google rating with over 350 reviews and a 4.9 Trustpilot score.
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For more information about Maltepe Dental Clinic, contact the company here:
Maltepe Dental Clinic
Dr. Alper Gurhan and Dr. Yusuf Ilhan
+905452315329
smile@maltepedentalclinic.com
Kosuyolu Cad. No:51 Kadikoy/Istanbul 34718
