The records you leave a foreign clinic with decide how easily a dentist at home can maintain, repair or troubleshoot the work. Use the checklist below, and agree the packet when you accept the quote, not at checkout.
Why the packet matters more after travel
When dental work is done near home, your records sit a short drive away. When it is done abroad, they sit in another country, often in another language, with a clinic you may never visit again. If a crown loosens or an implant feels sore a year later, a dentist at home can only help as far as they can understand what was done. Without records they have to start from scratch with new imaging, guesses about components and, sometimes, work that has to be redone to be understood.
Public health guidance says the same. The CDC Yellow Book's medical tourism chapter (2026) advises asking for copies of your overseas medical records in English and giving them to any professional who treats you afterwards. It notes the American College of Surgeons' recommendation to get a complete set of records before returning home. It also suggests planning for complications with both your home provider and the provider abroad. The UK's General Dental Council (2026) likewise suggests telling your own dentist about your plans, so they can help if complications come up later.
The packet, item by item
1. A treatment summary by tooth
One or two pages listing what was done to each tooth, and when. Extractions, fillings, root canals, grafts, implants, crowns, bridges. Ask the clinic to state which tooth-numbering system it uses, because systems differ between countries. A summary in plain language is more useful to a future dentist than a pile of invoices.
2. Imaging in its original format
Ask for the before and after X-rays and any CBCT scans as the original digital files. For CBCT that usually means DICOM files, not screenshots or a PDF of selected slices. If the clinic used an intraoral scanner for crowns or bridges, ask whether the scan files can be included too. Before you leave, check the files actually open on your own device.
3. The implant device record
The FDA (2021) recommends asking which brand and model of implant system is used and keeping that information. Its guidance on reporting implant problems asks for the date the device was placed and the system used. That is a good hint about what to record for each implant: date, system, size, abutment type and how the crown or bridge is attached. The implant brand and model checklist covers this record in more detail.
4. Restoration and material details
For each crown, bridge or veneer: the material, whether it is provisional or definitive, whether it is cemented or screw-retained, the shade, and the laboratory if the clinic will share it. A dentist who later has to repair or replace one restoration needs to match what is already there.
5. Prescriptions and aftercare instructions
Generic names and doses for anything prescribed, any allergies recorded, and the written aftercare instructions. Translated, if they aren't already in a language you read well.
6. The follow-up plan
What checks you need and when, which ones the clinic will do remotely, and which must happen in person, here or there. Include what the clinic has agreed to do if something needs adjusting or remaking. The remake and revision policy guide lists the terms worth having in writing.
7. Contacts
The full names of the dentists who treated you, the clinic's address, and an email address for record requests. If you need records again later, you want to know exactly whom to ask.
8. Itemized receipts
Receipts that describe each procedure, not just “dental treatment”, are what insurers, tax authorities and health savings account administrators usually need if you plan a claim.
What matters most for your type of treatment
Every packet should have the summary, imaging and contacts. Beyond that, the priorities change with the work done.
| Treatment | Records that matter most |
|---|---|
| Single implant | Implant system and size, abutment type, whether the crown is screwed or cemented, post-placement X-ray |
| Full-arch bridge | Every implant position and system, bridge material, screw details, the maintenance schedule, and whether the bridge is provisional or definitive |
| Crowns or veneers | Material and shade for each tooth, the cement used if the clinic records it, before and after photos |
| Root canal treatment | Final X-ray showing the filled canals, notes on any canal that could not be fully treated, and whether a crown is still needed |
| Grafting or sinus lift | Graft material type, healing time before the next stage, and the follow-up scan plan |
Moving the files safely
Dental records are health information. Clinics often share files through chat apps because it is convenient, but large imaging files can be compressed or lost in a message thread. Ask for a USB drive or a download link for imaging. Ask for the treatment summary as a PDF by email. Store your copies somewhere you control, rather than relying on a chat history you might lose with a phone.
Your right to the record in Colombia
In Colombia, the clinical record is the historia clínica. The Constitutional Court summarized the rules in ruling T-044 of 2009. Law 23 of 1981 (article 34) defines it as a private document under confidentiality. Third parties can see it only with the patient's authorization or where the law allows. Resolution 1995 of 1999 (article 14) names the patient among those who may access it. The same resolution (article 5) requires entries to be legible, free of erasures, dated and signed by their author.
In practice, the clinic keeps the original and you receive a copy. Make the request in writing. Expect the historia clínica itself to be in Spanish. Ask separately for an English treatment summary, as the CDC suggests. This is general information, not legal advice. If a request is refused, ask the clinic to explain the reason in writing.
When and how to ask
- At the quote stage. Ask whether the clinic will provide a treatment summary, imaging files and implant details before you leave, and in which language. A clinic that hesitates here is telling you something.
- At the start of your last visit, not at checkout. Preparing DICOM exports and summaries takes time. Asking early leaves room to fix mistakes.
- Check before you fly. Your name, dates and tooth numbers should be correct, and the files should open.
- Keep two copies. One on a USB drive or in cloud storage you control, and one sent to your home dentist.
Handing it to your dentist at home
Send the packet before your first appointment back home, not on the day. Ask whether the practice is willing to maintain work done elsewhere. This matters most for full-arch bridges and implants, which need regular professional maintenance. Some dentists will want their own baseline X-rays even with your files in hand. That is reasonable, and cheaper than starting with nothing.
If you are planning a staged case, the packet grows with each trip. Update it after every visit. The trip-count guide helps you see how many visits, and so how many record updates, a case is likely to involve.
If the clinic won't hand records over
Start by checking what you asked for and when. Many “refusals” turn out to be delays, or confusion about which files you meant. If the clinic is genuinely declining, ask exactly what is being withheld, and why, in writing. Clinics sometimes hesitate over raw imaging files while freely giving summaries. That can usually be resolved. Refusing all records is a different matter, and worth knowing about before you pay the final balance. It is one more reason to agree the records packet when you accept the quote.
FAQ
Can a Colombian clinic refuse to give me my dental records?
Colombian rules treat the historia clínica as confidential but list the patient among those entitled to access it, as summarized in Constitutional Court ruling T-044 of 2009. Make the request in writing, and if it is refused, ask for the reason in writing. This is general information, not legal advice.
Will my dental records from Colombia be in Spanish?
The clinical record itself usually will be. The CDC recommends asking for copies of overseas records in English, so request a separate English treatment summary and confirm before treatment that the clinic can provide it.
What format should my CBCT scan be in?
Ask for the original DICOM files, which another dentist can open in their own viewing software. Screenshots or a PDF of selected slices lose most of the information a future dentist would need.
Do I need my implant brand and model if everything is fine?
Yes. The FDA recommends keeping the brand and model of your implant system. If a screw loosens or a crown needs replacing years later, that information helps a dentist identify compatible parts.
Should I send my X-rays through the form on this page?
No. The form is for basic routing questions only. Imaging and detailed records should go straight to the licensed dental team through its own clinical channel.
Have a dental quote you want normalized?
Tell us the treatment, city/country and what you are comparing. This goes into the existing medical lead pipeline with DentalQuote attribution.
Related DentalQuote guides
Dental lead-gen network
- CDC Yellow Book — Medical Tourism (2026)
- FDA — Dental Implants: What You Should Know (2021)
- General Dental Council — Going abroad for dental treatment (2026)
- Corte Constitucional de Colombia — Sentencia T-044 de 2009
These sources support the general points cited above. They do not establish an individual diagnosis, treatment plan or price.