A New Smile In A Day

COURTESY PHOTO
John and Cora are thrilled with the new smiles they received through Coastal Jaw Surgery’s Same Day Teeth protocol. The couple say their smile makeovers changed their lives for the better. “It’s so good to chew like other people,” John says.

John Fred worked as a police officer in Nassau County, New York, for 23 years, retiring in January 2015. A month later, John and his wife, Cora, a housewife, fled the cold and dreary New York winters and relocated to Florida. However, the couple couldn’t flee their longstanding battles with failing teeth.

“I’ve had problems with my upper teeth for a while, and the dental work that I had before fell out,” Cora shares. “Eventually, I didn’t have any teeth on the upper left side, so I was embarrassed to smile — I didn’t feel comfortable smiling. When you have a hole in your mouth when you smile, you don’t really feel whole.”

While Cora’s dental issues were confined to her upper teeth, John had problems with both his upper and lower teeth.

“I lost a lot of my teeth over the years,” John relates. “They became loose and fell out, probably because I had periodontal disease for a long time.

“I wore a partial denture on top, which was horrible to eat with. Sometimes, I had to get up in the middle of eating at a restaurant, go to the bathroom and rinse it out because food got stuck in there. I couldn’t bite into food normally; I had to cut everything into little pieces.”

In early 2021, Cora began looking for a dentist who could give them new teeth and restore their smiles and found Michael A. Pikos, DDS, of Coastal Jaw Surgery.

“Through my research, I discovered that Dr. Pikos’ credentials are highly rated,” Cora elaborates. “I watched his videos and saw that the procedure he performs is high-tech. That’s how we chose Coastal Jaw Surgery.”

Dr. Pikos is a board-certified oral and maxillofacial surgeon and the founder of Coastal Jaw Surgery, where he offers a novel smile restoration process that is aptly called Same Day Teeth®.

Same Day Teeth is an innovative option that remakes the aesthetic appearance of the smile and provides optimal functionality through the placement of dental implants and new teeth during one appointment.

Dental implants are root-shaped, screw-like bodies that are surgically placed into the jawbone, where new bone naturally grows around them to form the foundation for an abutment and replacement teeth.

The replacement teeth can be a crown that is cemented or screwed onto the abutment, a partial bridge that can be affixed to one or more implants, or a full prosthesis that can be fastened to a series of implants.

Digital Technology

Coastal Jaw Surgery is a multidisciplinary practice, consisting of oral surgeons, periodontists and a prosthodontist, as well as a lab technician. So, the practice can accommodate every part of the Same Day Teeth protocol, from start to finish.

Prosthodontist Philip J. Hedger, DMD, MS, who has advanced training in creating dental prostheses, works with each patient to design the new smile, determining factors such as the size, shape and color of the teeth.

“The Same Day Teeth process is much like building a house,” Dr. Hedger asserts. “I design the bite and smile – the house – that goes on top of the foundation, which are the implants that are laid by the oral surgeon.”

Coastal Jaw Surgery uses the latest digital technology for Same Day Teeth.

“We use a digital scanner and create a 3D avatar of the patient on which we do mock-up smile designs to get the ideal cosmetics, so there are no goopy impressions,” Dr. Hedger explains. “Then our in-house lab technician, Taylor Tori, creates a custom-designed prosthesis. Taylor also creates surgical guides to ensure proper implant placement.
-Dr. Hedger

“After meeting with me and our treatment coordinator, patients then meet with an oral surgeon, who performs the implant surgery. During surgery, the failing teeth are removed, the implants are seated and then permanent teeth are made for the patient.”

“A Life-Changer”

Cora underwent the Same Day Teeth protocol on her upper arch in March 2021.

About a month later, John had his upper arch completed. Pleased with the outcome, John later had his lower teeth restored. Three years later, they are still thrilled with their smile makeovers.

“Having these procedures done was a life-changer for both of us,” John raves. “Our entire lifestyle has improved.

“We now go on a lot of cruises and eat different types of foods. It’s so good to chew like other people, and we can smile without worrying about people staring at our mouths and bad teeth.”

The couple are also impressed by the dentists who made those smiles possible.

“Dr. Pikos and Dr. Hedger are wonderful,” Cora raves. “I wanted my teeth to look natural, and Dr. Hedger did a perfect job. All the people in that office are wonderful. If anybody needs work on their teeth, I recommend they go to Coastal Jaw Surgery.”