I had a powerful experience with a new patient this week. This man had avoided the dentist for ten years and was scared to death to return. He was afraid and ashamed that his mouth might be falling apart. He had had very bad experiences years ago that left him feeling awful about himself and resentful toward dentists. As my new patient consultation appointment proceeded, this man would stop, shake his head, bring his hands to his face holding back inner emotions and say “wow.” He was overwhelmed by genuine, non-blameful caring.

He hung out with my office manager afterward and went on and on about how relieved, hopeful, and genuinely excited he was. He knew he could have good dental health and how we were going to help him with sedation dentistry to get a few things back under control. He could have confidence in himself again and the dentist wasn’t going to be the enemy any more. As a dentist, this is what it is all about for me: helping people get to a better place in their lives. Read the rest of this entry »

What is service? People use many “buzz” words to give the impression that they are service oriented, but what does it really mean?

At Donaldson & Guenther, it is making the ordinary extraordinary. The only buzz word here is service.

When your insurance denies your claim, we continue to fight for coverage when others may say, “sorry, that is between you and your insurance carrier.”

When your health savings or pre tax account administrator needs documentation to validate a charge, we go to work and provide exactly what you need to remove the hassle, when others may say, “sorry, it is important to save your receipts.”

When you have no idea what or how a health savings account works, we can provide information to “fill in the gaps.” We help lessen the confusion and pave the way to utilizing a great benefit, when others may say, “sorry, it is in your plan booklet.”

We are excited every day to have the opportunity to provide the highest level of service to each patient. It is a pleasure to know that by doing a little something extra on our part makes a big difference to someone else.

Donaldson & Guenther is now on Youtube! You can watch our video to catch a glimpse of what our office in Ann Arbor, MI looks like and meet the people that you will interact with.

Dr. Guenther and I (Dr. Donaldson) are attending our annual Academy of Fixed Prosthodontics meeting in Chicago this weekend. It is the meeting I most respect in dentistry – the finest dentists in the world attend and present lectures.

Most of the major new clinical directions I have taken have come from this organization. This year, the subject is on failures in dentistry. As Kristin and I listened to today’s speakers, we had a tremendous sense of commitment to how we do dentistry. We know we are committed to “doing it right.” We always have been. But today, listening and seeing the problems that develop from lack of attention, not listening to patients, poor choice of materials, not taking the extra time to shape teeth correctly etc., we were more convinced than ever that quality is the best value.

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Cosmetic dentistry covers a broad range of services that restore or enhance the appearance of teeth, a smile, and even general facial aesthetics. Cosmetic improvement can result from simple lightening of natural teeth, to creating a pleasant natural look, to a dramatically light, bright, and bold look. Often, cosmetic improvement is the natural result of doing “normal and necessary“ dentistry, such as when old, poor looking restorations are replaced with something that looks beautifully real. Let’s review what some of the more common treatments are, some cautions, and how to find a great cosmetic dentist.

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Kirk Donaldson practices cosmetic, restorative, and implant dentistry in Ann Arbor, Michigan as a partner of Donaldson & Guenther: Dentistry as a Fine Art (www.DGDent.com). He got his degrees from the University of Michigan.His  Masters is in Fixed Prosthodontics (Crown & Bridge Restorative). He taught in the graduate prosthodontics program before entering full time private practice.

Kirk belongs to recognized national/international organizations including: The American Academy of Fixed Prosthodontics, American Academy of Implant Dentistry, and the Dental Organization for Conscious Sedation

Kirk is also a serious photographer (KirkDonaldsonPhotography.com).

Examples of case studies can be viewed on the blog and transformations pages of DGDent.com.

Cosmetic services are highly personal. Cosmetic dentistry can not only improve smiles, but also improve personal confidence and even careers. It can make a smile beautiful, healthy, and strong. It can also be a disaster. Bonding and cosmetic techniques are very creative and technically demanding. Done well, they are fabulous. Poor technique and quality can lead to premature failure of the restoration and disease to the surrounding supportive gums and bone. There is an old saying. You can usually get cheap, fast or good; but one at a time. Fast and cheap often have briefly hidden long term costs.

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In the early years of my practice, i worked for an older dentist that people loved. Patients loved him even though their dental work needed to be replaced often. I realized there were serious quality issues and decided my future practice would be different. In 1990, I moved into a new office and developed a dream practice that is committed to excellence.

For the last 17 years we have provided dentistry that rarely needs replacement, is beautiful and done in a comfortable caring way. I am constantly overwhelmed by how much patients appreciate how they are cared for. I am reminded of the saying, “Excellence is a habit, not a single occurrence.”

Kristin Guenther

How do we put an implant in? (by Kirk Donaldson, DDS)

There are several approaches. My most common way is to have my patient lightly sedated, so they are relaxed. After thorough numbing, I open the gumline so I can see the bone clearly. This helps me choose the precise orientation and height of my implant. A pilot hole is gently drilled in the bone, double checked and enlarged. The implant is then carefully rotated into place. In complex cases, I will use a CT scan and a digitally designed guide system to aid in precise implant placement.

I have seen too many poor results because implants were not carefully planned and placed. I generally prefer to close the gums completely while the patient’s bone fuses (integrates) to the implant over a period of 2 to 6 months. In the mean time, patients have a temporary tooth or teeth so they always have teeth in aesthetic areas. Back teeth are often left as just the natural gums during the integration period. The advantage to this approach is highest success rates ( high 90’s) and the best gums later.

I do some clever things to make the gums look very natural on most front teeth. This happens when we uncover the implant and make a beautiful temporary that promotes a natural looking gumline. It is one of the “art parts.”

In special carefully selected situations, we may remove a tooth, place the implant and build the temporary tooth all in one step. Placing implants and teeth all at the same time is becoming more common, but some of the precision and success rates can drop. It is a decision that is important to make with plenty of information.

Once the implants have integrated, the patient is ready to have their new teeth made. We are able to replace a single tooth or several; all the way to an entire arch. Many people do single individually flossable teeth. With two implants, we make lower dentures much more secure. With 4 – 8 implants we can make a whole arch of secure teeth that stay in place and are not removable.

Kirk Donaldson DDS MS

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Enjoy your smile again. Schedule an appointment today. Call us at (734) 971-3450.

I am biased. I want my work to be great for my patients now and for a long time to come. I love a beautiful smile. Plastic surgeons, hairdressers, make-up artists all know that a great smile is the most important part of making a person look more attractive and vital. We are able to enhance smiles so they are brighter, more uniform and attractive while still looking real. Last week while out to dinner, I saw one of my patients; a school teacher. She was dressed up, with make up on. Her face just glowed. The smile she flashed was our secret. No one would ever guess you were looking at dental artistry. It was bright and beautiful without being overdone.

Unfortunately, I almost squirm when I see a lot of the Hollywood smiles that almost scream, “FAKE!” Doing big bulky plain white teeth is easy. Lots of high volume production labs produce that stuff. When a dentist doesn’t need to pre-shape the teeth or gums, they are just going to bulk up the teeth like adding cheap false fingernails. The unfortunate consequence is usually a negative impact on the gum health, and difficulty speaking clearly and biting efficiently. How can you bite an apple when the edges of your teeth are two to four times their normal thickness? That is what happens with “instant” veneers and similar highly marketed procedures.

Too often, someone who buys the cheap, quick fix feels dissatisfied later and then looks for a more thoughtful approach. Treating something again is a lot more expensive than doing it well the first time. Quality is almost always the best long term value.

I have a saying; Run to failure, walk to success. Careful planning is essential to achieve consistent excellence. When I am doing important cosmetic, implant and restorative work for someone, I give reserve the time necessary to work on the small details that make that lifelike difference. It takes training, an eye and discipline. Some of the comments I hear patients make is, “ These are MY teeth. That’s how they feel! Not fake at all!” or, “ This is how they used to be! How did you know?”, or , “This is what I have always wanted. “ It’s why we say, “Dentistry As A Fine Art”.