NJM: What is the focus of your practice?
Our specialty mostly deals with extractions, third molar extractions or wisdom teeth, dental implants, biopsies of the oral cavity and reconstruction of the upper and lower jaws.
NJM: What technology has changed patient care in recent years?
Bone-grafting techniques and the use of bone-grafting material called allogeneic. In the past, if I wanted to reconstruct someone’s jaw—especially if there was a big defect from a car accident or cancer—I would have to go to the patient’s hip or leg or skull to take a block of bone to rebuild the jaw. Today, with the use of many of the bone-grafting materials available, we don’t have to go to another donor site. Allogeneic material is actually from a bottle. It’s been used for many years but every year, it seems to be getting better and better, which is giving us better results.
We also use something called PRP, or platelet-rich plasma. It’s very popular for sports injuries. We basically take blood from a patient’s vein. We have a centrifuge machine in the office. We spin off platelets and mix it with these new bone-grafting materials. This increases the likelihood of success of dental implants and bone-regenerating techniques.
NJM: What are your favorite activities outside the office?
I am happily married and have four children, ages 14, 13, 10 and 7. I am an assistant coach for the girls’ soccer team at the high school, head coach of the boys’ baseball team for my 10-year-old, and I am actively involved in many charitable organizations and synagogues. I am also an avid golfer.