My Front Tooth Fell Out – case presentation

Posted on August 17, 2015 by The Dental Warrior

“Why did my tooth fall out?”

A non-regular (shows up for emergencies only) patient presented with a chief complaint that his lower front tooth fell out. He needed a replacement ASAP, as he didn’t want to go to work without his front tooth. He didn’t have the tooth with him. What can we do?

Obviously, before we treatment plan any long-term solution, we need to step back and perform a comprehensive examination. But, what can we do in the mean time to address his chief complaint?

Options for a quick and easy (and temporary) solution would include Continue reading →

Posted in Case Presentation | Tagged bonded pontic, instant bridge, MacGyver, missing tooth | 10 Comments

Hashtag: Lions, Flags, and Dentists… Oh my!

Posted on July 31, 2015 by The Dental Warrior

What happened to critical thinking? “Outrage” over a spoon-fed narrative has become increasingly contagious in this willfully ignorant culture.

Groupthink, powered by the news and social media, has become epidemic. While on an individual, intellectual basis, most of us would likely agree that what we hear from the media is biased, incomplete, and sometimes intentionally untrue. Most of us would also agree that the adage, “if it’s on the internet, it must be true” is a sarcastic and sardonic statement. Yet, a growing percentage of our society is quick to glom on to the cause célèbre based on some viral story on Facebook or the Today Show. Forget about vetting the story. Forget about doing a modicum of research on the subject. Fact-resistance is proudly displayed, while the delusional claim the moral high ground. These folks gain their significance on the public stage by identifying with a politically-correct position. “I want to be a part of it… “

Perhaps we should call it “group UNthink.”

If it’s got a hashtag in front of it, then I must join the herd and express my outrage, offense, and disdain for the newly-designated transgression.

Before you pick up pitchforks and mindlessly join the judgement bandwagon… consider seeking understanding and enlightenment. Try it! You might like it! To reject enlightenment is to proudly display stupidity. It’s almost as if it’s a competition to see who can be the first to claim the moral high ground and be more enraged / offended / aghast / and contemptuous than the others about the social faux pas du jour.

Be vewy, vewy quiet… I’m hunting cavities.

A few weeks ago, it was all about flags. Now the villain-of-the-month is a dentist! A wascally dentist! This week’s story was a two-fer for the agenda-driven media Continue reading →

Posted in Current Events, Editorial | Tagged dentist hunter, hunting saves lives, lion hunting dentist | 68 Comments

“Howard (Farran) Speaks” Podcast with Yours Truly

Posted on July 27, 2015 by The Dental Warrior

About 6 weeks ago, I Skyped with Dr. Howard Farran to be interviewed for his “Howard Speaks” podcast series. It was published today (see below). We talked about a variety of topics from website marketing to “organized” dentistry to advice for new dentists (that would apply to the old, as well). It was like sitting at a bar with Howard and hashing out today’s issues in dentistry.

Howard founded Dentaltown.com, which is the largest and most popular online dental forum on the planet with 200,000 registered members. I’ve been a member since the very first days of DentalTown, and it has been a significant player in my dental career.

Howard’s latest project has been his “Howard Speaks” podcast. And, already he has racked up a massive collection of fantastic interviews (106 at this point!) with many of the leaders in dentistry today. I would encourage you to check out his entire portfolio of interviews. There are three ways to access them:

You can watch my interview below. Hey… I think both of our portraits are equally old! Ha!

Posted in Current Events, Editor's Favorites, Practice Management, Technology, What Happened Today | Tagged "Howard Speaks" podcast, Dr. Howard Farran | 4 Comments

The Website Owner’s Manual – 2nd Edition!

Posted on July 4, 2015 by The Dental Warrior

It’s DONE! Finally! Really!

The 2nd Edition of my book, “The Complete Website Owner’s Manual for Dentists,” is ready to go! I decided to make it a downloadable product this time around. The original paper version was expensive to print, due to full-color illustrations printed on glossy paper. It was also expensive to ship, and there were more problems with missing shipments than I cared or had time to deal with. A digital version also provides instant gratification.

I spent a lot of time re-writing and editing to update the first edition, adding 30 pages to the original. While a lot of the principles of website marketing remain constant, there have been many changes, as well.

The original printed (on glossy paper) 1st Edition sold for $347. The digital 2nd Edition is priced at $148. For a limited time, you can save an additional $50 by using the coupon code, “dental warrior” (without the quotes) in the check-out screen! Remember, this is an instantly downloadable product. No waiting!

The information in this book can save you THOUSANDS in misspent website fees and MAKE you thousands with new patients.

Visit my website (Rev Up My Marketing) to see a long list of testimonials and learn more about what you will get from this book. Or get it right now by clicking the button below.

Posted in Dental Warrior Announcements, Must Read Books!, Websites | Tagged website marketing book, Website Owner's Manual | 5 Comments

Keeping Up With the Greenbergs

Posted on June 5, 2015 by The Dental Warrior

It’s been a while since I’ve written, as I have been busy and rather uninspired. But, two days ago, I was interviewed on Howard Farran’s podcast. It was me… one-on-one with Dr. Howard Farran, the founder of DentalTown. And, let me tell you… It takes some real energy to keep up with him! 🙂

We discussed number of topics, and I’ll touch on that, along with a link, when the podcast is published. Stay tuned! But, we discussed one thing in particular that has also come up in some Facebook and Dentaltown threads. We talked a bit about technology in dentistry. I think we’ll all agree that recent advances in dental technology have been impressive and a boon to dentistry.

Watch out for the rocks!

But, I also believe that the siren call of dental technology can be a problem for dentists. As dentists, most of us are “gadget geeks.” We love gadgets, gizmos, and toys. Dentistry is the perfect profession for technology lovers. While I fall squarely in that category, age and experience has also infused me with a healthy dose of skepticism. I’ve participated in online dental social media going back to 1992-ish on Compuserve. It was there I learned an aphorism that has proven to be very useful throughout my career. My long-time online friend, Dr. Sam Feinstein said, “It’s a solution to a problem I don’t have.” That’s practice management gold.

Below the standard of care?

Dentistry is FULL of such solutions. Mind you Continue reading →

Posted in Editorial, Practice Management, Technology | Tagged CAD/CAM, CBCT, dental technology | 24 Comments

Mommas, don’t let your babies grow up to pet strange puppies.

Posted on May 13, 2015 by The Dental Warrior

Have you REALLY taught your children to not talk to strangers?

There is a video making the rounds on Facebook intended to illustrate how many children, despite being taught not to talk to strangers, will take the hands of strangers and walk away with them without hesitation.

The lead in for the video cautions, “Parents keep your eyes on your children in public places!” That’s certainly good advice. And, it sets up the viewer to agree with the premise of the video.

The implied lesson is that we need to talk to our children EVEN MORE about avoiding contact with strangers. But, do we?

Watch the video. It’s just 3-1/2 minutes long. Then I’ll get down to fisking it in a way you probably won’t expect. Video after the jump… Continue reading →

Posted in Editorial, Personal Security & Safety | Tagged child abduction, child safety, family safety, stranger danger, talking to strangers | 9 Comments

Fifteen Minutes of Shame

Posted on April 10, 2015 by The Dental Warrior

This week, the news reported that actress Sandra Bullock called the police to report an intruder in her house. It took FIFTEEN MINUTES for the police to arrive at SANDRA BULLOCK’S home. She locked herself in her room, which has a SAFE DOOR. Below is a recording of her 911 call.

Most of us don’t have a vault door for our bedrooms (like Ms. Bullock does). Many of us have family spread out in multiple bedrooms. And, if you can’t defend yourself effectively…. 15 minutes…. well… By then, the police will simply be gathering forensic evidence around your lifeless body. Or maybe the intruder will have mercy on you and let you and your children live. Either way, the police will not be there in time to protect you. And, you should know that they have NO OBLIGATION to protect you, even if they do arrive in time. Read that last sentence again and click the link to learn more about that.

Are you ready?

Sandra Bullock’s intruder was a mentally disturbed stalker. Most of us aren’t celebrities who are more likely to have stalkers. While the probability of a home intruder is relatively low, Continue reading →

Posted in Personal Security & Safety | Tagged home intruder, Sandra Bullock home invasion | 7 Comments

Changing Lives Again

Posted on April 2, 2015 by The Dental Warrior

I love what I do for a number of reasons. I like the combination of engineering, biology, physics, and art that goes into restoring teeth and smiles. I like that we can eliminate a patient’s pain, usually in a single visit. And, I like that our efforts can literally change lives for the better.

I’m always touched when a patient takes the TIME to go that “extra mile” in showing his or her appreciation for what we do. They pay us for our services, of course. And, that should be enough, right? But, some patients are compelled to go further and thank us in a number of ways. Sometimes it’s baked goods. Sometimes it’s a hug. Sometimes it’s a nice card. And, sometimes they even take the time to write their heart-felt thoughts. I got this card and letter this week:

Dr. Mike, Jo-Ann, Sandy, and Marcy,

letter I woke up this morning thinking about how blessed we were to have found your office. I was thinking about how stressful it was worrying about Mary and all of her dental issues before she became a patient of yours.

Finding your office was truly a blessing. If we had stayed at her previous dentist office, I don’t know if I would have survived the continual problems and stress that came along with having a dentist that didn’t want to hear or understand what I wanted for my beautiful daughter.

Every person in your office has played a crucial role in creating the beautiful, perfect smile that my daughter is so very proud of. It makes my heart so happy seeing what a difference your entire team has made in our lives.

Dr. Mike, I especially want to thank you for being so patient with me. I wanted certain things a certain way, and you never once questioned me. You went above and beyond to make it happen, and happen it did! Against all odds, Mary’s Maryland bridge is as solid as ever. I don’t know that you will ever fully understand what an impact you have had on our lives, nor could I ever thank you enough.

Forever grateful, The Smiths.

This family has gone out of their way to thank us before. Before I remade her Maryland Bridge, I did some bonding. I blogged about it previously. Here is a sequence of photos demonstrating the new Maryland bridge: Continue reading →

Posted in Case Presentation, Practice Management, What Happened Today | Tagged Maryland bridge, patient letters, thank you cards | 14 Comments

Putting Out Fires

Posted on March 12, 2015 by The Dental Warrior

Some days, I feel like I’m the dental version of a fireman. On Monday, I saw a new patient who had been referred to me by a colleague in Ohio (who knows me through the Dentaltown message boards). The patient is a “snow bird” who spends his winters in Florida. It happens a lot, as it seems there is a rule that most patients up North eventually end up in Florida. I share many patients with my northern colleagues.

First Fire

The patient, a 75 y.o. male with a history of multiple myeloma, had a chief complaint of a loose bridge. It was implant-supported with abutments in the position of #9 and #13. Interestingly, rather than pontics, there were crowns on natural teeth in the positions of #10 and #11. There is a pontic #12. So, it was combining natural teeth and implants. Except, the natural teeth were no longer really part of the equation (as you’ll see below)

The patient was planning to return home to Ohio in a couple of weeks. Normally, I’d recommend replacing the screws with new screws (and I told him so). The old screws have been stressed cyclically and are prone to breakage. But, he wanted a quick fix, and I thought I’d just tighten the existing screws enough to get him home to Ohio. And, so that’s what I did. I recommended that he see his dentist ASAP when he gets home. I also mentioned that the entire bridge may need replacement.

He’s baaaaack

Yesterday, the patient called to tell us the bridge came out completely. Rut-roh! I knew the screws did not likely loosen themselves all the way out in a couple of days. And, I was right. Both screws broke off in the implants. Oh, crap. I saw him this morning, and this is what I found.

Here's what was under the four splinted crowns.

Here’s what was under the bridge.

Continue reading →

Posted in Case Presentation, Practice Management, What Happened Today | Tagged broken implant screws, CAD/CAM, cerec, single central incisor, under the bus | 24 Comments

Are You A Dentist or THE Dentist?

Posted on February 13, 2015 by The Dental Warrior

Seems like a strange question at best and an ego-driven rhetorical question at worst, right?

Mandelbaum! Mandelbaum! Mandelbaum!

“So, you think you’re better than me?”

I couldn’t help working in a Seinfeld reference!

A meeting of the “dental minds” in Las Vegas. Can you name them? 🙂

What do I mean by the title of this article? I was thinking about how most of my new patients referred by my website end up on my website and then in my chair. I often ask those patients if they remember which search terms they used. Often, they tell me they were looking for something specific… a specific service or a specific type of dentist. They weren’t looking for A dentist. They weren’t looking for ANY dentist. They were looking for THE dentist (who met some specific criteria).

Who are you? Who, who? Who, who?

Yes, there are many prospective patients looking for A dentist who: Continue reading →

Posted in Editorial, Marketing, Practice Management | Tagged long tail, search engine optimization, website marketing | 4 Comments

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