Dr. Von Bulow's Articles

I’ve always been kind of amused by ads that emphasize “cosmetic” restorative dentistry.  Restorative dentistry does what it says it does; it restores what’s been broken down or lost.  The parameters range from a filling to an entire dentition.  But shucks, unless we have way more vision than we really need, most molar jockeys use nature as our guide and work at mimicking what looks right.

So hopefully, we all do cosmetic dentistry.  The alternative would be dentistry that looks like the bruins on offense.  I don’t think so.

What’s really exciting about the way we do things these days is the distinction between getting a flat tire on your new ride and tooling around town on one of those funny little donut spares, as opposed to matching the three surviving tires and having the car detailed.

Dentistry today is more about the big picture; it’s comprehensive and built on long-term relationships.  It isn’t about fixing a flat; it’s more like keeping the car looking good and running well for 200,000 miles 

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Today I sent in my re-licensure paperwork and a check made out to the State Board of Dental Examiners.  And when I print out the ole P&L report and scan the cost of doing business with dental labs, dental suppliers, and the Tax Man (Did I actually leave out insurance expense?), the tab for my now nearly classic license looks like a pretty sweet deal.

But trust me; I won’t be making too many “sweet deal” remarks around recent grads who qualify only because they’ve already spent hundreds of thousands for school and hundreds of thousands more if they’re ready to roll the dice on opening a new business. 

Yeah, $335 isn’t half bad.  Shucks, what with the value of gold these days, you could almost pay the lab fee for one crown with three bills and change.  And I hope you’ll forgive some dang cynicism creeping in; think maybe I’ve been watching a little too much Doc House Monday nights.

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So I realize I’m getting a little older because I don’t wake up in the middle of the night any more, totally convinced I’ve been removed from dental school for calling Doc “Wrath of” Kahn a little weenie.  I guess birthdays do have some advantages.

For the most part, I loved being a student.  Shucks, the only times I remember being under the classroom gun were during Catechism and dental school; everything in between was pure hot fudge sundaes.  My teachers always had my unconditional attention and respect; with the exception of dental school, I always felt the feeling was mutual.

Of course, my family always took a personal interest in what I did.  Sometimes it was almost embarrassing.  If my brother had only known I could actually use dental floss in grade school, he’d have told the world.  And today, I always view patients in the context of family.  I kid around with the family thing during a patient’s first visit, sharing most of my relatives are Sicilian (the Familia never forgets and they’re bent on revenge.)  Not a bad guarantee for my best clinical effort.

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