New Teeth New Life All-On-4 [Interview]

Frank suffered with dental problems for as long as he can remember. His career, personal life, and self-confidence were all impacted by his smile, and he soon realized enough was enough. Now, after years of suffering, his teeth are no longer holding him back! Watch Frank's extended interview and see how Dr. Krakora's New Teeth New Life dental implant procedure truly transformed his life.   You can also read Frank's interview below:  

Tell me about yourself.

I'm in sales currently. I've been in sales for probably the past 25 years. Started out in the service industry and then got into the sales side of things. I'm currently in the funeral industry right now. I do a lot of volunteer work in different civic organizations that we have through the local town that I live in.  

How long have you suffered from periodontal disease?

Oh gosh, ever since I was probably 20 years old I would image, maybe even before that. I always had the issue where you know, floss, do this do that, brush, you're not brushing properly, do a different toothbrush, that type of thing, and it's always been an issue. I always had discoloration in my teeth, and my mom thinks it may be because of that where it decayed my teeth a little bit, and that could've been where that came from, but we're really not sure.  

 

How did these problems progress?

My gums would recede. Every time I would floss they would always bleed. I mean nothing I did - rinse, mouthwash, you name it. They did this deep root cleaning and they told me to buy these special tools, and I had a good investment in that alone.

 

How have these dental problems impacted your life?

I probably didn't smile as much as I should have, and the other issue I always had was - unfortunately with periodontal and gum disease is you have bad breath as well. And it's not like I chewed; It's not like I smoked or anything like that. I've had friends of mine mention it, and it's like "what else can I do?" It was very frustrating.  

When did you realize something needed to be done?

The dentist I was going to at the time, he came to me and he said "You know, if you were my patient 15 years ago I could've probably saved your teeth." And basically what he told me was you have to have them all removed.  

How did you react to finding out you would be losing all of your teeth?

Pretty well devastated *laughs* because that was the last thing I was thinking of. I asked him what my options were, and he said, "Unless you hit the lottery, most likely a denture," and that was not something I was comfortable with I guess is the best way to say it.  

 

How did you hear about the All-On-4 dental implant procedure?

Well, my wife's a hairdresser, and I stopped in her shop. She was doing a woman's hair who happened to be a dentist. And we were having this conversation, and she was overhearing as far as, you know, I have to have them all removed, what my options were. And through the course of that conversation she tried to explain the All-On-4 to me.   Nobel Biocare All-On-4 Dental Implant Solution About a month prior to that, I went to a different dentist, an oral surgeon, and he talked about rebuilding the bone and the process with that and the expense as well, and it was totally unaffordable.  

What were your thoughts initially?

Nervous. Unsure. Didn't know a lot about it. I just had the brochure to look at, and I really didn't have any material, or anyone to ask, how the process worked. When I met with Dr. Krakora and his staff they reassured me that everything was good. I didn't have anything to worry about. They just made me feel comfortable, and they, to this day, they still make me comfortable even when I walk in the door.  

 

Describe your experience.

It was in November of 2011 when I met with Dr. Krakora, and he explained to me, my wife was here, what he was going to do and the process of everything. And I still had a little bit of reservation. I didn't want to do anything over the holidays because I didn't know what to expect, so we planned it for January of that year. Came in. You know, I was pretty well nervous still. The girls you know they took care of everything. The last thing I remember I was out. Woke up, and he apparently removed my teeth and put the temporaries in, and I didn't know that he had done that. Had no pain. He gave me medication for that. Never did fill the prescription. So For the first 8 months because I had a lot more bone loss than he anticipated once he got in there, so I had to wait a little bit longer to get my permanent teeth in. Once I got those in, I could eat anything that I wanted to.  

 

How has your life improved after All-On-4?

I didn't get my permanent until October, which ran into the following holiday. Of course you have vegetable trays and things like that, and I could actually chew on vegetables - raw vegetables - radishes, carrots, things like that - with no problem. So that was kind of the first part of it and being able to go through Thanksgiving dinner and so forth.

When it really hit me was when I was away out of town, and I was at a restaurant and I ordered a steak. And I'm sitting their eating a steak, and I'm thinking to myself, you know a year ago I wouldn't be eating this steak like I was. I mean I could only chew on one side of my mouth before...I could chew on BOTH sides. It's just like having my teeth like they were 20 years ago.  

What advice do you have for future New Teeth New Life patients?

 

Talk with the folks here. Understand what caused the problems to begin with and how this is going to rectify the situation, and make sure that you're comfortable going in through this whole process. There again, I had some reservations about it and I'm very thankful that I did do it. I'm on four years now, and it's been a great experience. The staff as I said and Dr. Krakora's they've just gone above and beyond what they need to do here.