Compliments of Town & Country Dental Studios

ON THE

CUSPSPRING2013

Trends, Tips and Technology

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7 The Future of Implant Dentistry:The fastest growing segment of dentistry has never been easier!

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4 Successful Strategies to Build your Practice:Today’s consumers can become new lifelong patients

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5 The Right Fit: You and Your Dental LaboratoryA long-term commitment to excellence and service

Abutments as individual as your patients

ATLANTIS BioDesign Matrix™

The four features of the ATLANTIS BioDesign Matrix™

work together to support soft tissue managementfor ideal functional and esthetic results. This is the true value of ATLANTIS™ for you and your patients.

ATLANTIS VAD™ Designed from the final tooth shape.

Custom Connect™

Strong and stable fit – customized connection for all major implant systems.

Soft-tissue Adapt™ Optimal support for soft tissue sculpturing and adaptation to the finished crown.

Natural Shape™ Shape and emergence profile based on individual patient anatomy.

Available for all major implant systems and in your choice of titanium, gold-shaded titanium and multiple shades of zirconia, ATLANTIS™ patient-specific

CAD/CAM abutments help to eliminate the need for inventory management of stock components and simplify the restorative procedure.

Find out how ATLANTIS™ can bring simplicity and esthetics to your practice. Just take an implant-level impression, send it to your laboratory and ask for ATLANTIS today.

800-531-3481 • www.dentsplyimplants.com

WELCOME | 3

WELCOME TO

TOWN & COUNTRY

Welcome to the first issue of ON THE CUSP! With so many exciting advances in dentistry and dental technology, it gives us great pleasure to present you with this complimentary publication featuring the latest trends, products, and ideas to keep you informed and inspired. Featured are articles ranging from innovations in implant dentistry, insights in practice management, and state-of-the-art digital solutions in the laboratory fabrication of customized restorations.

Sharing our knowledge and expertise with others is part of our mission at Town & Country, and we open our doors to our partners and vendors to explore our world. Representatives and managers from DENTSPLY Implants recently visited our lab to better understand

the process once a doctor sends us a case – particularly for a SIMPL restoration. They left with a new appreciation of the precision involved in successful implant restoration.

We continually strive to advance our capabilities and remain ‘on the cusp’ of dental technology. As a member of the TEREC Research Consortium, a strategic alliance of leading regional dental laboratories across the United States and Canada, we serve as a comprehensive resource to identify, evaluate and develop new technologies. Established in 1984, TEREC NA has been instrumental in the advancement of new products, processes, materials, procedures and techniques.

Our first TEREC 3-day meeting for 2013 in Scottsdale, Arizona, was focused on best practices, new technologies and collaboration with industry leading companies around the world. New materials to improve partials, dentures and implant overdentures were discussed by James Swartout, President & CEO of Myerson Dental. Other presentations included advancements in zirconia and pressed materials.

We’re already working on our next issue which will feature a case presentation from one of our many excellent practitioners. We’d also like to invite you to contact us with any questions or comments that we might include in ON THE CUSP.

Thank you for allowing us to be your partner in providing excellent dental healthcare. We value our relationship with you and hope you agree that our lab is the right fit for your practice.

Warmest wishes,

Jerilyn Sapoznick Implant Dept. Director Town & Country Dental Studios

In this IssueCover

Dear Colleague,

Left to Right: Scott Mayshaw, Myerson Account Manager, Steve Dearien, TEREC Vice President, James Swartout, Myerson President & CEO, Kris Schermerhorn, Myerson Technical Advisor, Mike Young, TEREC President

DENTSPLY Implants Representatives: L to R: James Gallagher (not pictured), Brian Kacerow, Mike Karpenski, Terry Gardrvits and Town & Country Technician Nicolas Melendez.

Metal bridge framework being fabricated by selective laser melting, an additive manufacturing process. The structure is created layer by layer from a 3D digital file, designed by a dental technician. Each unit is made from 100% new

metal. The laser melting process is extremely accurate, produces less waste and saves production time. Photo courtesy of Argen Digital.

50 Years of Quality and Innovation

5The Game Changers and Your Practice

4The Future of Implant Dentistry

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DENTAL STUDIOS

The last few years have been difficult ones for dentists. According to the Levin Group Data Center™, 75% of dental practices have suffered production declines since 2009.1 Many dentists believe the economic slowdown is to blame for their production woes. They are only partially right.

In addition to the Great Recession (Game Changer #1), there are seven other factors that are currently affecting practice production and will continue to affect practices for the foreseeable future. I call them collectively the 8 Permanent Game Changers, including:

1. Great Recession

2. Changes in Consumer Purchasing Habits

3. Opening of New Dental Schools

4. Decrease in Insurance Reimbursements

5. Expansion of Dental Service Organizations

6. Higher Dental School Student Loan Debt

7. Fewer Associateship Opportunities for New Dentists

8. Dentists Practicing 8–10 Years Longer

By fully understanding the impact of these seismic changes, dentists can develop and implement a business model that will allow their practices to grow in the new economy, increase production, and generate income and profit for the doctor. Let’s take a look at one of these Game Changers…

Changes in Consumer PurChasing habits

In response to the Great Recession, consumers are much more deliberate in their decision-making when it comes to purchasing products and services. Dental practices across the country are finding it difficult to motivate patients to accept recommended treatment for both need-based and elective services.

Despite the downturn, 25% of practices are still managing to grow. They realize that today’s patients require a different level of customer service, relationship-building and attention. These practices have responded to this new consumer mentality by re-engineering their management and marketing systems to meet the needs of today’s patients.

here are four Proven strategies that are our Clients are using suCCessfully:

1. Create More Value. Patients are evaluating every dollar they spend. “Do I need to come in every six months for a cleaning” is a question many patients are asking themselves, especially those who have lost their dental insurance. Successful practices create greater value for the services they provide. They emphasize the benefits that excellent oral health can have on quality of life. In addition, they promote the idea that preventing disease now will save the patient from expensive treatment later.

2. Build Stronger Relationships. General practices have recurring patients, which gives offices many opportunities to strengthen the relationship on each visit. Team members should learn one or two personal items, such as hobbies, interests or job information, about each patient during every visit. This information can be referred to on subsequent visits, moving the relationship from strictly professional to a more personal one.

3. Promote Quality. When patients accept restorative or esthetic treatment, the results should be outstanding. One of the best ways to ensure excellent outcomes is to use a quality lab, which results in higher patient satisfaction, fewer remakes and lower stress, and more referrals. As a dentist, you may be the greatest clinician in the world, but if you are choosing a lab based on price alone, you could be undermining the treatment you provide.

4. Emphasize Convenience. People are extremely busy today. If new patients have to wait several weeks for an appointment, they may end up seeking dental care elsewhere. Build room into your schedule, so new patients can be seen within seven days after calling the office. Make it easy for callers to become actual patients.

ConClusion

As a result of the 8 Permanent Game Changers, the dental economy has been forever altered. Practices that implement high-performance systems are in a better position to neutralize the negative effects of the game changers. The four strategies discussed can help your practice motivate today’s consumers to become new patients… and remain with your practice as lifelong patients.

Roger Levin, DDS

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The Game Changers and Your Practice

1Levin Group Data Center™ houses proprietary data collected annually from thousands of dental practices, including clients and other dentists.Reprinted with permission from Levin Group.

“Successful practices create greater value for the services they provide.”

Dr. Roger Levin is a third-generation dentist and the Chairman and CEO of Levin Group, Inc., the largest OMS practice consulting firm in North America. Levin Group was founded in 1985 when Dr. Levin recognized a vital missing link that was preventing oral surgeons from increasing practice production. As a leading authority on OMS practice management and marketing, he has developed the scientific systems-based consulting method that will increase practice production and profitability, while lowering stress.

He has authored 65 books and more than 3,200 articles. Dr. Levin sits on the editorial boards of five prominent dental publications, serves as the practice management editor of Compendium and is the managing editor of Dental Business Review for Surgical Practices. He is a regular contributor to the Journal of the American Dental Association.

IN THE LABORATORY

With the support of his sons David Lampert, MBA, and Steven Lampert, Tech Support Manager, and their team of technicians including CDT’s, MDT’s and a retired DDS, they are driven by principles of quality and service from top to bottom. With many of their staff employed by the company for over 20 years, they have the skill, knowledge, expertise and commitment to insure their client’s total satisfaction. We spoke with David Lampert to learn more.

HOW HAS DIGITAL CAD/CAM TECHNOLOGY AND SOLUTIONS SUCH

AS ATLANTIS™ PATIENT-SPECIFIC ABUTMENTS BEEN LEVERAGED IN

YOUR BUSINESS?

“We have incorporated the newest equipment and technologies including several CAD/CAM systems. We are also certified to handle files for all the major digital impressioning systems currently on the market. ATLANTIS™ abutments however, remain a core product of Town & Country Dental Studios’ implant offering. By combining the benefits of CAD/CAM patient-specific abutments with our exclusive Simpl™ restorative protocol, we have introduced our clients to a highly successful yet simplified and complete implant restorative system. We have now produced over 20,000 Simpl cases and have a 99 percent satisfaction rate; an amazing success rate to say

the least. ATLANTIS™ patient-specific abutments

are best of what technology should be able to offer. A good technology

should give you a better quality, quicker turnaround time, efficient production and help control costs. ATLANTIS abutments give us all of this and more. In addition to the excellent abutments, what

makes ATLANTIS really great is the relationship that Town & Country

has had with the people at Atlantis

Components Inc., Astra Tech Dental and now DENTSPLY Implants. The partnership is unique and special and gives both companies the mutual support and the mutual success. This first-class partnership has really worked well; our clients and their patients have greatly enjoyed the benefits of this relationship.

Using advanced technologies to grow our business has proven to be very successful for us at Town & Country. ATLANTIS has proven itself to be a great technology. That is the main reason why we continue to utilize ATLANTIS and why we are very excited about the future.”

WHAT DO YOUR CUSTOMERS MOST APPRECIATE ABOUT YOU?

“Today more then ever, clinicians want and need to work with laboratories that truly understand the importance of quality restorations and excellent customer service – all at reasonable prices. This is what customers most appreciate from Town & Country. Many of our clients consider us partners in their overall practice success. We give them 100 percent and we know our efforts are a direct reflection of their patients’ satisfaction. We take that responsibility very seriously and work hard everyday to meet those demands.”

Celebrating their 50th anniversary, family-owned and operated Town & Country Dental Studios is a dental laboratory like no other. The foundation of their company comes from its President and owner Barry Lampert, CDT, who has been working in the dental technology field since 1957.

50 Years of Quality and Innovation

FACTS IN BRIEF

FOUNDED: 1962LOCATION: Freeport, New YorkNUMBER OF EMPLOYEES: 94IMPLANT RESTORATIONS/YEAR: over 10,000 implant restorations and abutments

A Town & Country Dental Studios tradition

At Town & Country, commitment to quality is a family tradition; (left to right) Steven, Barry and David.

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WHICH AREAS ARE YOU FOCUSING ON TO CONTINUE TO MEET

THE DEMAND OF YOUR CUSTOMERS AND THE GROWTH OF YOUR

BUSINESS?

“First and foremost, we continue to emphasize the importance of quality products and services. Our ongoing policy of continual improvement in quality and work flow efficiency assures that our customer gets what they want, when they want it. We use technology wherever we can to enhance this improvement and work flow. It also helps us to keep our prices under control which our customers greatly appreciate.

The continued convergence of digital technologies in dentistry will be an important area for us to watch and we intend to test and purchase the best technologies to help improve both quality and service. Digital impression systems, new scanning systems, new material choices and even a new phone system are some of the things we are looking at currently. In addition, we just recently began to offer the ATLANTIS™ Crown Abutment for screw-retained, single-tooth restorations, which we believe will be a very successful product launch.”

WHAT ARE THE KEY TRENDS AND DRIVERS THAT YOU SEE WITHIN

THE IMPLANT INDUSTRY TODAY?

“CAD/CAM technology is a key trend that has been driving the implant industry to new heights primarily due to consistent product outcome and predictability. The trend towards minimally-invasive surgical procedures forms another key factor driving the growth of the dental implants market. As the standard of care continues to move forward toward implants first, we no longer have to

prepare adjacent teeth to restore an edentulous space. We are starting to see the use of intraoral scanners to capture images of implant scan bodies for a total digital workflow which has proven to be the most accurate implant restorations in regards to fit, bite and contacts. Also the use of CBCT (cone beam computed tomography) for 3D image analysis and implant placement and planning is constantly improving.”

WHERE DO YOU ENVISION TOWN & COUNTRY AND THE IMPLANT

INDUSTRY FIVE YEARS FROM NOW?

“With all the constant change happening around us, it will be increasing important to work with companies directly responsible for moving the industry forward. We have been working with many of the major implant companies since 1982 when we became the first Brånemark certified lab on the East Coast. We currently are members of DENTSPLY Implants’ PEERS (Platform for Exchange of Education, Research and Science) and Super Elite Laboratory Group. PEERS is designed to promote enhanced partnership between DENTSPLY Implants and dental implant professionals, as well as to facilitate collaboration among its members.

Town & Country is very proud to be one of the largest implant laboratories in the country. During the next five years we will continue to work with DENTSPLY Implants in the education and advancement of digital implant technologies. As it has been for the last 50 years, we are fully committed to servicing our clients with the highest level of support, knowledge and quality. That will continue today and many years from now.

Operating in a state-of-the-art facility uniquely located on the waterfront with big, bright windows throughout that supply natural light all day long, Town & Country is a wonderful place to work.

As Implant Advisor, Jerilyn supports the team approach for all implant cases.

“ATLANTIS™ patient-specific abutments are best of what technology should be able to offer.”

Reprinted with permission from DENTSPLY Implants as published InSight NO. 3, 2012

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7

The Future of Implant DentistryDENTSPLY Implants is the union of two successful and innovative dental implant businesses: DENTSPLY Friadent and Astra Tech Dental. In this issue, Scott A. Root, President of DENTSPLY Implants North America, shares his perspective on the future of implant dentistry.

I have had the good fortune to be a part of the ever-changing field of implant dentistry for over two decades now. Throughout this time, I am continually inspired by the ongoing developments and advancements in technology, quality and science that allow for even more reliable, long-term outcomes for the dental implant patient.

As more and more patients begin to learn and understand the benefits that dental implants can provide towards function and esthetics when compared to traditional tooth replacement options, and as the incorporation of implants continue to increase practice efficiency and profitability for the clinician, dental implants remain the fastest growing segments of dentistry. Additionally, technological advancements are helping to enhance treatment planning, ensure the accuracy of implant placement and allow for individualized outcomes that often exceed both the clinician’s and patient’s expectations.

It is without a doubt that dental implants have revolutionized care for patients with missing teeth and can help to provide a positive impact on their overall quality of life. Within DENTSPLY Implants, we are able to leverage the many years of products, expertise and experience of both the former Astra Tech Dental and DENTSPLY Friadent organizations to provide our customers with a broad portfolio of dental implant solutions. Specifically, DENTSPLY Implants in North America offers a comprehensive line of implants, which include ANKYLOS®, ASTRA TECH Implant System™ and XiVE®. Our digital solutions include ATLANTIS™ patient-specific abutments available for the widest range of interfaces, including that of all major implant systems, as well as computer guided treatment planning and Facilitate™ and ExpertEase™ surgical guides. Our Symbios™ regenerative portfolio is unique in its comprehensiveness of quality autograft, allograft, xenograft, and alloplast bone and membrane products. The support that we provide our clinical and laboratory partners extend well past these products, to also include tools and services to support practice and business development and educational programs.

By leveraging technology and digital scanned imaging, a solution such as ATLANTIS is ideal in allowing clinicians to easily incorporate and offer implant treatment to patients with missing

teeth. Unlike stock options, ATLANTIS abutments are individually designed from the final tooth shape using the proprietary ATLANTIS VAD™ software, eliminating the time needed for inventory management and chairside modification. Furthermore, the ease and simplicity of the restorative procedure is unique, in that all that is required of the clinician is to take an implant-level impression and send it to the laboratory. Our customers such as Town and Country demand the best quality and service from us so they can in turn provide the best possible solution to their customers. We are so confident in the quality of what we offer that we provide the most competitive warranties on the market. In fact, in the case of ATLANTIS, if another implant supplier does not honor their warranty due to the use of an ATLANTIS abutment then we will cover both the abutment and the implant*.

While we are extremely proud of our comprehensive portfolio and feel that we are able to effectively support the needs of our customers throughout the implant treatment process, from diagnosis to final restoration, we also know that as a company, we cannot be everything to everyone. Our long-time customers and those who choose to work with us are often those who respect our scientific approach to product development and our commitment to clinically-proven results. In order for implant dentistry to continue on a successful path of growth and for increased patient acceptance, as a company, we have a responsibility to provide only products and services of the highest level so optimized patient care can be predictably achieved.

Our goal is to be the leading provider of implant products and services that deliver simplicity, reliability and customer satisfaction. With the strength and support of our parent company DENTSPLY International and the partnership and expertise of our customers, it is with great enthusiasm that we work towards achieving this goal. The future of implant dentistry is bright, and we look forward to remaining at the forefront of state-of-the art technology without compromise to quality to keep the momentum going.

Scott A. Root, President DENTSPLY Implants, North America

*Subject to the full terms and conditions of the ATLANTIS™ Warranty.

“Our long-time customers and those who choose to work with us are often those who respect our scientific approach to product development and our commitment to clinically-proven results.”

CONTENT | 8

Fits like a SIMPL restoration.

“I no longer have to order lab analogs, UCLA abutments or

screws from manufacturers.”—Dr. Annapolen

“With SIMPL, I have the confidence and the ability to

restore any implant case.”—Dr. Jones

“Very fast and easy. The SIMPL placement jig is a great help in seating multiple abutments.”

—Dr. Rubinstein

“Ease of use decreases chair time.”

—Dr. Mambrino

“SIMPL restorations fit so well, I can seat a case

in just 15 minutes.”—Dr. Glassman

Don’t you deserve less chair time, greater patient satisfaction and increased profitability? Here’s how: SIMPL® restorations from Town & Country. We make planning and seating your implant cases fast, easy and assured. Just provide us with a fixture-level impression, transfer coping, a counter and a bite. Give us two weeks and we’ll deliver a complete, all-inclusive custom implant unit ready for insertion. Every SIMPL abutment is laser-measured and custom-milled, so fitting is quick and comfortable – and that means a more productive and profitable practice. Call 1-800-925-8696 to learn more – or visit tncdental.com The lab you deserve.

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