Oral Surgeon’s Program to Provide Patient With ‘Second Chance’
By Lindsay Burgess
A new program is going to give a lucky Westchester resident something to smile about.
The Second Chance program, established by oral and maxillofacial surgeon Dr. Zachary Weber and prosthodontist Dr. Jerome Loewenstein, will provide one applicant with a new set of free teeth at the office of Northern Westchester Oral Surgery in Mount Kisco.
The person who is selected will receive a complete arch dental implant placement and replacement teeth, a procedure that could typically cost as much as $50,000 to $60,000.
“I get to work with my hands with the newest state-of-the-art system to help people and change their lives,” Weber said.
The doctors will meet with applicants to determine who the best candidate for the work is.
The new procedure, known as All-On-Four, is designed for someone who is missing multiple teeth and lacks appropriate form or function. All-On-Four allows the dentist to replace the entire arch with four specialized dental implants that support a full smile’s worth of teeth.
“Dr. Loewenstein and I enjoyed working together,” Weber said. “We like to take time with our patients and give them all of their options.”
A CAT scan provides high-resolution images of the upper and lower jaw. They perform virtual surgery prior to the procedure to prepare for every possible scenario.
“There’s a surgical guide fabricated from that data,” Weber said. “Surgery takes a fraction of the time. They heal faster and it’s wonderful.”
The prep work is extremely detailed for a procedure that normally takes several hours. Due to the advancements, it can be done in 30 to 60 minutes.
“It takes a team approach to restore someone’s smile and construct one arch of their mouth,” said Weber. “There’s the surgical side, which I do, but that’s done in conjunction with the person who does the implant. Together, we plan out exactly what the final product will be.”
Weber and Loewenstein, who practices at Precision Arts Dental Associates in Mount Kisco and Ossining, want applicants to feel at ease. They conduct an extensive consultation with each of their patients and their primary care physician.
“My training allows me to know how to treat people with different backgrounds to make sure they are getting the safest treatment possible,” Weber said.
Invariably, treatment has a positive impact on each subject, including improving their self-esteem, Weber said. However, the goal is more than a reconstructed mouth. The doctors plan to take it a step further by assisting the candidate in other aspects of their health and life.
“Let’s take a single mom, for example, who’s struggling to take care of children. We want to find a way to help with the local children or work with the local boutique to help get the right clothing for a job interview,” Weber said. “This is a multifaceted second chance in life. We’re really passionate and excited about it. We love having the privilege of treating patients and improving their lives and we want to make sure all the potential candidates have a chance at it.”
Candidates for the Second Chance program have until Sept. 21 to apply. Applicants can apply online at http://northernwestchesteroms.com. The terms and conditions are listed on the site.
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