{"id":1198,"date":"2025-09-21T00:10:17","date_gmt":"2025-09-21T00:10:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dreamdental.co\/blog\/?p=1198"},"modified":"2025-09-26T20:18:33","modified_gmt":"2025-09-26T20:18:33","slug":"giving-back-through-dentistry-a-veterans-smile-restored","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dreamdental.co\/blog\/giving-back-through-dentistry-a-veterans-smile-restored\/","title":{"rendered":"Giving Back Through Dentistry: A Veteran\u2019s Smile Restored"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>There are too many stories in the news about politics and division. Sometimes we need to take a step back and simply appreciate people \u2014 especially those who have fought for our country and given us the freedoms we enjoy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-video\"><video controls src=\"https:\/\/www.dreamdental.co\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/final-veteran-smile-again-1_converted.mp4\"><\/video><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>When one of my veteran patients was referred to me for extractions under IV sedation, he came holding a pair of brand-new dentures a local dentist had just made for him. The moment I saw them, I knew they wouldn\u2019t last. They were paper-thin, and with his strong bite and powerful facial muscles, he would crush them the instant he tried to eat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Already confined to a wheelchair, I couldn\u2019t bear to see him handicapped even further \u2014 or worse, left feeling depressed because the VA hospital couldn\u2019t provide him with implants. At that moment, I knew I had to do something different. Something special.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I reached out to my representative at&nbsp;<strong>SIN Dental Implants<\/strong>, a Brazilian manufacturer with U.S. offices in Arizona, to ask if they could help by donating four implants and abutments for his case. They generously agreed. With their support, my team and I decided to give this veteran a full-mouth rehabilitation with fixed implant bridges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The process wasn\u2019t quick \u2014 it took about four to six months from start to finish. First, we performed the surgery under IV sedation, so he never felt a thing. Then came the healing period. Finally, using our in-house dental lab, we designed and delivered his permanent zirconia bridges \u2014 strong, metal-free, and natural looking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When he received his new smile, everything changed. Each time I see him now, he\u2019s grinning from ear to ear, full of confidence and joy. The transformation has been incredible, and for me, it was an absolute privilege to be part of his journey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>None of this would have been possible without my amazing team. I want to especially thank:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Ivan<\/strong>, our talented digital designer from Serbia, who planned the case virtually<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Will<\/strong>, our skilled nurse anesthetist, who ensured the sedation went smoothly<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Mel<\/strong>, my right-hand\u00a0<strong>surgical assistant<\/strong>, who was by my side every step of the way<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Sammie<\/strong>, our esthetically driven\u00a0lab\u00a0tech, who crafted the final zirconia bridges with artistry and precision<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Zamie<\/strong>, our dedicated office manager, who explained the treatment in simple terms and \u201cbabysat\u201d the case through six months of care<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>And of course,&nbsp;<strong>SIN Dental Implants<\/strong>, whose generous contribution made this rehabilitation possible<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>As dentists, we\u2019re in a unique position to change lives. And sometimes, that means stepping up when no one else can. He once served us, and this was my way of serving him in return.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There are too many stories in the news about politics and division. Sometimes we need to take a step back and simply appreciate people \u2014 especially those who have fought for our country and given us the freedoms we enjoy. When one of my veteran patients was referred to me for extractions under IV sedation, &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dreamdental.co\/blog\/giving-back-through-dentistry-a-veterans-smile-restored\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Giving Back Through Dentistry: A Veteran\u2019s Smile Restored<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1199,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1198","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dental-implants"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.1.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Giving Back Through Dentistry: A Veteran\u2019s Smile Restored - Dream Dental Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"dental implants Las Vegas, implant dentistry, full mouth rehabilitation, zirconia implant bridges, IV sedation dentistry, smile restoration, veteran dental care, cosmetic dentist Las Vegas, Dream Dental Las Vegas\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dreamdental.co\/blog\/giving-back-through-dentistry-a-veterans-smile-restored\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Giving Back Through Dentistry: A Veteran\u2019s Smile Restored - Dream Dental Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"dental implants Las Vegas, implant dentistry, full mouth rehabilitation, zirconia implant bridges, IV sedation dentistry, smile restoration, veteran dental care, cosmetic dentist Las Vegas, Dream Dental Las Vegas\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.dreamdental.co\/blog\/giving-back-through-dentistry-a-veterans-smile-restored\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Dream Dental Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-09-21T00:10:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-09-26T20:18:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.dreamdental.co\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot_1185.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2240\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1223\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Dr. Ilya Benjamin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Dr. Ilya Benjamin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.dreamdental.co\/blog\/giving-back-through-dentistry-a-veterans-smile-restored\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.dreamdental.co\/blog\/giving-back-through-dentistry-a-veterans-smile-restored\/\",\"name\":\"Giving Back Through Dentistry: A Veteran\u2019s Smile Restored - 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