Welcome to the Cosmetic and Implant Dental Center

By Bill Stone

Probably everyone who was a kid in the '60s and '70s remembers when going to the dentist was something to fear. So no one of that generation could fault Meg Shepherd for settling uneasily into the dentist's chair to begin the process of getting four dental implants, even though this was something she had wanted for years.

Turns out she had nothing to worry about.

"I tell you what-I am so amazed," she says. "I did not feel any pain whatsoever."

Better Than Predicted

According to Shepherd, it all went as well as Gail Frazier said it would, and even better than that. Frazier is an assistant to Dr. Jack Hahn at Cosmetic and Implant Dental Center of Cincinnati.

"I was a nervous wreck," Shepherd says. But the staff at CID took care of that. "They're the nicest bunch of people I've ever met in my life."

To allay the worry, Frazier poured on the humor and kept Shepherd in stitches.

Not to be confused with sutures. There weren't any.

Dental implants are set into the bone of the jaw, but Hahn has a method of putting them in that is easier on patients. "I developed a technique where you can do it without making incisions," he says. "So it's time-saving and there's less discomfort."

Minimal Medication

There's also less need for medication, as Shepherd can attest. She says she took only two pain pills after the procedure-one that day and one the next, and Hahn says that was only because it was what the doctor ordered. Antibiotics were also prescribed.

Shepherd took the day following the surgery off for recovery. "I could have worked the next day easily," she says.

Now she is waiting for healing of the bone to be complete. The next step comes in September: having temporary teeth attached to the implants while permanent teeth are being made. Then it's, "Goodbye, partial plate!"

In December, she'll get those permanent teeth placed. Then it's hello to a feeling of confidence when she bites into an apple-which also can mean hello to a healthier diet.

"This is a decision I've made for me and me personally," Shepherd says. "I would be the first person to say if you can do it, to it."