Dr. James A. Vito never wanted to be viewed as “just an ordinary dentist.” This has resulted in Dr. Vito developing a skill set to handle every conceivable dental problem, from the simple filling to advanced restorative dentistry to dental implants. With each patient Dr. Vito is committed to enhancing a patient’s overall dental health, comfort, function, speech and aesthetics.
“Both my staff and I work really hard to provide consistent and predictable results with all the dental treatment we provide,” he says. “If I perform my craft well, an observer is really hard pressed to tell whether they are looking at a patient’s natural tooth or teeth or my dental restoration. This is achieved by working closely with an excellent dental laboratory, artistry, experience and attention to detail. Detail is what separates a poor to mediocre result from an excellent result.”
Such results come from more than 25 years in practice, hours of continuing dental education and a desire to provide the ultimate dental experience. Dr. Vito’s state-of-the-art facility contains all the tools to make the impossible happen including a three—dimensional CT scan for all his dental implant work.
“Many times, patients have to go to multiple dental offices to get their dental procedures done,” he adds. “We have the tools, technology, knowledge and experience to do everything in our office. This is especially convenient for our patients with tight time schedules and who do not have the time or desire to visit multiple dentists to get their work done.”
One of the unique procedures that Dr. Vito has perfected over the past five to six years is a revolutionary treatment called “Teeth in a Day.” This is a concept where a patient debilitated by dental disease, trauma or the inability to wear dentures can have dental implants and an implant-supported restoration placed in less than 24 hours.
One recent case involved an elderly woman who fell and fractured all of her lower teeth. Saving the teeth was going to involve many invasive procedures, a lot of discomfort and expense and a long-term prognosis that could not be guaranteed. She was also on a lot of medications and medically fragile, and her physicians were concerned about the length of her dental treatments and preferred to keep the procedures and length of treatment time to a minimum.
“So we discussed other options with her and her physicians, one of which was Teeth in a Day,” he says. “The patient was fascinated by the process and the relative quickness, predictability and longevity of this option, where complete treatment could be done in a fraction of the time. Both the patient and her physicians selected this procedure as the best course of action.”
She was then scheduled to have all her lower fractured teeth removed, six dental implants placed immediately in the extraction sites and impressions for her implant restoration taken. This took two and half hours. She then returned the next morning when she received her implant restoration, which took about a half hour to insert and adjust. Total treatment time took three hours and the patient reported minimal discomfort and was able to function and eat immediately following the insertion of her teeth. “Our patient was happy, her family was happy and her physicians were happy. It was a good day for all,” says Dr. Vito.
“We typically can complete these predictable cases within three hours, which is a huge time savings over conventional dental treatment,” he adds.
In addition to Dr. Vito’s commitment to providing patients with personalized, time-efficient and predictable treatment is the attention he pays to patient comfort. Dr. Vito employs a board-certified physician anesthesiologist to provide gentle IV sedation to those patients who “would prefer not to be part of their dental experience,” he says.
Staff members are, as Dr. Vito puts it, “the cornerstone of the practice.” This point is underscored by the fact that Dr. Vito has retained all his staff for more than five years. Dental hygienist Barbara Gregor, B.S., RDH, has been with Dr. Vito since he started practice in 1991, while office manager Christina George and dental assistant Justine Doyle have worked there since 2001 and 2007, respectively.
Ms. Gregor enjoys the patient interaction and helping resolve the gum issues that affect many of the patients seen by Dr. Vito. “Gum disease affects diabetes, heart disease and has also been shown to have links to Alzheimer’s,” she says. “Dr. Vito allows me the freedom to take as much time as I need to get a patient healthy and instruct them in the care of their mouth. Many of the issues we see are a direct result of patients being told to brush and floss more but were never shown how to properly brush and floss.”
Likewise, Ms. George enjoys the environment in which she works. “Each patient is given the proper time and attention that they need,” she says. “Many people, when they first come to the office, remark how nice the office is and how nice it is to have a doctor that really listens. The patient time with Dr. Vito is one on one, and during that time he is completely focused on you. Many of our patients say that when they come to the office that it is more like visiting friends than seeing the doctor.”
Ms. Doyle, who works directly on patient care with Dr. Vito, is impressed with the strong bonds that form between staff members and patients. “Treatment for some of these patients can take two to three years by the time treatment is complete, so you really get to know the patients and become part of their extended family,” she says. “It is really rewarding and exciting to see and take part in the transformations that take place and the excitement the patients have when they see their new smiles for the first time.”
Dr. Vito did his dental training at the University of Pennsylvania, where he also completed an advanced and unique specialty program in periodontics and periodontal prosthesis. This enabled him to become proficient in periodontics, which is the treatment, diagnosis and management of diseases of the gum and supporting bone, as well as prosthodontics, which is the treatment, diagnosis and management of broken, decayed and missing teeth.
He completed a hospital residency at the Albert Einstein Medical Center, where in addition to his dental duties he received additional training in plastic surgery. Dr. Vito was recognized as the Dr. Benjamin Lebby Outstanding Dental Resident upon completion of his residency.
Additionally, Dr. Vito completed fellowship training in the field of dental implants, becoming proficient in the surgical placement, management and restoration of dental implants and holds two board certifications in dental implants. Dr. Vito is the only triple dental specialist in the area and also was one of the first dentists on the Main Line to offer Botox and dermal fillers to help enhance some of his smile makeovers.
Dr. Vito provides a wide variety of dental treatment from family and general dentistry to advanced restorative and cosmetic dentistry to full mouth reconstruction and implant dentistry to facial cosmetic services including Botox and dermal fillers. All these services can be provided with IV sedation for the fearful and apprehensive patient.
Dr. James A. Vito
523 East Lancaster Ave.
Wayne, PA 19087
610-971-2590 | www.jamesvito.com
