Dr. Shiel received a Bachelor of Science degree with honors from the University of Notre Dame. There he was involved in research in radiation biology and received the Huisking Scholarship. After graduating from St. Louis University School of Medicine, he completed his Internal Medicine residency and Rheumatology fellowship at the University of California, Irvine. He is board-certified in Internal Medicine and Rheumatology.
It can be all too easy to forget the important role that your teeth play in your quality of life. However, when teeth are lost or severely compromised due to trauma or decay, it becomes painfully clear that a complete and healthy smile is absolutely essential in order to enjoy your favorite foods, make positive impressions on others, and speak with clarity and confidence. Read Full Article

Over fifty patients were seen on the day I was. They were herded through the clinic, with their dentures made as fast as credit cards can be swiped, and regardless of quality. When mine were placed in my mouth, a definite elevation on the upper right was noticeable; the length of the right side teeth was pronouncedly shorter than the other side. I noticed this after I went to my car and called in the message. The hateful assistant **, left a recorded reply, "Your teeth were made the way they are supposed to be, so I don'€™t know what your problem is."€ No mention of "We'€™ll fix it any time."€ Certainly, no consideration for the pain of the patient was forthcoming.
A number of vital tasks carried out during sleep help maintain good health and enable people to function at their best. Sleep needs vary from individual to individual and change throughout your life. The National Institutes of Health recommend about 7-9 hours of sleep each night for older, school-aged children, teens, and most average adults; 10-12 for preschool-aged children; and 16-18 hours for newborns. There are two stages of sleep; 1) REM sleep (rapid-eye movement), and 2) NREM sleep (non-rapid-eye movement). The side effects of lack of sleep or insomnia include:
Every tooth in your mouth is vital to maintaining proper alignment, and spaces left behind by one or more missing teeth can have an effect on your bite, speech, smile, and face shape. Missing teeth can cause your remaining teeth to shift and cause problems with your bite. To preserve your oral health and dental hygiene, you should weigh your options when it comes to tooth replacement treatments and choose the procedure that meets your needs.
After six months you receive the final denture, which locks into place, making it a long-lasting smile solution that will restore not just your smile, but a higher quality of life. From there, you’ll worry no more about smiling, eating or speaking, meaning you can focus on simply maintaining good oral hygiene to ensure the dentures last for many years to come.

MCCALLA, ALABAMA -- 5/8/18 I had all my remaining top teeth removed & an immediate denture (ID) put in. First, I was the last surgery of the day. The dentist let all his experienced staff leave & had the receptionist assist him! He had to tell her every little thing to do. She couldn't even work the suction instrument correctly & she finally just quit suctioning my mouth!


Should I Get Dental Implants?According to the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, statistics show that nearly 70% of adults aged 35 to 44 years in the United States have at least one missing tooth due to an accident, tooth decay, gum disease, or dental fractures.Dental Implants or Dentures?But there’s no need to go through life with missing teeth. These days, many good alternatives are available. Dental implants and dentures are the most common options. Dentures are false teeth, and although their quality has improved, they’re not ideal for everyone. If not secured with denture adhesive, dentures might slip out of place while eating or speaking, which could be embarrassing, and partial dentures might promote infection and decay in other teeth if they aren’t fitted properly, which may increase the risk that you would need a tooth filling on the abutment (adjoining) tooth. That said, dentures may be the best choice for people whose gums and jaw are weak or unhealthy.Should I Get Dental Implants?If you are missing teeth and your gums and jaw are healthy, you may benefit from dental implants, which are replacement teeth that are implanted surgically into the jawbone. With good oral hygiene, dental implants can last for 20 years or more without the need for replacement. Dental implants are often a popular choice for people who have only one or two teeth missing, but they can be an alternative to dentures if you have several missing teeth. As long as your gums and jaw are healthy, two or more implants can serve as a base of support for several replacement teeth.
Affordable Dentures and Implants can be an ideal place to work; however, each office is owned by a different dentist. This may determine if you advance within the company, your pay raise, and overall office environment. The office environment I am a part of is poorly managed with a high turnover rate. Advancing within the company is not an option. The doctor does not monitor staff activities through out the day nor patient flow. Bonuses can be achieved if meeting and morning huddles were implemented. She does not encourage office cohesiveness or educating staff. Her leadership skills are poor and needs improving. Her drive is office chaos. This office needs leadership replacement to succeed.
In addition to directing the fabrication of the denture, dentists provide information to patients on the proper care and use of the appliance.  Dentures must be cared for properly. For example, placing removable dentures in water or a denture cleanser solution, when they are not being worn, helps the denture retain its shape, remain pliable and keeps it from drying out.  Dentures should never be placed in hot water as it could cause them to warp.
Whether you are considering getting dentures, already have them, or know someone with them, it’s very likely that you may have some questions about them. What follows is information on what dentures really are, what kind of care they require, and how dentures can improve your oral health. We hope to help you find the answers to all your denture queries and to find out, if necessary, whether dentures might be right for you.
I will be having Dr. Athari do my 7th dental implant.  I have had 6 implants done at various locations ... family dentist, oral surgeon, and local dental school over the past 7 years.   I was impressed with the clean modern office, friendly professional staff, and the price.  Dr. Athari and his assistant made me feel relaxed and comfortable.  They presented and explained to me a couple of treatment plans along with the pros and cons of each ... I chose to have another implant.  I am confident that Dr. Athari and his staff will make my tooth beautiful and functional again.
Dentures do not function like natural teeth. It takes time to learn how to properly use dentures. Food must be cut up into small pieces and be placed on the back teeth on both sides to balance chewing. Denture chewing occurs up and down bilaterally, not on one side. One sided chewing will cause the dentures to dislodge. Biting with the front denture teeth will cause the back of the dentures to dislodge. Dentures only function properly when force is applied evenly over the entire chewing surface of the back teeth.

I had a really great experience with Affordable Dentures and Implants. My mom has always been afraid of dentists and didn't take care of her teeth. She also had a stroke a few years back which has created a few more barriers to treatment. It's difficult to explain to anyone who doesn't personally know a stroke survivor, but she gets antsy pretty quickly and can be a bit difficult to work with at times. She's also physically handicapped and can't use her left side, plus is having trouble transferring from her wheelchair to other seats, getting into a helpful position, and following directions, so it's a bit of a unique situation. She underwent major oral surgery in this office- multiple extractions and bone augmentation- in order to get dentures. This is something we've seen a couple different dentists for, but she has always refused treatment because she didn't like something about the office or wanted to be put to sleep in a hospital, which was out of our budget. Given her limitations and dental anxiety, I wasn't sure what to expect this time around, but I couldn't have been happier with how this office behaved. The front office has been great in terms of explaining processes, scheduling, and billing. I've also had to coordinate paratransit to get my mom to the office, and they've worked with me on times to make sure everything lines up right. Something you can probably only appreciate if you've been in a similar situation. They've also worked with us on fixing issues and missed appointments due to unforeseeable circumstances. Not only did they not scold us for missing an appointment, but they worked with me to resolve the problem that caused it- my mom's assisted living facility biffed it and didn't give her pain medicine after her surgery. :/ But, like I said, this office came through and helped- always making her care the top priority. As far as back office goes, Carlos the assistant has the patience of a saint. Seriously. We had to do a full series of x-rays because my mom couldn't stand up for the pano. My mom had trouble holding still and repeatedly failed to follow instructions. Carlos never stopped smiling and encouraging her. He had a lot of positive energy and kept joking with her throughout, which I know went a long way to making her feel good about the office. He did the same during the other visits, but the x-rays I'm sure were the biggest challenge. Jennifer assisted with the surgery. She was incredibly kind, gentle, and thoughtful. She was always doing what she could to keep my mom comfortable and looking out for her. She even went and grabbed my mom a pillow to make sure she was comfortable. Dr. Athari has an amazing sense of calm about him. He walked us through everything and talked to us throughout the procedure. My mom needed frequent breaks during the surgery and he always gave her the time she needed to regroup. He was very gentle and mindful with her throughout the procedure, and I'm certain that's what got my mom through it without issue. I cannot stress how difficult this process could have been considering the amount of care needed and the limitations of the patient. However, these folks rolled with everything we threw at them and never missed a beat. Always helpful, knowledgeable, kind, and gentle. If I had to find one negative about the office, it would be the wait times. On our first visit, one woman in the waiting room said she'd been waiting 30+ minutes. It took a day to get a call back to schedule. We waited a little while in the office too. However, when you consider that they're working with people like the person I brought in, and that it's totally impossible to predict the needs and behaviors of some of the patients who go in there, it's totally understandable. I have no doubt they took a little longer because they were treating someone else exactly as they treated us- with patience and understanding. That's worth waiting for. So, if you do go, be prepared for some short delays, but also know why those delays happen. Overall, they work like a well-oiled machine. We got to meet the whole team, including their on-site lab techs. Every single person met us with a smile and kind words. I cannot thank Dr. Athari enough for creating an environment like this. Before I close, I'd like to add a word on fees as well. I almost hesitate to call this an affordable dental office, simply because they obviously put care first. All dental offices should do what this office does and provide options, but few do. It's that commitment to patient care and letting you choose what's right for you that makes them more affordable, versus the offices that cut corners to save you a buck. That's a major difference worth noting. They also have an on-site lab, which saves costs as well. Anyway, again, sending a huge thank-you to Dr. Athari and his staff. You guys are beyond awesome.


Retention is the principle that describes how well the denture is prevented from moving vertically in the opposite direction of insertion. The better the topographical mimicry of the intaglio (interior) surface of the denture base to the surface of the underlying mucosa, the better the retention will be (in removable partial dentures, the clasps are a major provider of retention), as surface tension, suction and friction will aid in keeping the denture base from breaking intimate contact with the mucosal surface. It is important to note that the most critical element in the retentive design of a maxillary complete denture is a complete and total border seal (complete peripheral seal) in order to achieve 'suction'. The border seal is composed of the edges of the anterior and lateral aspects and the posterior palatal seal. The posterior palatal seal design is accomplished by covering the entire hard palate and extending not beyond the soft palate and ending 1–2 mm from the vibrating line.
No matter your role, you will find the rewards of working with us to be, well, extremely rewarding. As the nation’s largest affiliated dental practice network of its kind, Affordable Dentures & Implants is able—and proud—to offer the array of benefits someone of your abilities deserves. So whether you’re a dentist or lab professional or part of one of our practice or business support teams, you will be supported and rewarded for what you do.
It can be all too easy to forget the important role that your teeth play in your quality of life. However, when teeth are lost or severely compromised due to trauma or decay, it becomes painfully clear that a complete and healthy smile is absolutely essential in order to enjoy your favorite foods, make positive impressions on others, and speak with clarity and confidence. Read Full Article

Sometimes, a Dallas dentist is not fully capable of dealing with the specialized needs of certain clients. That is where Dallas Dentures & Implants can help. We are a professional and courteous clinic that provides all types of prosthetic and aesthetic dental improvement. We specialize in this sort of work and are able to offer services from doctors who are experts in their field at a reasonable prices.

Partial dentures are designed to give you all the form and function of natural teeth. It may take some time for you to adjust to your new partial denture, but eventually, you will be able to enjoy most of the foods that you love. You’ll want to begin with soft foods and should take care to chew slowly and on both sides of the mouth. Particularly hard or sticky foods should be avoided.
Apppointment was at 10 am got here at 9 am. Then we finally got back there at 12 pm, and then the people say come back at 3pm and we will bring you straight to the back. Then we got back around 2pm and then we are still waiting, and they just said it would be another hour. This is by far the worst dentist office I have ever been to... Very disappointing.
Dr. Okunuga’s dental center has an on-site dental lab that fabricates new dentures and provides repairs and relines, often with same-day service. Being able to provide dentures in a day is a significant advantage, especially for patients who have traveled far distances. The on-site lab also eliminates the need to use outside commercial labs, which helps keep our fees low.

The process of fabricating a denture usually begins with an initial dental impression of the maxillary and mandibular ridges. Standard impression materials are used during the process. The initial impression is used to create a simple stone model that represents the maxillary and mandibular arches of the patient's mouth. This is not a detailed impression at this stage. Once the initial impression is taken, the stone model is used to create a 'Custom Impression Tray' which is used to take a second and much more detailed and accurate impression of the patient's maxillary and mandibular ridges. Polyvinylsiloxane impression material is one of several very accurate impression materials used when the final impression is taken of the maxillary and mandibular ridges. A wax rim is fabricated to assist the dentist or denturist in establishing the vertical dimension of occlusion. After this, a bite registration is created to marry the position of one arch to the other.
Daily cleaning of dentures is recommended. Plaque and tartar can build up on false teeth, just as they do on natural teeth.[24] Cleaning can be done using chemical or mechanical denture cleaners. Dentures should not be worn continuously, but rather left out of the mouth during sleep.[25] This is to give the tissues a chance to recover, and wearing dentures at night is likened to sleeping in shoes. The main risk is development of fungal infection, especially denture-related stomatitis. Dentures should also be removed while smoking, as the heat can damage the denture acrylic and overheated acrylic can burn the soft tissues.
Later that afternoon I came back to have 16 teeth extracted. I got to the office and waited about 30 minutes before I was seen. I got to the back and began injections. After this I went to a full blown panic attack and came close to passing out. The one positive is the dentist who was working on me took it in stride. I wasn't treated disrespectfully and after about 30 minutes the panic subsided and she was able to finish my injections and begin pulling teeth.

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