Congratulations to Dr. Melissa Zettler, who was just notified that she has again been selected as a Top Dentist by Minnesota Monthly. The 2010 Top Dentist list will be published in Minnesota Monthly on June 17, 2010. More information about Minnesota Monthly is available here: www.minnesotamonthly.com

On April 26, 2010, Dr. Zettler traveled to Grapevine, Texas, for the 26th Annual Scientific Session of the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. During this conference, Dr. Zettler participated in courses addressing the most recent advances in dental occlusion, state-of-the-art temporary creation and placement, and new challenges in treatment planning. More information about the AACD conference can be found here: www.aacdconference.com.

On April 24, 2010, Dr. Zettler was a Room Host for Dr. John A. Molinari at the Star of the North Meeting of the Minnesota Dental Association. Dr. Molinari is currently Professor and Chairman of the Department of Biomedical Sciences at the University of Detroit Mercy School of Dentistry, and consults for hospitals in the Detroit area as well as the American Dental Association, and Center for Disease Control in the areas of infectious disease and infection control. He gave two presentations at the Star of the North Meeting on Saturday, one on Infection Control and a second on Emerging Infectious Diseases. More information on the Star of the North Meeting can be found here: http://star.mndental.org/.

What if you don't have dental insurance? You are not alone. Well over one-third of our patients do not have dental insurance. And when that is the case, there are a number of payment options.

First, we offer cash-discount savings to cash-paying patients. So if you pay your bill in full on the day of service by cash or check, we reduce your total bill by 5%. Since we save money by not having to pay credit card fees, finance fees, or collection fees, we share this savings with the patients who make the savings possible.

Second, we accept most major credit cards, and if you prepay for your treatment, we will also reduce your total by 5%.

Finally, there is the possibility of financing your treatment with CareCredit. This option provides patients interest-free financing for the duration of the loan. This is an option for all qualified applicants with qualified treatment plans. You can find more information on CareCredit at www.carecredit.com/dentistry/.

At Cherrywood Dental Care, we work hard to ensure you truly value your experience at our office.

We receive lots of questions about dental implants - what are they, how much do they cost, and will they work for me? The answer to most of these questions depends upon the individual patient, but there are some basic facts that hold true.

An implant is a titanium post placed through the gums and fused into the patient's bone. The restoration - or "tooth" - is then placed on that post. Upon completion, an implant looks, feels, and otherwise acts almost entirely like a natural tooth. This is why dental implants are usually the best option to replace missing teeth.

And placing dental implants is now taught in dental schools across the country and is generally considered the standard of care today. Even so, most dental insurance plans exclude dental implants, and will instead only cover less expensive treatment options like bridges or dentures. So if you have dental insurance and are concerned about coverage for an implant, a simple predetermination will answer the question of whether you have any insurance coverage.

Whether dental implants will work for you can only be determined after a careful examination. Your bone density and the health of surrounding tissue will ultimately determine if an implant is an option for you. But if it is, there is no better way to replace missing or damaged teeth.

Dr. Zettler is experienced and careful, and in order to continue providing the most recent advances in implant dentistry, she has pursued the Surgical Program at the Misch International Implant Institute in California. More information on the Misch Institute is available here: www.misch.com/institute.html