We pride ourselves on taking the time to listen & get to know each patient as an individual. The entire team at Park Street Dental looks forward to seeing you soon & developing a relationship with you to build the bridge toward long-term trust & successful dental care. See why our patients cant stop smiling!

Our exceptional, friendly staff is our greatest asset. All of our dental assistants & hygienists are licensed professionals who pride themselves on their current dental techniques & outstanding patient communication. With unmatched quality & integrity, they are dedicated to achieving the best possible results for you & your family.

Since your comfort & health are our top priorities, Park Street Dentals staff is glad to assist you in any way. If you have any questions at all, from treatment options & sterilization to insurance concerns & paperwork, were here for you! We can assure you that youll enjoy your dental visit!

I am originally from upstate New York, & have spent much of my life in the northeast. I graduated from the University at Buffalo School of Dental Medicine with my DDS in 2003. After completing a residency at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in San Francisco, I joined a clinic in Santa Cruz. I then attended UCLA & received a post doctorate Masters in Public Health in 2009. The opportunity to return east presented itself, & I accepted a position as the Director of the Oral Health Program for the Vermont Department of Health. My proudest accomplishments during my tenure as Director included securing competitive funding to expand the oral health program in Vermont, as well as working to keep community water fluoridation a priority throughout the state. However, I soon realized how much I missed directly serving patients & decided to return to clinical practice in 2011.

Working with a small, community-based organization, I started a not-for-profit dental practice in Bristol, Vermont. The goal of this practice was to provide affordable, respectful care for patients regardless of insurance coverage. I had the pleasure of working with a caring & highly-skilled team in Vermont, & believe that we provided the best standard of care to our patients. My philosophy of practice, which I bring with me to Park Street Dental, is to provide patients with the information they need to make informed decisions that work for them. Although my training & experience include complex restorative procedures, prosthetics (including implant restorations as needed), & surgical procedures, my preference is to avoid the need for that work in the first place. My practice emphasizes prevention & non-invasive interventions, with more extensive procedures used only when necessary.

My wife, a small-scale farmer turned university faculty member, was offered a position at the University of Maine in 2019. With our daughter & our dog, Tucker, we moved to Orono in January 2020, at the beginning of the pandemic. Since moving to Maine, I have been carefully considering how to provide the best quality of care to patients in an ever changing health environment. Physical updates to the dental practice have included air quality improvements & filtration, transitioning to low radiation digital radiographs, & upgrading out digital infrastructure to increase care coordination. I look forward to working with the team at Park Street Dental, including Lesley, Tammy, Morgan, & Patty to make your experience coming to see us positive.

Despite its prevalence, we don’t want any patient to think they’re destined for tooth decay, even if they’ve had a hard time avoiding it in the past. There are a lot of factors that contribute to your oral health, but be assured that at our practice you’re in the hands of compassionate decay prevention experts

Anyone whos been to the dentist knows we have a lot more tools than just a toothbrush & floss for caring for your teeth. In addition to removing plaque, our arsenal of hand tools & handpieces are designed to remove hardened deposits called tartar or calculus that are hard for you to remove yourself using just a toothbrush & floss. During a cleaning visit, we also check your teeth thoroughly for existing signs of decay. If we find a problem, we will talk to you about fixing it as soon as possible with a filling, a crown, or another treatment if the decay is more severe. Of course, our favorite outcome is when we find no decay at all. Understanding how decay starts is a great way to solidify your understanding of how to prevent it.

Just like other parts of your body, your mouth is populated by both good & bad bacteria. When you dont care for yourself properly, you can end up creating an environment where the bad (i.e., pathogenic) bacteria get the upper hand. In particular, these bacteria thrive when there is plenty of sugar for them to consume, which they digest & excrete as acid. This acid is what damages your teeth, eating into your tooth enamel & the softer dentin layer underneath. Eating highly acidic foods (lemons, tomatoes, soft drinks, etc.) can also weaken & even wear away your teeth.

If your mouth is in an ideal condition, your bodys own immune responses & mechanisms, such as healthy saliva that contains tooth-building minerals, repair damage & keep bad bacteria from getting out of control. The goal of preventing decay is to keep your mouth in this healthy, balanced condition at all times. If you brush & floss correctly, get enough fluoride, limit your consumption of acidic or sugary foods & visit the dentist regularly, this should be easy for you.

However, some patients have a tougher time preventing tooth decay & we are happy to provide guidance. If youve had a few run-ins with cavities, you may need a refresher course on your brushing or flossing techniques, which were happy to provide at your next visit. You can also boost the effectiveness of your at-home hygiene with special toothpastes, mouth rinses, toothbrushes or floss options. Were happy to recommend these types of products if we think they will benefit you.

Nutritional counseling is another option to ensure decay-causing bacteria doesnt get too much fuel. In children whose hygiene skills are still developing, sealing the deepest grooves on their back teeth can help prevent decay until theyre older & better at caring for their own teeth.