When you hear the term “dermal fillers,” what comes to mind? Are you familiar with the treatment, or is it something you’d like to learn more about? Do you have colleagues who work with dermal fillers? Have you thought about offering them yourself?
After giving courses on dermal fillers for years, Dr Arun Garg has teamed up with Dr Renato Rossi to put together a book on everything dentists need to know about dermal filler treatment: Dermal Fillers for Dental Professionals. In honor of the book’s release, we asked Dr Garg some questions about his experience with fillers and why they’re such a natural extension to dental treatment.
Why did you decide to write a book on dermal fillers?
I’ve been giving courses on dermal fillers, including hands-on workshops on injection techniques, for many years, and a majority of the participants are practicing dentists. Year-over-year attendance at these courses remained steady until about 10 years ago, when I started to see a significant increase in enrollment that has continued until this day (COVID notwithstanding).
People naturally assumed I would have written a book on dermal fillers for dental professionals that they could learn these exciting concepts from. A couple of years ago, after receiving literally hundreds of requests for such a book, I decided to team up with longtime friend and and colleague Dr Renato Rossi to publish our first book on dermal fillers for dentists. Dr Rossi is a highly respected expert on maxillofacial surgery, as well as esthetic facial rejuvenation, and he directs one of the most prestigious academic programs on this topic in all of Brazil, so his contributions to the book are extremely valuable.
How did you get into dermal filler treatment?
This might sound strange, but I see dermal filler and esthetic botulinum toxin therapy as a logical extension of dental implant surgery and reconstruction.
Many of my patients were spending a lot of money to improve their smile only to end up feeling disappointed by the result, because it was framed in thin lips or sagging skin. Minimally invasive facial rejuvenation procedures such as dermal filler injections are the perfect complement to a dental implant and bone grafting smile makeover because (unlike a facelift, for example) the effects are natural and relatively subtle, leaving the patient looking revitalized and refreshed. Today, dermal filler injections generate a significant proportion of my total practice revenue.
How can someone with no experience with fillers, Botox, or microneedling get started with offering these kinds of esthetic treatments to their patients?
The most important is of course getting in reading this book. It is put together in a very logical, systematic, easy to understand, and easy to perform method. Secondly, courses that provide training and instruction in these procedures are available in every major city in the country, but few are tailored to fit the needs of dental practitioners.
Our goal in writing this book was to provide all of the information that dentists need and none of the information that, by virtue of their training, they already possess. But equally important, we present how the various procedures can be successfully and safely incorporated into an existing dental practice using the model that we, as practicing clinical dentists, have developed and taught to hundreds of other dentists over many years.
Why are these kinds of esthetic treatments so perfect for dentists to be providing?
As dentists, or dental specialists, the training and skills make one exceedingly well qualified to provide safe and esthetically pleasing dermal filler injections. Like most dental procedures, administering facial injections for cosmetic purposes requires a combination of strong technical and artistic skills, comprehensive understanding of head and neck anatomy, and knowledge of current biomaterials and treatment modalities. Who is better trained in these areas than dentists and dental specialists? We already have a strong foundation, so why not use it to build some new skill sets?
There are some who may argue that dermal fillers don’t provide any health benefits for patients and are done only for vanity, and therefore not worth the potential risk of complications. How would you convince someone who’s on the fence that the benefits are worth the risk?
I would say the same thing that I tell my patients when we discuss any type of cosmetic dental treatment: Feeling good about the way you look has nothing to do with vanity. Are there no health benefits to be derived from meditation or yoga, for example, which also help us feel good about ourselves? Veneers, many implant cases, teeth whitening, cosmetic dentistry, and facial rejuvenation, I would argue, are no different than other forms of self-care because the goal is the same: to look and feel better. Just as someone who is ashamed of their smile can suffer from feelings of low self-esteem, depression, social isolation, and so forth, the same is true for the person who has acne scars or signs of premature aging or even thin lips. They feel distressed every time they look in the mirror, and that affects their mood, their personal relationships, and yes, even their health. So I take issue with anyone who tries to argue that dermal fillers don’t provide any health benefits.
How would I convince someone who’s on the fence that the benefits of dermal fillers are worth the risk? The short answer is, I wouldn’t. Why? Because I don’t have to! The underlying assumption of this question is that the dentist or dental specialist will have to “sell” this treatment to their patients, but in my opinion that approach is not only wrong-headed but unnecessary. I think many dentists would be pleasantly surprised if they knew how many of their longstanding patients of record have already incorporated some type of professional facial rejuvenation therapy—dermal fillers or Botox or laser skin tightening—into their personal care routine, and would be thrilled to learn that their long-trusted dentist could take over their treatment.
Dentists can introduce cosmetic dermal filler injections as a new service to their patients with virtually no overhead costs other than maintaining an inventory of filler products, and even that can be avoided if they use PRP like I often do. The biggest investment is one they must make in themselves, to expand their knowledge and skill set, and our book contains everything they need to do just that.
Thank you, Dr Garg, for such insightful responses. Preview Drs Garg and Rossi’s new book here, and order your copy today!
Arun K. Garg, DMD, served as a full-time professor of surgery and director of residency training in the Division of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at the University of Miami School of Medicine for nearly 20 years, where he received multiple Faculty Member of the Year awards. He has authored more than a 8 textbooks and over 150 scientific journal articles. He has trained thousands of dentists and dental specialists over the course of his career. Since 2006, he has devoted much of his time and energy to educating and training clinicians on bone grafting and dental implant surgery through Implant Seminars Inc, a company he founded. In addition, he maintains several private practices throughout South Florida. An early adopter and proponent of using dermal fillers and Botox to complement cosmetic dental treatments, in 2011, he cofounded DentaSpa Seminars, which provides education and clinical training in facial rejuvenation procedures designed specifically for dental practitioners.
Renato Rossi Jr, DMD, MSc, PhD, is the Dean and Director of the Maxillofacial Residency Program at the Municipal University of São Caetano do Sul in São Paulo, as well as a Professor of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at Ibirapuera University in São Paulo. In addition to oral and maxillofacial surgery and traumatology, since 2004, he has also trained his students and residents in maxillofacial esthetics with an emphasis on fillers, advanced techniques in botulinum toxin (Botox), and the use of wires (threads) for facial lifting. To date, he is the author of 8 books, 6 book chapters, and 42 journal articles, and he currently serves as a member of the editorial board of Revista Paulista de Odontologia. Prof Dr Rossi is a Diplomate of the Brazilian College of Maxillofacial Surgery and the International Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. He earned a PhD in oral and maxillofacial surgery and traumatology, an MSc in oral pathology, and a DMD from the University of São Paulo.
Dermal Fillers for Dental Professionals
Arun K. Garg and Renatto Rossi Jr
Have you decided to grow the esthetic side of your dental practice by offering dermal filler treatments? Or do you want to learn a bit more about them before taking the plunge? Esthetic dentistry expert Dr Arun Garg has partnered with Dr Renato Rossi to put together an in-depth clinical manual on everything you need to know to provide dermal filler treatment. The first section covers everything from recommendations for specific filler products to sample patient forms to skin anatomy review. The second section comprises an illustrated step-by-step guide to performing over a dozen specific procedures, categorized by complexity. Each procedure is also accompanied by a real-life case example, and the combination of photographs and computer-generated illustrations provides the reader with the necessary breadth and depth of understanding of every crucial detail to perform these treatments safely and effectively. Whether you’re getting started with dermal fillers and ready to practice the basics or a dermal fillers veteran ready to explore more complex treatments, this book is for you!
208 pp; 645 illus; ISBN: 978-0-86715-830-4 (B8304); $168