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SPENDING
At the Dentist's Office,X-Rays, Root CanalsAnd, No*, Pampering
By J ENNIFER ALSEVER
AT her dental appointments, Dem Ro'lI manick sips green tea and takes in
n the scent of lavender md the soundsof New Age music. She gets a free paraffinhand wax treatment, blankets, a warm neckpad and video eyeglasses in which she canwatch "Seinfeld" episodes while the dentistworks on her teeth.
The pampering eased her through a rootcanal and a tooth replacement, and now,with her fear of dental work gone, she hasmoved on to more elective procedures. Ms.Rommick,34, a graduate student from Ger-mmtown, Md., spent $399 for teeth whit-ening and next plans to straighten her teethwith removable plastic braces, which cmcost up to $3,500.
"I was totally afraid of the dentist," shesaid. "Now I Bo to the dentist every sixmonths md I just cm't wait."
What's that? Enjoy the dentist's office?That is the hope of a growingnumber of dentists who areturning their practices into"dental spas" that offer suchperks as fresh-baled cookiesand overstuffed couches andservices l ike body waxing, fa-cials, massage and pedicures.
About 5 percent of the Ameri-cm Dental Association's mem-bers have declared their officesas "spas." And their new serv-ices may open the door to moreelective cosmetic dentistry * anadditional revenue source for anindustry that historically hasbeen restricted by what Pa-tients' insurance will cover.
For dentists, the changes can
bad. '
Wateffalls. Dentists say that when a pa-tient is relded, mesthesia
faCials and works betrer md procedures
rresh-baked Sffi if,:":}fj,'I;,,H: i'r:i,9ncookies. open ;3ff.'e*;,",-lj:i;Y; l?il'li,jl
'wide and SaV. watilabe, a dentist who opened
Dental SDa lnc. in Pacific Pal-
'This isn't so isades, catif.
No. 1 requested service. Patients might pay$300 to $600 for it, an expense t)?ically not
" covered byinsurance.The desire for pertect teeth is not limited
to t]le dental office. Consumers have flockedto over-the{ounter teeth-whitening prod-.ucts. Together, sales for Crest WhitestriDsild Crest Night Effects, fwo whiteningproducts from Procter & Gamble, tripledfrom 2001 to 2005. to $300 million.
"Now more than ever people are lookingto improve their smiles," said Dr. IrwinSmigel, a Manhattan dentist and foundermd president of the Americm Society ofDental Aesthetics.
Technology has improved, and realitymakeover television shows have helped toma&e mbre consumers aware of it. Andmany people - including baby boomers -have the cash to spend.
"The baby boomer Beneration has putlooking good and feeling good as a priority,"said Kimberly Harms, a spokeswoman lorthe American Dental Association and a den-
, tist in Farmington, Minn. "Itgoes along with people gettingBotox, exercising md dyeingtheir hair."
.Dr. Watanabe md her hus-band, Johri chien, started theird€ntal spa in 2002, after watch-ing fearful children run from theoffice. Since tien, theyhave se€n
their business and the spa'phenomenongrow, even licensing the Dental Spa name toother dentists in San Francisco. New YorkCity and Ann Arbor, Mich., along with theslogan, "Your teeth, body and mind will feelgreat." The couple also started the Interna-tional Dental Spa Association - it now hasl0 member s - and are cornlng uP vii}Iguidelines for what'serviies constitute adentat spa. Already, Dr. Watanabe said,they have received interest trom dentists inDubai, souti Korea, Russia and Brazil whowant to start dental spas.
The trend goes beyond dentistry. Medicalspas have become a fast-growing segmentof the spa industry, Doctors, including podi-atrists, gynecologists and general practi-tioners, are opening medical spas in mallsand hospitals nationwide, offering extraslike laser hair removal; Botox injections andfacials, said Hannelore R. LeaW; director ofthe International Medical Spa Association inUnion City, N.J. She estimates that there areabout 1,500 hedical spas worldwide, more
_ tian triple tlie number three years ago."This is all cash for the doitor," she said.
"There is no insurance, no pap€r,work. Thisis a very lucrative business for them."
citing surveys that say. people jqdge oneanother by their smiles, dentists now offer awide range of services.
Dr. smigel says he has patients who payupT6-$ffi16r inonsurgiial f ace-lif ts" ihaiuse bonding, veneers, crowns, implants,bridges and even dentures to buitd out the
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Deann Romanick used video eyeglasses to watch "
* "n"*'.lo'J.;J ilffiii
hand ws treatment during a teeth-whitening procedure by Dr. Kimberly Baer.
mean tbat patients see office visits as moreroutme.
"Going to the dentist shouldn't be this badthing," said Dr. Kimherly Raer, who did Ms.Romanick'S Uental work. "it should be l ikegoing to get your hair done."
Dr. Baer opened the Bethesda Dentdl Spain North Bethesd4, Md., two years ago, in-stalling hardwood floors md waterfalls anddecorating i-n muted lavenders and greens.All Datients receive hand waxes before theirappbintments. For additional tees, they cilget follow-up pain treatment from il acu-puncturist, md eyebrow waxes frbm a staffaesthetician. This summer, the office Plansto add free l5-minute facials ild massages.
"l view it as a marketing expense," Dr.Baer said: "It's,what malies other people goback to their olfice and talk about their den-tal appointment."
The strategy has.paid off. Dr. Baer saysthe spa receives about 45 new patients amonth, With many ot them'willing to go be-yond traditional dentistry and spend $400 to$16,000 out ol pocket for various procedures- whitening teeth or attabhing porcelain v9-neers, for example. Sales at the oflice dou-bled in tlle last year, to $1.5 million. she said.
The spa services go hmd in hand with tllegrowth of cosmetic dentistry. Dentists sur-veved last vear bv the American Academyof Cosmetic Dentistrv reDorted that tne aes-thetic proaddilrs fi their offices rose by12.5 pelcent, on average, in the past fiveyears. Tooth whitening, they said, was the
lower half of the face. 1'I Cil build out lips,raise the cheekbones," he said.
-Timothy R. Dotsa!-a dentist in Chicago,offers computerized "smile imaging" at hispractice, Perfect Smile Spa. He takes pho-tographs of the patients md lhen, using acomputer, alters the photos to show themwhat they would look like if they had cos-metic work. His oftice also gives patientsfree lo-minute massages in the waitingroom md paralf in hand waxes, among otherservlces.
, Quickbleach Dental Spa and Boutique, astreet-level spa on the East Side of Manhat-tm, literally offers a menu of services towalk-in customers, including veneers -tooth caps the thickness of a baby's finger-nail - at $750 a tooth - and onehour whit-ening procedures for $399. Quickbleach ismore akin to a trendy store or salon than adental office, with its modern decor md Lat-h- and Arabic-influenced music.
"lt 's serious dentistry with a spa atmos-phere," said Jimmy Conlin,59, a songwriter
in New York who saw a fl ier about Quick-bleach and decided to have his teeth whit-ened therc. Mr. Conlin's wife, Carollm,joined him and received a computerrzedsmile aDalysis, porcelain veneers, gum re-contouring (which evens out the gum tis-sue), and skin Brafting (which patchesgums with tissue from other parts of themouth). The couple spent $7,000.
"It 's really a vanity issue, no questionabout it," Mr. Conlin said. "Our teeth looklabulous. It was all that was promised."
Dt_J.Ose:i9UIg, a dentist who is Quick-bleach's owner, says that since he over-hauled his practice, he has doubled his mnu-al revenue, to $3 mill ion, and can accommo-date twice as many patients as before.
"When people walk in, they're amazed,"Dr. Souto said. "They say, 'This doesn't looklike a dentist's office.' Litt le by l itt le, peoplewili think of the dentist's office as a positiveplace where they can be more beautiful mdnot a place where the], re going to be pun-ished ard lose a couple of teeth " tr
