Exclusively for Residents of Central NJ.

 Print |  Send to a Friend

Dr. Gregory S. Coakley

Dr. Coakley,

I thought that I’d be able to do Invisalign but it turns out that I’m not a candidate. I still want to straighten my teeth but I am not looking forward to having braces on my teeth for a year or longer. Isn’t there a way that we could just tighten the wires really tight and finish my treatment in 2 months?

This is a common sentiment that orthodontists run into a lot. It may seem like it’s feasible to just pull really hard and have everything move into place a lot sooner, but things unfortunately don’t work that way.

The main danger that all orthodontic treatment could run into is a process called root resorption. When your adult teeth are beginning to arrive and the baby teeth are in the way, the natural process of deciduous root resorption occurs. The adult teeth exert pressure on the roots of the baby teeth which causes  surrounding macrophages–neutral bodies present in the surrounding tissue–to differentiate into osteoclasts–specialized bodies which work to resorb bone–which then “eat away” the root of the tooth.
Continue reading…

 Print |  Send to a Friend

Dr. Gregory S. Coakley

Dr. Coakley,

I had regular metal braces on my teeth when I was a teenager about 25 years ago. I unfortunately lost my retainer about 23 years ago. Since that time my teeth have shifted back almost to where they started; I have a gap between my front teeth again and on the bottom my front teeth are rotated. I couldn’t really see myself wearing metal braces again, do you think Invisalign would work?

Invisalign was essentially created to fix the types of problems that occur in patients that once had orthodontic treatment but whose teeth are now relapsing. From your description, it sounds like Invisalign should work to correct your issues and could take as little as 20 weeks with Invisalign Express.

There are a number of limiting factors in using Invisalign, though: physical limitations of the aligners as well as behavioral factors, and each case has to be examined closely. For an example of a physical limitation, because of the way the aligner system attaches to the teeth, Invisalign is not good at moving teeth “up and down.” Difficulty is also presented in rotating pre-molars because the round shape doesn’t provide much “grip” for the aligner.
Continue reading…

Dr. Gregory S. Coakley

Dr. Coakley is a native of Monmouth County, New Jersey. He was born and raised in Holmdel, graduating from Holmdel High school in 1991. He obtained both his Master of Science in Neurobiology and Bachelor of Science at the University of Maryland, College Park. He is a 2001 dental graduate from the University of Maryland at Baltimore where he graduated Magna Cum Laude and is a member of the highly prestigious OKU Honor Society.

In keeping with his goal of becoming an orthodontist, Dr. Coakley was accepted and completed his orthodontic residency at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, one of the most respected and reputable orthodontic specialty programs in the country. While completing his orthodontic residency, Dr. Coakley was chosen Chief Resident and served as a member of the South Texas Craniofacial Anomaly Team.

Dr. Coakley has devoted much of his time to academia. Throughout his tenure at both the University of Maryland and the University of Texas, Dr. Coakley earned several academic achievement awards, maintained multiple teaching positions, conducted research, and served on the Committee for Recruitment and Admissions.

Currently, Dr. Coakley is a member of the Regional Cleft Palate Team and a Clinical Attending at Monmouth Medical Center. One of his passions and specialties is to treat children born with cleft lip and palate and to share his knowledge and experience with other medical professionals. Dr. Coakley maintains a full-time private orthodontic practice in Little Silver, New Jersey where he offers his patients traditional metal braces, clear ceramic braces and Invisalign® invisible braces. Dr. Coakley is a premier provider of Invisalign; a designation reserved for the top five percent of Orthodontists nationwide.

Dr. Coakley takes an active role in meeting and exceeding the standards of his profession. He is an active member of many professional organizations including the American Dental Association, the New Jersey Dental Association, the Monmouth and Ocean County Dental Society, the American Association of Orthodontists, and the New Jersey Society of Orthodontists. He is a lifelong learner and enjoys keeping at the forefront of his profession by regularly attending continuing education courses and maintaining his position among the dental academic community.

Dr. Robert Korwin DMD MAGD MICOI

 Print |  Send to a Friend

Dear Dr. Korwin,

My upper molar is broken below the gum line from a car accident and needs to be removed. I want my teeth to be easy to take care of. I have no idea if I should leave it alone or get a bridge or an implant. What should I do?

When teeth are removed and not replaced, the neighboring teeth shift. Your mouth can get uncomfortable when chewing, and cavities and gum disease grow faster. Take a tip from an expert, to make your mouth easiest and quickest to take care of, you should have the extracted tooth replaced as soon as possible, or at least use a retainer to keep the neighbors from shifting.

When a bridge is used, cleaning your teeth is a little more time consuming since you have to clean under the bridge every day. An implant is shaped most like your natural tooth so it takes the least additional care. Cleaning an implant is very similar to cleaning your natural teeth.
Continue reading…

Dr. Robert Korwin DMD MAGD MICOI

 Print |  Send to a Friend

Dear Dr. Korwin,

My top front tooth is too dark and is badly chipped at the biting edge. How do I make it lighter and permanently fix the chip? I keep having it bonded and it breaks off again and again.

Dark tooth colors can be changed with whitening procedures. You can whiten one or all of your teeth slightly with strips or more deeply with gels in trays at home, or even more deeply with in-office whitening.

Following whitening, the chipped part can be straightened temporarily with bonding or long term with a porcelain veneer. Veneers can be layered on top of the tooth if the tooth is set too deeply back in your mouth. The veneer can also be inset into the tooth if all the teeth are straight, even and forward.
Continue reading…