Interview with Dr. Vasag Bouzoghlanian

How did you decide to become a Dentist?

My interest in dentistry was first inspired from two sources. My father was a certified dental technician and I remember playing with his instruments growing up as a child. I was intrigued by the various dental waxes, compounds, denture teeth, models, and other items. Second, my grandfather’s dental condition during my childhood allowed me to witness first hand, the importance of oral health. He had no teeth and the dentures that were made fit poorly and irritated his gums. As a result, he would chew all of his food on his gums. Witnessing his daily struggle with meals, slurred speech, and “sunken in” look on his face, I became determined to improve his situation.

In high school, I began volunteering at a dental office and immensely enjoyed witnessing the dentist’s interaction with his patients and the satisfaction he obtained from playing a key role in their oral health and quality of life. Dentistry allows me to use my knowledge, skills, and experience to improve the health, quality of life, and confidence of others. This is why I enjoy the profession so much.

Dentistry encompasses biology, chemistry, dental materials, physics, cosmetics, art, and technology all together, and it’s this combination of disciplines that appeals to my meticulous nature.

What would you consider is your specialty procedure?

Having almost ten years of experience practicing dentistry, and an outstanding education with graduation with top honors from the world renowned UCLA School of Dentistry, I have an advanced and broad set of skills allowing me to provide the utmost in comprehensive dental care.

I feel that my ability to solve complex and difficult treatment challenges is my specialty.
This includes using a combination of procedures to provide comprehensive care, and deliver an award winning smile that will accomplish the patient’s goals and fall within their budget. To name a few, these procedures include dental implants, custom-made advanced implant components, cosmetic procedures including complete smile makeovers, veneers, crowns, and bondings, surgical techniques, advanced denture and partial denture designs, sleep apnea and snoring management, and management of jaw pain and TMJ.

My patients appreciate that I am able to formulate a thorough and comprehensive plan and accomplish a wide variety of treatments for them at the highest level of care, each unique for their specific dental problems.

Which areas of dentistry do you love the most?

I enjoy all aspects of dentistry because each specialty has its essential role in creating a healthy, functional, and attractive smile. Cosmetic dentistry is especially popular nowadays, and I do certainly enjoy this part of the profession because of the creativity and artistry involved, and the satisfaction of changing someone’s smile for life. At the same time, even the most beautiful teeth are no good if they are not properly supported in the mouth by healthy bone and gums, and this is why periodontics is so important. Similarly, helping eliminate pain and saving a sick tooth by treating the pulp tissue (endodontics) is a crucial part of the healing aspect of our profession.

Then we have the reparative parts of dentistry including dental implants, crowns, inlays, dentures, and partial dentures. This part is satisfying for me because it allows me to “undo” the damage from the past, replace missing teeth, and restore damaged teeth. Treatment planning for patients with these conditions often requires advanced skills and experience due to the complexity of the treatment, and this critical thinking and assessment appeals to my meticulous nature. Whether it be the best way to restore an individual tooth, or an entire mouth.

Finally, as the old saying goes “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” It’s very satisfying when we provide guidance to someone to improve their oral health and prevent future problems. As a general dentist, I am able to develop long lasting relationships with my patients. When we provide oral hygiene instructions and nutritional advice, it’s very rewarding to see the improvement in their oral health at their next checkup.

Since all the specialties of dentistry together form the building blocks of a healthy smile, I enjoy the practice of general dentistry, as it provides me with the opportunity to address all aspects comprehensively.

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