“You name it, we’ve seen it, and we’ve fixed it,” said Dr. Denis Miller, DDS, MBA of Siouxland Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery. “From gunshot wounds to motorcycle accidents to fist fights.”
Thankfully for South Dakota, Dr. Miller and his partners and fellow oral surgeons Dr. Louis George, DMD and Dr. Jason Leet, DDS have four locations in the state to perform a range of oral surgery procedures, including dental implant placements, wisdom teeth extractions, corrective jaw surgery, facial defect repair, facial injury treatment, oral disease and cancer treatment, full-arch restorations, and more.
“Most of our work is the removal of teeth, wisdom teeth, and dental implants with grafting of bone and gum tissue,” said Dr. Miller. “A significant amount of our work is facial trauma at the hospital where we fix broken jaws, noses, eye sockets, cheek bones, and every bone of the face.”
Siouxland Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery has locations in Sioux Falls, Mitchell, Brookings, and Yankton, making it convenient for patients to be treated and get care. Soon there will be an office in Worthington, MN as well.
Dr. Miller says each doctor originally found their way to the region after looking for cities similar to where they grew up.
Did you know?
SIOUXLAND ORAL SURGERY BEGAN SERVING EASTERN SOUTH DAKOTA AND THE REGION AROUND SIOUX FALLS IN 1984.
“After each one of us graduated from our training programs, we set about looking for a good place to treat patients, and we all found South Dakota as a great place to live and work,” said Dr. Miller. “There is a great life work-balance here.”
Dr. Miller grew up in northern Ontario, Canada, Dr. George was raised in the suburbs of Springfield, MA, and Dr. Leet is a native of Yankton.
The practice is on the cutting edge of “all things oral surgery.” They have the most advanced bone grafting techniques and products since they straddle the dental field and the medical field, says Dr. Miller.
“For example, we have our equivalent of robotic surgery to place dental implants, 3-D modeling for surgical planning,” he said. “We have carbon dioxide lasers, regenerative growth proteins, and advanced pain control mediations and techniques.”
“THE DENTISTS WHO TRY TO DO WHAT WE DO CAN DO SOME THINGS, BUT THEY CAN’T OFFER EVERYTHING WE CAN OFFER.”
Dr. Denis Miller, DDS, MBA
Available Procedures
CLEFT LIP AND PALATE
COMPREHENSIVE BONE GRAFTINGS: PROCEDURE, BENEFITS, & RECOVERY
FACIAL TRAUMA
FULL-ARCH RESTORATION
IMPACTED CANINES
IMPLANT DENTISTRY (IN SIOUX FALLS)
JAW SURGERY
OPTIONS FOR TOOTH REPLACEMENT
ORAL PATHOLOGY
PRE-PROSTHETIC
SLEEP APNEA
TMJ DISORDERS
TOOTH EXTRACTIONS
WISDOM TEETH REMOVAL (IN SIOUX FALLS)
WISDOM TEETH STEM CELL BANKING
Siouxland Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery is also the only practice in the region that can place skeletally fixated implants to retain dentures so patients can avoid needing bone grafting or to wait for regular implants to bond with the underlying bone.
The oral surgeons are also trained and experienced at administering all forms of outpatient anesthesia to ensure the patient’s procedure is as comfortable as possible.
“Historically, the specialty of oral and maxillofacial surgery helped develop many of the techniques of deep sedation, and we are the only specialty outside of anesthesiology who have the ability to provide general anesthesia,” said Dr. Leet. “Providing anesthesia makes our profession well suited to alleviate the high anxiety level often associated with oral surgery.”
As dental work and surgery can be nervewracking to some, the team says they try their best to make it as seamless as possible by keeping a calm, educated, and confident demeanor during the process. There are also multiple ways to treat certain patients who need assistance, whether it’s a type of preop medication that helps reduce anxiety or by undergoing sedation in an office setting.
“When patients are not candidates for anesthesia in a clinic setting, we will take patients to the hospital to have ambulatory surgery performed at either Avera [Heath] or Sanford [Health],” said Dr. Leet.
“WE COMBINE SURGICAL EXPERIENCE WITH COMPASSION AND TREAT EVERY PATIENT THE WAY WE WOULD WANT OUR OWN FAMILY TREATED. THAT COMMITMENT TO TRUST AND EXCEPTIONAL CARE IS WHAT I BELIEVE HAS ALWAYS SET SIOUXLAND APART.”
Dr. Louis George, DMD
The practice knows the importance of a smile, and has helped patients who have lost teeth from infection or trauma, as well as people who haven’t developed all of their teeth or those who have a cleft. If someone has lost all of their teeth and has dentures, Dr. Miller says they help stabilize the denture with dental implants or skeletally fixated implants.
“This is an important distinction. Our training takes place at the university and hospital level, where we work under the supervision of oral and maxillofacial surgeons with decades of experience,” he explained. “There are some general practitioners who try to pursue additional continuing education courses to expand the surgical procedures they offer. Unfortunately, that type of training is very different from the years of true intensive surgical education and repetitious hands-on experience required of an oral and maxillofacial surgeon.”
Dr. Miller stresses the importance of patients understanding those differences in training, specialization, experience, and doing research when deciding who is best qualified to perform their surgical procedure.
“To become an oral surgeon, you must first complete dental school then matriculate at either a four-year or six-year oral surgery residency,” explained Dr. Leet. “The process is arduous and very competitive to get in and to complete a residency, ensuring only the very best graduate.”
Community Support
Passionate about the community, their practice sponsors the following community organizations:
AVERA RACE AGAINST BREAST CANCER
DAKOTA RELAYS
DONATED DENTAL SERVICES
GREAT PLAINS BALLOON RACE
GREAT PLAINS ZOO AND DELBRIDGE MUSEUM
PILOTS “N” PAWS
POLAR PLUNGE FOR SPECIAL OLYMPICS
PROJECT HERO
SANFORD CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL
SHRINERS
SIMPLY DIVINE BENEDICTINE HEALTH FOUNDATION
SIOUX FALLS SYMPHONY
THE COMPASS CENTER
UNIVERSITY OF NE DENTAL SCHOOL
VOICES AGAINST CANCER PEDIATRIC CHARITY
No two days are the same for Siouxland Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, who work with ENTs to help cancer patients by removing infected teeth and reconstructing the dentition afterward. They also have done everything from working with plastic surgeons to reconstruct facial trauma patients to helping in cardiothoracic surgery to prepare the patient for heart surgery.
“We see emergencies, we make room for people in trouble, we service a giant area of South Dakota and adjoining states, and we are at the top of our game,” said Dr. Miller.
The team has also helped the community in many ways over the years with non-profits like Second Chance Smiles and with free dental care through a donated dental program. One of their biggest passions is to reach out to dental charities that need oral surgery support.
“Typically we do $2 million dollars of free work a year,” said Dr. Miller. “We have a unique skill set, so we spend our community support efforts in this area where no one else can do what we do.”
“CHRONIC INFECTIONS IN THE MOUTH HAVE A PROFOUND EFFECT ON INFLAMMATION, CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE, AND BLOOD SUGAR CONTROL IN YOUR BODY—WE GET RID OF THE INFECTION.”
Dr. Denis Miller, DDS, MBA
Looking into the future, the team says the oral surgery world is going to see some outof- this-world things coming regarding bone grafting and other topics within the next three to five years. As they’ve signed nondisclosure agreements with national research companies, they can’t say much—yet.
“The dental implant and facial trauma world will be upside down in five years,” said Dr. Miller. “Generational advances will change the way we do things, and that’s going to make it better for everyone.”
For now, the trio of doctors and their team is there to make the process the best it can be for the patient.
“Let’s face it…very few people are excited about having oral surgery,” said Dr. George. “Patients come to us nervous or scared, and I believe our job begins long before we ever pick up an instrument. It starts with listening, earning their trust, and making them feel safe.”
FOR MORE INFORMATION, VISIT SIOUXLANDORALSURGERY.COM+
