The sign hanging on the door to Dr. William Ayotte’s dental workstations says “Painless.” While dentists don’t try to cause pain with common dental procedures, it is easy to believe that Ayotte, with his gentle nature, would do everything in his power to prevent his patients undue pain. (The sign also says “used dentures for sale” and that’s most definitely a fallacy).
His “family dentistry” practice is a happy place with lavender walls and a gray carpet. Ayotte’s own fascination with dentistry came from his family dentist when he was in high school.
“I always wanted to go into medicine in some form,” he said between patients. “It’s now been 36 years since I’ve become a dentist.” After graduation from Framingham State College, Ayotte got his dental degree from Tufts University. He went into practice with a colleague in Newton, where he still works part of the week. At one time he operated a practice in Concord. And in 1998 opened his Marlborough office, now located at 910 Boston Post Rd E Suite #240.
“Marlborough is an up and coming community,” he said of why he chose the city to locate his practice. “There’s a lot of industry here and the surrounding communities are blooming, too.”
One of the reasons Ayotte most enjoys his work is that as a general dentist, he sees patients from the beginning to the end of their treat-ment. Unlike many other facilities with dental hygienists, Ayotte does everything from cleanings to cosmetic surgery himself. If need be, he’ll be glad to recommend someone else, such as an orthodontist or periodontist.
“I’m basically a one-man show,” he said.
“Hey doc,” Anne Marie said affectionately, “Don’t forget that just recently you worked on a patient and saw her through an entire treatment plan. It was great to see how happy she was when she walked out. That’s why you’re in this.”
Ayotte, somewhat modestly, agrees. “When people come in for cosmetic work, it’s my interpretation how something should look, and based on discussion with the patient, we can see if there’s something that can be changed to improve a smile or other things,” he said.
Because dental insurance is somewhat confusing, Ayotte said many people are deterred by dental care.
“If I could change things, I would go with no dental insurance and offer treatment at a reasonable cost with options that people can afford,” he said. “Now, we choose insurance companies that give our patients a fair market value.”
When not doing routine work, (Ayotte said many people today come for care above and beyond standard dentistry), he is bonding teeth to improve their look, whitening teeth, putting porcelain or ceramic crowns on existing teeth and making implants for people who have trouble with dentures.
“Dentistry has changed since I was in school,” he said as Anne Marie adds that he keeps up with his patients’ demands and modern dentistry. “The trend is shifting. There are still the baby boomers and retirees who need serious work done, but the younger generation has less cavities and they’re interested in bleaching and white fillings,” Ayotte said.
Cosmetic work gives Ayotte great satisfaction because the minute the patient leaves the chair, all his efforts are worthwhile.
“They’re glowing,” he said.
Ayotte believes that the future of his practice will bring even more cosmetic work and even less cavities caused by decay. He won’t recommend a specific toothpaste brand but said that as long as his patients are brushing, he doesn’t care what brand they use.
“There’s a public awareness (in dental health) that wasn’t there before,” Ayotte said. “There is fluoride in most water supplies, which also helps a great deal.”
Prevention of most dental conditions is what general dentistry is all about.
“Prevention-oriented,” he said about his practice. “I spend a lot of time doing diagnostics with a patient before anything is done. This way I can tell them where they’re going and what to expect.”