Health & Fitness
Boy All Smiles after Dental Surgery at Silver Cross Hospital
Dr. Dulli performed full-mouth dental rehabilitation at Silver Cross, including correcting Joseph's tongue-tie and treating his cavities.
When Joseph Kral, Jr. was two years old, he had dark spots or childhood dental caries on several of his teeth, which weren’t properly treated by his dentist. Caries make young teeth prone to cavities, which is exactly what happened to Joseph.
Fortunately, a friend of Joseph’s parents referred him to Dr. Bassel Dulli, a pediatric dentist on staff at Silver Cross Hospital in New Lenox. Dr. Dulli not only discovered several cavities, he also diagnosed a condition called ankyloglossia, more commonly referred to as “tongue-tie.” Ankyloglossia restricts the tongue's range of motion.
In Joseph’s case, Dr. Dulli said the tongue-tie condition not only impaired Joseph’s speech, but also made it difficult for his tongue to swipe food off of his teeth and possibly contributed to his increased cavities.
Together Dr. Dulli and Joseph’s parents decided the best treatment option for the now four-year-old boy was surgery. So Dr. Dulli performed full-mouth dental rehabilitation under general anesthesia at Silver Cross that included correcting Joseph’s tongue-tie and treating his five cavities.
His parents, Joseph Sr. and Theodora, had complete confidence that Dr. Dulli was the right dentist to perform their son’s complex surgery. “Because of Dr. Dulli’s expertise and gentle demeanor, our son now views taking care of his teeth in a positive way,” said Joseph Kral, Sr. “Joseph says that Dr. Dulli made the sugar bugs go away and when he grows up he wants to be a dentist!”
What are Childhood Caries?
Early childhood caries (ECC), also known as baby bottle caries, baby bottle tooth decay, and bottle rot, is a disease caused by severe decay in the teeth of infants or young children. Early childhood caries is a very common bacterial infection.
“Even though Joseph brushed his teeth twice a day, unfortunately the tongue-tie condition was prohibiting food from properly clearing away from his teeth making him susceptible to early childhood caries,” said Bassel Dulli, D.D.S. “By doing the dental rehabilitation procedure, his teeth no longer pose a threat of spreading the infection to any of his healthy teeth. In addition, correcting the tongue-tie allows Joseph to now speak more clearly.”
“We are forever appreciative to Dr. Dulli and all the nurses at Silver Cross who took such great care of our son,” Theodora added.
About Bassel Dulli, D.D.S.,
Dr. Bassel Dulli, D.D.S., is board certified in pediatric dentistry. He graduated from New York University College of Dentistry in 1999. He attended Wayne State University and Children's Hospital of Michigan, where he received a certificate in pediatric dentistry and a Master of Science degree in community medicine in 2003. He has special interest in treating children with severe early childhood caries and performs comprehensive dental treatment under general anesthesia. To schedule an appointment, call his office at Pediatric Dentistry Consultants at (815) 717-8687, located at Silver Cross Hospital Pavilion A, Suite 305, 1890 Silver Cross Blvd., New Lenox.
About Silver Cross Hospital
Silver Cross Hospital is an independent, not-for-profit health care provider serving Will County and southwest suburban communities since 1895. Silver Cross has been recognized as a Truven Health/IBM Watson 100 Top Hospitals National Award winner for seven consecutive years, received a 5-Star rating for high quality and patient satisfaction by the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), and honored with an “A” Hospital Safety Grade by The Leapfrog Group. With over 4,500 employees, physicians and volunteers, Silver Cross operates a 302-bed acute care hospital and 5 satellite facilities providing outpatient services and physician offices. Silver Cross opened a state-of-the-art replacement hospital in 2012 at I-355 and Route 6 in New Lenox. In 2017, Silver Cross provided over $39 million in charity care and other community benefits. To learn more about Silver Cross Hospital or a referral to a physician on staff, visit www.silvercross.org. Physicians on Silver Cross Hospital’s Medical Staff have expertise in their areas of practice to meet the needs of patients seeking their care. These physicians are independent practitioners on the Medical Staff and are not the agents or employees of Silver Cross Hospital. They treat patients based upon their independent medical judgment and they bill patients separately for their services.
