About Dr. LaVacca
Dr. Anthony LaVacca received his B.S. in accounting from Rutgers University in New Jersey. While at Rutgers he lettered in wrestling for all four years and participated in the division three nation tournaments in 1986 and 1990. In 1986 he was selected for the United States free style team and competed in the British Open wrestling tournament. He then returned to college to fulfill his science requirements and applied to Dental School. Dr. LaVacca received his DMD from Temple University and was awarded Academic accolades in cosmetic and oral surgery. He then completed his general practice residency at the East Orange Veterans Hospital where he was awarded a certificate from the United States government “For going above and beyond the call of duty.” Dr. LaVacca also completed a three year post-graduate program in Prosthodontics, where he was Chief resident for two years at the Montifiore Medical Center, Bronx, NY.
Upon completion of his advanced educational training, Dr. LaVacca went into private practice in New York. During this time he was selected as a specialist by the New York City Medical Examiner’s office to help identify victims of the World Trade Center disaster. After completion of his duties, his passion for academics returned him back to Montifiore Medical Center. He was asked to be the Director of the General Practice Program, and interim Director of the Post-Graduate Program in Prosthodontics. During this time he managed a total of 15 residents and ran a 1.9 million dollar clinic at the hospital. A 70+ hour work week helped the residents provide quality dental care in a learning institute. He spent one-on-one time with each resident and patient to ensure that the highest quality of dentistry. He also lectured nationally and internationally while conducting courses at the hospital to teach dentists from around the world how to place and restore dental implants.
In May 2002, Dr. LaVacca married Dr. Manal Ibrahim, with whom he had a long-term friendship with during their dental educational training. Some people have said that “it was their love of pearly whites that brought them together” but their relationship encompasses so much more! When Dr. Ibrahim finished her orthodontic training in New York, they decided to move to Chicago to start a family and fulfill their life long dream of building and designing their own practices.
After moving to Chicago, Dr. LaVacca joined a group dental practice in Chicago until he and Dr. Ibrahim identified their LIFE PLAN. Their plan included moving to a community that would provide them with an environment similar to the city and also have an excellent area to raise their two children. After exploring the cities in the western suburbs, his love for Naperville drove him to find a location in the downtown area. While his practice was under construction he worked in three other dental offices that stretched from downtown Chicago to Joliet. The big day came faster than expected and his life long ideas of a dental practice came to fruition. A multi-specialty practice with a surgical amphitheater to teach at NDS.
Little by little he began seeing more patients which led him to phase out of all his other dental practice commitments. With the rapid growth of NDS, Dr. LaVacca has hired several other carefully selected dentists to help provide superior dental care to the Naperville community.
Dr. LaVacca holds an advanced certificate in Prosthodontics. He is a member of the American Dental Association, the American College of Prosthodontics, the Academy of
Osseointegration and the Illinois State Dental Society. His passion lies in mentoring and teaching other doctors. He was chosen to be the mentor for the Midwest area for Ladera Ranch Dental Implant Institute. This institute offers comprehensive dental implant training courses. Doctors from around the country have attended this course. Dr. LaVacca has a surgical suite which allows for live surgical demonstration. A glass wall separates the patient from the attendees.
Dr. LaVacca has also formed a Dental Study Club which meets once a month. Doctors from surrounding areas can come and listen to his lectures. In 2009 he added a live surgery component to these meetings. Doctors can attend at no charge, to watch and learn different dental techniques.
Dr. LaVacca has been invited to lecture nationally and internationally. Below is a copy of his Curriculum Vitae which list his amazing accomplishments.
Curriculum Vitae
Anthony LaVacca, D.M.D.
Advanced Certificate in Prosthetic Dentistry
EDUCATION:
Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York
Postgraduate Prosthodontics Certificate, 2000
Chief Resident-Prosthodontics, 1998-2000
East Orange Veterans Hospital, East Orange, New Jersey
General Practice Residency Program, 1996
Temple University, School of Dentistry, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Dental Medical Doctor Degree, 1995
Rutgers University, Newark, New Jersey
Bachelor of Science in Accounting, 1990
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:
Naperville Dental Specialists & General Oral Health Care, Naperville, Illinois
Private Practice, Restorative Dentistry, 11/2007-Present
University Associates in Dentistry, Chicago, Illinois
Private Practice, Restorative Dentistry, 10/2004-2008
Chicago Center for Advanced Dentistry, Moscow, Russia
Private Practice, Implant Prosthetic Rehabilitation Dentistry,
10/2004-05/05
Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York
Director, General Practice Residency Program, 7/2002-8/2004
Interim Director, Postgraduate Program in Prosthodontics,7/2002-8/2004
Private Practice,Limited to Prosthodontic Rehabilitation (~45hrs/week)
7/2002-8/2004
LaSota & Lee, Rockefeller Center Plaza, New York, New York
Private Practice, Advanced Restorative Dentistry, 10/2001-5/2002
David Silken, DDS, FACP, New York, New York
Private Practice, Limited to Prosthodontics, 7/2000-7/2002
Cosmo DeSteno, DDS, FACP, Ridgewood, New Jersey
Private Practice, Limited to Prosthodontics, 7/1997-7/2000
ACADEMIC APPOINTMENTS:
Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York
Assistant Professor, 7/2002-Present
Clinical Instructor, 8/2000-7/2002
St. Joseph’s Hospital. Patterson, New Jersey
Clinical Instructor, 8/1997-7/2002
LICENSURE/CREDENTIALS:
Illinois State Prosthodontics Specialty License, planned 7/2009
Illinois State License, 3/2004
American Board of Prosthodontists Examination
Board Eligible-Part I, 2/2000
Parts 2, 3 & 4, planned 11/2009
Prosthodontic Specialty License, 7/2002
New York State License, 7/2000
New Jersey State License, 6/1996
CORE/NERB, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 6/1995
LECTURES: NATIONAL
Ladera Ranch Dental Implant Institute
3 Day course for Dental Implant Placement, 2008- Present
Bone Grafting Course Instructor
1 Day Bone Grafting Course with Live Surgery, 2008-Present
Academy of Operative Dentistry
(Basic and Hands on Training)
1 Day course basic implant placement and hands on training, 02/2009
Implant occlusion, Arcolian Dental Society
Dental Neurological Feedback, 11/2008
Implant Overdentures, Aurora Study Club
Evening lecture on implant attachments, 10/2008
Solving the Esthetic Jig Saw Puzzle,
Chicago Academy of Dentistry
1 day course on implant esthetics, 09/2008
The Silent Period (implant neurological feedback mechanism)
Chicago Academy of Dental Research, Chicago, Illinois, 10/2005
Steri-Oss® Dental Implants-Prosthodontic Hands-on Course
Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine,
Bronx, New York 11/2003
Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine,
Bronx, New York 11/2002
Achieving Precision in Shade Selection
New York County Dental Society, New York, 9/2003
Westchester Study Group, New York, 9/2003
New York County Dental Society, New York, 9/2002
Superior Implant Placement with State of the Art Computer Software
St. Barnabas Hospital, New York, 6/2003
Sleep Apnea
New York University, Dept. of Prosthetic Dentistry, 11/2005
New York County Dental Society, 6/2003
Dental Institutes, Fairfield, New Jersey, 1999
Seton Hall University Continuing Education Forum, New Jersey,1998
Frialit® Dental Implants-Prosthodontic Hands-on Course
American College of Prosthodontists Annual Meeting, Orlando, Florida
10/2002
Team Approach for Superior Implant Placement
Westchester Study Group, New York
9/2001
Brief Overview for Full-Mouth Rehabilitation on Implants
Manhasset Dental Society, Manhasset, New York 2000
Decreasing Chair Time with a Controlled Indirect Technique for Fixed Prostheses
Dental Institutes, Fairfield, NJ, 2000
Esthetic Provisional Restorations
Seton Hall University Continuing Education Forum, New Jersey, 1998
Overview of Maxillofacial Prosthetics
Montefiore Medical Center/AECOM, Otolaryngology Grand Rounds,1997
LECTURES: INTERNATIONAL
What Implants Can Do for You
Cairo, Egypt 10/2004
Predictable Anterior Esthetics
Lithuania, Vilnius 10//2004
Surgical Implant Hands-on Training
Moscow, Russia 12/04, 1/05, 3/05 & 5/05
CERTIFICATIONS:
Implant Dentistry
Bicon Dental Implants: “Sensible Implant Dentistry” 2/2003
Branemark Implant System: Restorative and Surgical Aspects 5/1995
SteriOss
Conscious Patient Management with IV and Nitrous Oxide Sedation in General Dentistry, 1998
Advanced Cardiac Life Support, 1995
AWARDS:
City of New York, Office of Chief Medical Examiner
Certificate of Recognition, World Trade Center,
Dental Identification Team,
9/11/2003
American College of Prosthodontists
Table Clinic Award-2nd Place, 10/1998
East Orange Veterans Hospital, East Orange, NJ
“Going above and beyond the call of duty” Award 7/1996
American Academy of Esthetic Dentistry
Charles Pincus Foundation Award 6/1995
Delaware Valley Society of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
Oral Implantology Award 6/1995
Philadelphia Dental Society
Scholarship Recipient 6/1994
TABLE CLINICS:
Treatment of patients with renal osseous dystrophy
American Academy of Maxillofacial Prosthodontics
10/1999
Optimal Esthetics- Analysis of Size and Shape of a Tapered Implant for Optimal Esthetics
American College of Prosthodontists 10/1999
Optimal Emergence Esthetics for Anterior Implant Restoration
American College of Prosthodontists 10/1998
Esthetic Development of Emergence Profile for Single Tooth Implant
American Academy of Esthetic Dentistry 8/1998
Dental Hand Piece Air-Induced Tissue Emphysema
Temple University Alumni Association 6/1994
ABSTRACTS:
Kurtz KS, LaVacca A, Aoki T, Koike M, Cai Z, Carrasco L, Watanabe I, Okabe T. Bond strengths of laboratory veneering composite to gold-coated titanium. J Dent Res 2002;81:A-482 Abstract 3944.
Kurtz KS, Cai Z, LaVacca A, Carrasco L, Watanabe I, Okabe T. Bond Strengths of Laboratory Veneering Composite to Cast Ti. J Dent Res 2001;80:787 Abstract 2081.
Kurtz KS, Ohkubo C, LaVacca A, Okabe T. Bond strengths of Polymer Glass to Three Cast Alloys. J Dent Res 1999: 78-121, Abstract 122.
RESEARCH PRESENTATIONS:
International Association for Dental Research
Bond strengths of Polymer Glass to Three Cast Alloys, Frechette Award Finalist 3/1999
PROFESSIONAL COMMITTEE POSITIONS HELD:
American College of Prosthodontics
Ad Hoc Committee for Member Recruitment and Retention
10/2003-2006
Alternate Delegate-House of Delegates-New York Section
10/2002-2006
Ad Hoc Committee for the New Prosthodontist
6/2001-2006
Implants SIG Subcommittee
6/2001-2006
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS:
American College of Prosthodontics – Active , 1997-Present
American Dental Association, 1990-Present
Academy of Osseointegration, 1997-2007
International Association for Dental Research, 1997-2007
Delta Sigma Delta Fraternity, 1990-2007
President, 1993-1994
