Check Out My Articles

1. SL_shortCoverVito_5_11_Layout 1 6/7/11 11:12 AM Page 1

2. Awoman enters Dr. James Vito’s dentistry practice in Wayne at the
end of her rope.
As she sits in an examining chair holding its arms as tightly as she
holds out hope, Dr. Vito listens as this woman, who requires extensive
dental work, explains her dilemma. A tangle of frayed emotions, she
tells him how she wishes her outward smile could match the one she
feels straining to get out, and how she wants to stop covering her mouth
with a hand when laughing in a crowd, and how she wants to stop
pressing her lips together when posing for family photographs, how she
wants to stop being a dental cripple.
“I just want a nice smile,” she tells Dr. Vito, with more than a hint of
pleading in her voice and a tear in her eye. “I just want to smile.”
In much the same way legendary composer Harold Arlen blended
Yip Harburg’s lyrics for “Over the Rainbow” with his own unforgettable
notes to create music history, Dr. Vito blends the woman’s hopes with his
unparalleledskillstohelpherfindthatpotofgoldoverthedentalrainbow.
“Being able to give a patient exactly what they want so they not only
look better but feel better about themselves is very rewarding,” Dr. Vito
says.
“It’s probably the closest thing to being a plastic surgeon—to take
what a patient verbalizes and create a new look for them that meets or
exceeds their expectations.”
James Vito D.M.D. has been making his patients’ dreams come true
at his current location in Wayne since 2000. Prior to that, he practiced
his unique brand of dentistry in Princeton, N.J., for 13 years prior to
returning home to the Main Line.
In practice for 25 years, he is noted for and recognized by his peers
for his accomplishments in general, cosmetic and advanced restorative
dentistry. As a periodontist, he diagnoses and treats gum disease. As a
prosthodontist, he specializes in making replacements for missing teeth
and other structures of the mouth. Dr. Vito was trained and certified in
both areas at the prestigious Periodontal Prosthesis-Fixed Prosthodon-
Making Dreams ComeTrue
Wayne-based Dr. James Vito gives patients many reasons to smile
By Phil Gianficaro | Photography by Felicia Perretti
profile
42 Suburban Life JUNE 2011
Dr. Vito’s extensive training enables him to take a comprehensive approach to
giving each patient a “million-dollar smile.” Above, Dr. Vito works on a case with
Rubin, the practice’s ceramist; and, at right, he checks a patient.
SL_Vito_6_11_Layout 1 6/6/11 9:06 PM Page 1

3. tics program at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Dental Medi-
cine, where his late father, Anthony, himself a dentist, taught and served
as associate dean of clinical affairs.
“My father would take me down to the dental school when I was in
high school,” says Dr. Vito, “where I was exposed to and allowed to
attend advanced dental seminars conducted by the leading authorities
in dentistry and periodontal prosthesis. These authorities, who I grew
up with because of my father, became my friends, my teachers and my
mentors pushing me to excel in everything I did.
“The Periodontal Prosthesis-Fixed Prosthodontics program is so
unique because of its multidisciplinary approach to dental problems,”
he continues. “One of the unique talents imparted to us is to understand
why things happen or aren’t working, so that when we rebuild some-
body’smouth,we’renotrebuildinginthesamefailuresthatbroughtthe
patient in originally.
“We take a very comprehensive look at a patient’s entire dental
problem, because even though only one tooth may be broken, there’s
a reason it happened and we need to understand why.”
‘Doing It Right’
Dr. Vito is also an implant specialist, skilled in the surgical place-
ment of dental implants as well as their restoration. He holds three
fellowships and is dual board-certified in implant dentistry through the
International Congress of Oral Implantologists and the American
Board of Oral Implantology/Implant Dentistry. He also is certified as a
Master in Implant Prosthodontics through the International Congress
of Oral Implantologists.
“When someone is missing teeth or has broken teeth, especially
back teeth, it causes the face to collapse and causes the face to develop
fine lines and wrinkles,” he explains. “When we restore the teeth,
sometimes the wrinkles don’t fill out. Enough people asked if I could do
something about these lines and wrinkles so about four years ago I got
trained in the art of Botox and dermal fillers to eliminate these lines and
wrinkles and maximize the aesthetics of the mouth and face.”
Dr. Vito also offers intravenous sedation for apprehensive and fear-
ful patients, administered by a board-certified anesthesiologist.
“We’re a very unique practice, a very boutique-y practice, in that we
can offer so many different procedures and do so many different proce-
dures proficiently and well in our office,” Dr. Vito says.
Dr. Vito’s sterling reputation throughout Philadelphia, and specifically
along the Main Line, attracts patients who live more than an hour away.
“Sometimes it’s taken me even longer to get to Dr. Vito’s office
because of traffic, but it’s definitely worth the drive,” says Lisa George of
Levittown, whose daughter is also the office manager of Dr. Vito. “I
needed a lot of work done—root canals, extractions, jaw-bone recon-
struction, full dental bridges—so I had to drive back and forth a lot.
“But it was worth it. Dr. Vito did a fantastic job. I can’t believe how
greatitalllooks.I’drecommendhimtoanyonewhowantsagreatsmile.”
Dr. Vito says that the quality of his work, and that of his staff, is what
brings patients to his practice.
“A patient came in for a consultation recently,” he says. “Then he
went to five or six other dentists for consults. In the end, the patient said
he came back to us because of the level of comfort and confidence he
had in us and the plan that we outlined for him. That tells us we’re doing
it right.”
A patient comes to see Dr. Vito because he or she is self-conscious
about their smile. They tell him their hopes and dreams—and he deliv-
ers by giving them a million-dollar smile.
And you can’t put a price on that. n
Dr. James Vito, D.M.D.
523 E. Lancaster Ave.,
Wayne
Office: 610-971-2590
Website:
www.jamesvito.com
E-mail:
jamesvito@verizon.net
PHIL GIANFICARO is an
award-winning writer
based in Doylestown.
FELICIA PERRETTI is a free-
lance photographer based
in Philadelphia.
Dr. Vito credits the quality of his work and
that of his staff for building such a strong
base of patients. Here, clockwise from top
left, Dr. Vito takes a moment to pose with
staff members Barbara, Justine and Christina.
JUNE 2011 Suburban Life 43
Dr. James Vito has been practicing his unique brand of dentistry for 25 years. His many accomplishments in general, cosmetic and advanced restorative dentistry have
earned him recognition from his peers and patients.
SL_Vito_6_11_Layout 1 6/6/11 9:07 PM Page 2