We are all proud to have a short discussion with Dr. Snježana Pohl who has over 1000 hours of professional training and EDA (European Dental Association) certification for Periodontal specialist (2002). She is an Implantology Specialist (2010) and serves as the Chief of Oral Surgery at Rident Polyclinic (2012).

Dr. Pohl is the Head Assistant of the Oral medicine and Periodontology Department at the Faculty of Medicine in Rijeka and an active lecturer in implantology/periodontology (Germany, Spain, Italy, Croatia) with focus on minimally invasive surgical techniques.

She is a member of the American Academy of Periodontology), EDA (European Dental Association, Croatian Periodontal Association, Croatian Dental Chamber, Croatian Medical Association and Bayerische Zahnärztekammer.

1. You previously trained on general surgery and orthopaedics? What do you find special about periodontal surgery to focus your work on it?

I can’t say that I wanted to be an oral surgeon from my early days. My first degree is in human medicine – I graduated Human medicine at University in Zagreb, Croatia. Since I love challenges I wanted to specialize neonatology.

But the life is unpredictable and so happened to me that I moved to Germany and graduated dental medicine at LMU University in Munich.
I never regretted it. I love my profession. I love to comfort my patients, to take them a fear and give the smiles and life quality back.

We live in exciting time in dentistry: new techniques and procedures are introduced, knowledge is growing and shared. Social platforms like Casemasters, DentalXP, Facebook and Instagram make sharing possible. We motivate and inspire each other.

My friends use to warn me that I share too generously my knowledge. But when I am excited because I performed a beautiful surgery or I took nice pics from a happy patient – I simply have an impulse to share it. I mean, if you sing nicely, you want to come out from the shower cabinet and sing for other people.

Periodontal surgery is of huge importance in a comprehensive patient treatment. There is hardly one case that does not need surgical crown lengthening, ridge augmentation, recession coverage, peri implant tissue shaping, defect augmentation or some other kind of periodontal surgery.
Utilization of connective tissue grafts gives so many advantages. Thickened peri implant soft tissue is a guaranty for beautiful appearance and long therm stability.

I love to find out different ways to harvest, drape, move and fix connective tissue. I love patient’s happiness after surgical crown lengthening and lip stabilization.
And I love to perform mucogingival surgery: nice music in background, microsurgical instruments and state of absolute concentration – ZEN for me and my chair assistance.

It is great to see almost immediately result of one’s work and get credit for it. It is very different to orthopaedic surgery. Orthopaedic surgery is mostly a lot of suffering for the patients and modest results.

2. Now we have partial extraction, socket shields, PRF and autografts, what do you think is the next big thing in minimally invasive dental surgery?

We shouldn’t forget osseodensification, game changer for implant site preparation.

Guided surgery should have more space – not only implant placement but also bone harvesting, socket shield preparation, sinus lift. One abutment one time concept must be simplified.

Roots as block augmentation material have a big potential.

And I think that wisdom teeth follicles may contain some interesting growth factors…

3. What encourages you to become such an exceptional example of female dentists who perform surgeries, conduct training/workshops and dedicate time for young dentists who you mentor?

I have more than one family that give me inspiration and strength.

My students: all of them ambitious, skilled, open minded and nice young people. They are proud of their mentor and it pushes me even more.

Bob Lamb: my mentor and friend who has been following my professional career for a long time, always full of admiration. In Bob’s educational center “IDEA” I’ve learned from the best.

DentalXP: the best educational platform and all-inclusive family strong supporting enthusiastic dentists all over the world.

Blade girls, DIVAs: great minds, powerful women, supportive friends, a great fun.

Orlando group: my best friends, my like – minded soul mates. We share the same passion for our profession, we love autogenous and site preservation, we try to improve our daily work exchanging ideas, knowledge and experience in numerous whats app messages.

My virtual friends: social nets take so much time and give so much high spirits.

My real family: supportive, proud, tolerating my life in parallel universe.

4. How do you see the importance of dental social networks such as Casemasters and similar platforms?

Dental social networks are fair. One cannot hide behind institutions, titles, names and work from the past. There are not board members and juries following strange rules when accepting or declining someone’s contribution. Passionate dentists striving for knowledge and perfection in profession are the only one jury. This is fair.

5. What is your advice for dental students who see you as a model of success?

Richard Branson said: “There are not quick wins in business – it takes years to become an overnight success.”

It affords a lot of education, many weekends at conferences and courses and above all countless nights spent in learning.

Find a mentor! But don’t await to get everything served and don’t forget that each relationship is giving and taking.

Be passionate! Passion is not illness, it is a gift!

Check Dr. Snježana Pohl Cases on Casemasters the #1 Social Network for Dentists:

Importance of PDL for peri implant soft tissue

Ridge split and Densah burs for site optimization

Tunnel technique for recession coverage

Two adjacent pontic shields