NSU CDM Lasting Impressions Fall 2018

22 | COLLEGE OF DENTAL MEDICINE Jose Larumbe, D.D.S., comes from a long line of dentists who practiced general dentistry—his father, mother, uncle, brother, and three younger cousins. Larumbe embraced the profession as well, but he chose pediatric dentistry. “I don’t like to talk about politics, money, or religion—those three things you don’t talk about to kids,” he said with a smile. Larumbe is generous with his smiles. “I smile today, because I’ve done something for somebody every day, and that’s good,” he said. Larumbe specializes in patients born with a cleft palate. He took an interest in this type of work when he joined NSU’s CDM faculty, learning the Naso Alveolar Molding (NAM) technique from Eric Stelnicki, M.D., a pediatric plastic surgeon who introduced it at the CDM. Larumbe is the only CDM dentist currently doing the procedure. NAM is a presurgical orthopedic appliance that approximates the cleft and molds the soft tissues and cartilage of the nose to improve the results of surgical cleft lip and cleft palate repair. Ideally, it is used with infants, as it gives the plastic surgeon more tissue with which to work, said Larumbe. Since not all patients tolerate the NAM appliance well, Larumbe introduced a nasal conformer in 2010. “The intent is to enlarge the affected nostril and elongate the nasal columella in a forward direction,” he said. Larumbe derives immense satisfaction in going the extra mile for his cleft palate patients. “You become part of the family,” he said. He calls to check in on the children, and family members call him to express their gratitude and invite him to milestone events. Such invitations allow him to witness the progress on his patients’ faces as they grow. Shaping Sm i ) es Second-Generation Dentist Gives Families Reasons to Smile BY CAROL BRZOZOWSKI FACULTY IMPRESSIONS FOUR MORE KEYS TO SUCCESS 1. OFFER DISTRACTIONS While Larumbe enjoys pediatric dentistry, there is the challenge of working with children who are at an age where they don’t understand why they experi- ence pain during a dental procedure or how to cope with it. The key, he said, is “to demonstrate to them that you understand what they are going through.” Distract them in an effective way to help them cope, he tells students. “You talk to them to get their minds away from the dental chair and make them feel like you’re one of them,” he said. “You have fun with them, joke with them. Never lie to them. They need to trust you.” 2. ENJOY ROUTINES Larumbe spends Mondays with the fourth-year dental students on their pediatric dentistry rotation, supervising and teaching them clinical components. On Tuesdays, Larumbe brings his skills to the craniofacial team at Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital, where they see an average of 16 patients from 7:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. “It is designed to bring the patients with craniofacial anomalies to be treated in an interdisci- plinary team approach for the best outcome possible,” he said. Team members include a coordinator, pediatri- cian, geneticist, audiologist, otolaryngologist, ortho- dontist, pediatric dentist, oromaxillofacial surgeon, plastic surgeon, speech pathologist, psychologist, social worker, parent advocate, patients, and parents. On Wednesdays, Larumbe is at the KID Dental Clinic at the Kids In Distress campus in Wilton Manors, where he treats patients with cleft lip and palate using the Naso Alveolar Molding technique, as well as his nasal conformer. continued on page 24 FACULTY Impressions