Prof Howard Gluckman

Prof Howard Gluckman Prof Gluckman is an internationally respected Periodontist, Implantologist, Author and Lecturer. Dedicated to Excellence, Dentistry & Research.

I’m a passionate periodontist, implantologist and senior lecturer at the Implant & Aesthetic Academy. Cape Town is my home base; however, I frequently travel abroad to share dental knowledge and teach advanced skills to other dental professionals.

Elective treatment carries a higher burden of preparation.When a patient chooses a procedure to improve their quality of...
04/09/2026

Elective treatment carries a higher burden of preparation.

When a patient chooses a procedure to improve their quality of life, safety begins long before treatment starts.

There is time to investigate, plan, and understand the anatomy. Inferior alveolar nerve injury is one of the clearest examples.

The nerve pathway can be assessed before treatment. The risk can be identified, explained, and planned for before a single instrument is raised. That's why radiographic investigation, including three-dimensional imaging when the anatomy requires it, is not an extra layer of care; it's part of responsible care.

The question before treatment is not only whether something is likely to go wrong.

It's also whether everything reasonable has been done to understand what could.

Bone loss is not always a flat defect.In the anterior maxilla, the ridge has a natural curve. Rebuilding the area, there...
03/09/2026

Bone loss is not always a flat defect.

In the anterior maxilla, the ridge has a natural curve. Rebuilding the area, therefore, means thinking about shape, not just volume.

This is the problem explored in my published work on bone bending using the kerfed Khoury split-bone block technique.

Curved anterior defects create a specific challenge: straight plates don't automatically recreate curved anatomy. Kerfing allowed the autogenous bone plate to bend and follow the ridge more closely.

The question was simple:

"Can the graft be adapted to the patient’s anatomy more closely?"

This is where careful reconstruction begins.

Read the full publication on bone bending in the anterior maxilla - link in first comment below 👇

Patient came in unhappy with the crown. The real problem was the implant underneath it: wrong position, never integrated...
03/09/2026

Patient came in unhappy with the crown. The real problem was the implant underneath it: wrong position, never integrated, and soft tissue that had never been developed.

Turning the screw to remove the crown turned the implant. Out it came.
Four months of healing, then a fully guided rebuild with the guide and the provisional both made before she sat down. Bone reduced, buccal wall contoured, modified infold to build the profile.

Last slide is day one with the provisional in. Definitive crown to follow. Provisional and restorative work by the team at Diceram. 👏

02/09/2026

If you are considering a dental implant, infection is a reasonable question to ask.

It can happen with any surgical treatment; that's why the preparation matters.

Before and during implant treatment, we ensure the surgical environment is carefully controlled:

• Instruments are sterilised.
• Sterile drapes and gloves are used.
• The treatment area is managed with care.

In some cases, antibiotics may also be used where clinically appropriate.

The goal is to reduce avoidable risk and support healing as safely as possible.

Safety starts before treatment begins.

Learn more about our approach on the website - link in first comment below 👇

A treatment plan is not a script.It should respond to what we learn.When your anatomy, healing, comfort, or clinical ris...
28/08/2026

A treatment plan is not a script.

It should respond to what we learn.

When your anatomy, healing, comfort, or clinical risk shows us something important, we reassess because your care should remain accurate.

Your treatment should be guided by understanding, not assumption.

Learn more about our individualised care approach on the website - link in the first comment below 👇

27/08/2026

Not every technique deserves the same level of trust.

In dentistry, predictability matters.

A treatment should not be judged only by how good it looks in selected cases or how impressive it appears in a single result.

The question is whether it can work consistently, responsibly, and in the right patient.

A predictable outcome doesn't happen by chance.

It comes from understanding the case, respecting the biology, and carrying out the treatment with meticulous care. This is the standard we work towards.

Learn more about our individualised care approach on the website.

Link in the first comment below 👇

A clinician's responsibility does not end when the literature supports the technique.Evidence-based care requires more t...
26/08/2026

A clinician's responsibility does not end when the literature supports the technique.

Evidence-based care requires more than choosing a treatment with published support.

It also requires understanding the strength, limits and risks of that evidence, and its relevance to the patient in front of us.

This becomes especially important in complex and elective treatments, where a procedure may be promising, technique-sensitive, or still being evaluated based on long-term data.

In those cases, communication is not a formality.

The patient needs to understand what is known, what remains uncertain, what alternatives exist, and what the risks mean for their own case.

Consent should never be reduced to a signed document. It should reflect understanding.

Individualised care means every decision is shaped by the patient in front of us.It begins with diagnosis.It shows in th...
21/08/2026

Individualised care means every decision is shaped by the patient in front of us.

It begins with diagnosis.

It shows in the scans we take, the risks we assess, the techniques we select, and the way each plan is explained.

The aim is simple: understand clearly, plan carefully and treat responsibly.

“Patients are not to be treated epidemiologically.”This is an important distinction in clinical decision-making. Evidenc...
20/08/2026

“Patients are not to be treated epidemiologically.”

This is an important distinction in clinical decision-making.

Evidence provides patterns and helps us understand risk, survival, complication rates, and what to expect across a population.

However, it does not remove the responsibility of assessing the individual patient's anatomy, phenotype, medical history, or capacity to understand, accept, and maintain the proposed treatment over time.

In implant dentistry, survival is a population milestone, while success is a patient-specific outcome.

An implant can survive, according to the literature, yet still fail the individual if it does not serve its function, aesthetics, tissue stability, or long-term needs.

The literature should sharpen our thinking, not flatten the patient into a statistic.

Individualised care is evidence-based care applied responsibly.

19/08/2026

Your mouth is not separate from the rest of your body.

Your overall health can often be seen in your gums, bone, soft tissue, and healing response.

That's why our approach goes beyond looking at the teeth alone.

The mouth is often a mirror of your overall health; treatment should be built around the whole person.

Learn more about our individualised care approach on the website - link in the first comment below 👇

Address

3rd Floor, De Waterkant Centre, 9 Somerset Road, De Waterkant
Cape Town
8001

Opening Hours

Monday 08:00 - 17:00
Tuesday 08:00 - 17:00
Wednesday 08:00 - 17:00
Thursday 08:00 - 17:00
Friday 08:00 - 17:00

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