Dr. Rik Sable, Dentalpreneur

By Chary Southmayd

Growing up south of Pittsburgh in Charleroi, Pennsylvania, with its abundance of doctors in the neighborhood, Dr. Richard (Rik) Sable, DDS took it for granted that he would somehow wind up in the medical field. As it turned out, he was right about that, though going mobile with CT technology for implant dentistry certainly was not part of the career path he envisioned back then.

A graduate of the University of Pittsburgh and the Marquette University School of Dental Medicine, Sable is the owner of PrecisionDX, a mobile CT scanning service he launched two years ago. With one van on the road five days a week traveling throughout Florida helping to take much of the guess work out of dental implantology, Sable has very aggressive plans for the future of his CT scanning show on the road.

With a dental practice in Largo, Sable is a true believer in the theory that the more knowledge you get, the better off you will be. He became keenly interested a few years ago in steering his clinical expertise to implant dentistry. He enrolled in a course over 10 months at the Miami Implant Continuum under the expertise of Dr. Arun K. Garg, one of the country’s leading implantology educators.

Sable maintains that implant dentistry, which is now considered the standard of care by the American Dental Association, provides a higher standard of care than “old time dentistry.”

“After being in this field for 17 years and hearing from patients who want us to duplicate what nature gave them, which is impossible, we can do the next best thing,” Sable said. “Implant dentistry brings us into the 21st century. Dentures have been around since George Washington. Implants have had a much better success rate for 25 years or longer. There is less hardware in the mouth and it gives the practitioner greater confidence.”

That confidence is achieved, at least in part, though the use of CT scanning technology to determine if a patient is a suitable candidate for the implant procedure. The advantages are many, Sable believes, including subjecting the patient to lower dose radiation; having the ability to accurately reveal the quality of bone and any anomalies present; and allowing for precise measurements to ensure that the implant is placed correctly. Unlike standard X-rays, with the CT scan there is minimal image distortion, if any.

Sable was motivated to launch his mobile CT scan endeavor because he realized that for dentists, the traditional hospital CT process would be a tough sell. It is far too time-consuming for their busy patients. With PrecisionDX, convenience for everyone involved is the name of the game.

The dentist is able to avoid the high cost of the CT scanning equipment, while still benefiting from the extremely accurate results of the procedure. In addition to the cost savings involved, with the mobile service the dentist is able to observe the scanning procedure, or immediately check the scan to see if it’s what he needs. “We come right to them,” Sable said.

A customized Dodge Sprinter van arrives at the dental office and the patient simply steps inside for the 20-second scan taken by the certified X-ray technician. The entire process requires about 30 minutes.

“The general dentist is always the quarterback of the team. We are an extension of his office,” Sable said. “He makes sure the implant is placed exactly where he wants it placed. The CT scan takes failure out of the equation. It allows you as a practitioner to know your limitations. You can treatment plan it right on the computer screen, gauging whether it’s within the range of your expertise, or if the procedure should be referred to someone with more expertise.”

According to Sable, 80 percent of dentists in Europe do their own implants, while that figure is drastically lower in the U.S. Sable feels that dentists interested in incorporating implant dentistry into their practice should get the proper education, as he received at the Miami Implant Continuum. “It requires more than just a one weekend course, in my opinion,” said Sable, who has achieved his fellowship in the International Congress of Oral Implantologists and is working toward his diplomat status.

As fate would have it, when Sable first became intrigued with the mobile CT scanning idea, he learned that one of his former classmates at Marquette, Leo Malin, was already doing mobile CT in Wisconsin. Malin was an important source of information on how to get the business started. “Great minds think alike, though I hadn’t talked to Leo in 14 years,” Sable said.

Getting banks to finance his idea proved to be huge challenge for Sable. He devised a business plan and still they wouldn’t buy it. Eventually, he got the van financed through Chrysler Financial and it was time to hit the road. The road ahead would prove to be a bit bumpy in the early days. “It was hairy in the beginning for sure,” he said. “If we did 12-15 scans in a month, I was excited because it meant I wasn’t taking that big a loss that month. Now we do 12-15 scans in a week.”

Just how successful have they become?

“Our business has grown 200 percent since last June,” Sable said with a smile. And, he is just getting started. “We have pretty aggressive expansion plans,” he said. Sable and his two partners plan to have a second van on the road in dentist-rich Southeast Florida by the end of this year. Within the next five years they hope to expand to eight or nine different cities, including parts of Texas, Illinois, California, D.C. and Seattle - with two or three vans in each area.

Meantime, when he relaxes and takes his mind off dentistry, the single New Tampa resident who shares his home with a dog, enjoys drawing, sports, traveling, and he wants to get better educated on the nuances of fine wine.“ I do enjoy a good bottle of wine with dinner,” he said.

Still, discussing the future of implant dentistry and the benefits of the mobile CT scan technology excites this young entrepreneur who is eager to share his knowledge. “This van has opened up a lot of doors. There is definitely a need for this technology,” Sable said with confidence. “It’s taking off. We’ve been there, and we know how to do it.”

For more information, visit www.precisionDX.com.