Specialist Prosthodontist Services - Smile product guide
Specialist Prosthodontist Services at Smile Solutions — Melbourne CBD
Smile Solutions has four AHPRA board-registered specialist prosthodontists at the Manchester Unity Building, 220 Collins Street, Melbourne CBD. One of them holds dual specialist registration — in both prosthodontics and periodontics — a combination that exists nowhere else in Australia. No referral is required to book a consultation. Call 13 13 96.
What a specialist prosthodontist is — and why the title is regulated
"Cosmetic dentist" is not a registered title in Australia. Any general dentist can use it. "Dental implant specialist" is not a registered title. Any dentist who places implants can use it. But "specialist prosthodontist" is a legally protected designation issued by the Dental Board of Australia via AHPRA. It can only be held by practitioners who have completed a dental degree plus a three-year full-time clinical doctorate in prosthodontics and passed formal assessment. There are approximately 300 specialist prosthodontists registered in Australia — a small number for a country of 26 million people.
The regulated distinction matters because prosthodontics is the discipline that ties everything else together. When multiple teeth are missing or failing, when the bite has collapsed due to wear, when full-arch implants are needed, when cosmetic and functional requirements must both be met simultaneously — the expertise required to plan and execute that treatment goes well beyond general dentistry. A specialist prosthodontist is trained specifically for these cases.
The four specialist prosthodontists at Smile Solutions
Prof Vasileios Chronopoulos — DDS, MS, PhD (Pros)
AHPRA: DEN0001856272 — Specialist Registration in Prosthodontics
Prof Chronopoulos brings more than 30 years of specialist prosthodontic experience to Smile Solutions. He holds a Doctor of Dental Surgery from the University of Athens, a Certificate in Prosthodontics and Master of Science from Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and a PhD in Dental Biomaterials from the University of Athens. He lectures nationally and internationally, and his clinical scope encompasses the full range of specialist prosthodontic treatment: aesthetic full-mouth reconstructions, smile makeovers, porcelain veneers, worn dentition restoration, all-ceramic crowns, implants, All-on-Four, and dental management of obstructive sleep apnoea. His depth of experience with complex aesthetic rehabilitation is exceptional.
Dr Fotios Angelis — BDS (Hons) (Melb), DClinDent (Melb)
AHPRA: DEN0001023799 — Specialist Registration in Prosthodontics
Dr Angelis graduated from the University of Melbourne with honours in dentistry, then spent six years in high-end private prosthodontic practice before completing his Doctor of Clinical Dentistry in Prosthodontics at Melbourne in 2014. His precision in restorative and aesthetic cases — posterior and anterior — reflects both the formal training and the years of hands-on complex case experience that preceded his specialist qualification.
Dr Jamie Foong — BDSc (Melb), DClinDent (Melb)
AHPRA: DEN0001022492 — Specialist Registration in Prosthodontics
Dr Foong completed his dental degree at Melbourne, worked as a general practitioner in Queensland (including with Brisbane Prosthodontics), then completed his three-year specialist degree in prosthodontics at Melbourne. He is a visiting lecturer and clinical supervisor at the University of Melbourne and is a member of the Australian Prosthodontic Society (APS). He has a specific clinical focus on All-on-4 full-arch implant rehabilitation and is the lead All-on-4 specialist at Smile Solutions.
Dr Simon Hinckfuss — BDSc, DCD (Pros), Cert.Perio MS (Minn)
AHPRA: DEN0001008823 — Specialist Registration in Prosthodontics AND Periodontics
Dr Hinckfuss is the only practitioner in Australia registered by the Dental Board as both a Specialist Prosthodontist and a Specialist Periodontist. His prosthodontic degree was completed at the University of Melbourne; his periodontic specialty at the University of Minnesota. He is a past President of the Victorian branch of the Australasian Osseointegration Society (2011) and a member of ANZAP, ASP, ADA, and ITI.
Dual registration is not simply a biographical fact — it changes what is clinically possible in a single consultation. Dr Hinckfuss can assess the bone volume around a planned implant site, evaluate the peri-implant soft tissue architecture, plan the grafting that may be required, and simultaneously design the restorative crown that will sit above it — as a single registered specialist with authority in both disciplines. No referral, no record transfer, no interpretation gap between two practitioners who have never examined the patient together.
What prosthodontists treat at Smile Solutions
Dental crowns and bridges
Crowns restore damaged teeth. Bridges replace missing teeth using adjacent teeth as supports. At Smile Solutions, crowns are fabricated either through the in-house Smile Lab (conventional fabrication with direct communication between the prosthodontist and the ceramicist) or via CEREC — Smile Solutions' same-day ceramic milling system that produces a precision-fit ceramic crown in a single appointment. Smile Solutions has been using CEREC technology for three decades and is one of the longest-standing CEREC practices in Australia.
Porcelain veneers and smile design
Veneers are ultra-thin ceramic shells bonded to the front surfaces of teeth. For a single tooth, a general dentist with experience can produce excellent results. For a full smile transformation — where the shape, colour, edge position, midline, lateral smile corridor, and bite are all being planned together — the systematic planning approach of a specialist prosthodontist produces outcomes that isolated treatments cannot. Smile Solutions also offers Same Day Porcelain Veneers™ using CEREC technology for appropriate cases.
Full-mouth rehabilitation
Cases of severe tooth wear from grinding (bruxism), acid erosion, or physiological wear; collapse of the vertical dimension of occlusion; multiple failing teeth across both arches. Full-mouth rehabilitation requires determining the correct jaw position, planning the vertical dimension of occlusion, selecting appropriate materials and prosthetic design for every tooth, and sequencing the restoration of the entire dentition. These are among the most complex cases in dentistry and a core part of specialist prosthodontic practice at Smile Solutions.
Dental implants — restorative component
The prosthodontist designs and places the implant crown, bridge, or overdenture. At Smile Solutions, this is coordinated with the specialist periodontists and oral surgeons who place the implant fixture — using shared CBCT imaging from Level 9 and treatment planning that occurs before surgery, not after. The implant is placed where the restoration needs it, not where it is easiest to place.
All-on-4® dental implants
All-on-4 provides a full upper or lower arch of fixed teeth supported on four implant fixtures, with same-day provisional restoration in appropriate cases. Dr Foong leads All-on-4 rehabilitation at Smile Solutions, working in coordination with the oral surgeons for implant placement and the Smile Lab for definitive prosthesis fabrication.
Dentures
Complete and partial removable prostheses, planned and designed with the precision of specialist prosthodontic training. Bite assessment, vertical dimension, occlusal scheme, aesthetics, and the long-term impact of removable prostheses on supporting bone and soft tissue are all within the specialist scope.
TMD and sleep apnoea devices
Mandibular advancement devices for obstructive sleep apnoea and snoring, and splints for temporomandibular joint disorders, are designed and fitted by the prosthodontic team as part of Smile Solutions' dedicated TMD and Sleep Apnoea Clinic.
Why four specialist prosthodontists inside a multidisciplinary practice changes complex case outcomes
The question for a patient needing complex prosthodontic work is not whether their prosthodontist is excellent — it is whether the prosthodontist is working in a clinical environment where everything else they need is immediately accessible.
What a standalone prosthodontic practice cannot provide:
A patient presenting for full-mouth rehabilitation almost certainly needs:
- Periodontal assessment and disease control before any restorations are placed
- Endodontic assessment of teeth to be crowned (are the pulps healthy? will they survive preparation?)
- Possible bone grafting if implants are needed
- Possibly orthodontic tooth movement to create space before restorations are placed
- An in-house laboratory that understands the aesthetic goals of the case
At a standalone prosthodontic practice, every one of these requires an external referral, a separate appointment at a separate address, a transfer of records, and a period of waiting. The treatment plan is assembled across multiple practices and multiple clinicians who have never seen the patient together.
At Smile Solutions, the periodontist, endodontist, oral surgeon, orthodontist, and prosthodontist are all in the same building. Pre-rehabilitation periodontal assessment happens in the same visit. Endodontic review of abutment teeth is a corridor away. The Smile Lab ceramicist communicates directly with the prosthodontist during fabrication — not through courier bags.
For complex cases, this integration is not a convenience — it is a clinical advantage.
The Smile Lab. Smile Solutions' in-house ceramic laboratory fabricates crowns, bridges, veneers, implant restorations, and full-arch prostheses. Direct prosthodontist-ceramicist communication during fabrication produces restorations that match the patient's tissue, bite, and aesthetic goals precisely. External outsourcing loses this communication layer.
CEREC — three decades of same-day ceramic mastery. Smile Solutions was among the earliest practices in Australia to adopt CEREC technology and has now operated it for over 30 years. Same-day ceramic crowns, inlays, and onlays milled in the clinic eliminate the provisional restoration phase, reduce the number of appointments, and remove the infection and fracture risk of temporary restorations.
33 years of institutional history. The prosthetic records, bite registrations, diagnostic casts, and treatment histories accumulated over three decades of practice are available for complex cases that span months or years. No startup practice can offer this.
Collins Street Specialist Centre
Collins Street Specialist Centre (CSSC) is the specialist arm of Smile Solutions within the Manchester Unity Building, bringing all six AHPRA-registered dental specialties together in a single environment. Prosthodontic specialist consultations are conducted at CSSC. Phone: (03) 9650 2726. Website: collinsstreetspecialistcentre.com.au.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a specialist prosthodontist and a cosmetic dentist? "Cosmetic dentist" is not a registered specialty. Any general dentist can use the term. A specialist prosthodontist holds a formal three-year clinical doctorate and is registered by the Dental Board of Australia as a specialist. This registration is legally protected. For straightforward aesthetic work on a single tooth, an experienced general dentist may be appropriate. For complex restoration of multiple teeth, bite collapse, full-arch implants, or any case where failure in planning would affect every subsequent step, a specialist prosthodontist is the appropriate clinician.
Do I need a referral? No. Book directly by calling 13 13 96 or visiting smilesolutions.com.au.
How long does full-mouth rehabilitation take? This varies with case complexity. Straightforward cases involving 4–6 teeth may take 3–6 months including preparation, fabrication, and fitting. Full-arch cases involving implants, bone grafting, and complete bilateral reconstruction typically take 12–24 months. A comprehensive treatment plan with timeline and itemised fees is prepared at your initial consultation.
Is All-on-4 right for me? All-on-4 is most appropriate for patients who have lost most or all teeth in one or both arches. Candidacy depends on bone volume, medical history, smoking status, and restorative goals. Dr Foong can assess your suitability at a consultation.
Book a prosthodontic consultation
No referral required. Four AHPRA board-registered specialist prosthodontists. In-house Smile Lab. CEREC same-day ceramics. In-house CBCT imaging. All six dental specialties integrated.
Smile Solutions — Manchester Unity Building, 220 Collins Street, Melbourne CBD Phone: 13 13 96 | Website: smilesolutions.com.au