They had her back, even when she was a virtual unknown.

 

Pia Wurtzbach was working hard to earn a name for herself when she first went to the Center for Advanced Dentistry (CAD). She had already previously joined the Binibining Pilipinas tilt and lost—twice.

 

She knew she wanted the perfect smile, even as everyone around said she looked perfect and didn’t need to change anything. But Wurtzbach knew her smile was always slightly unsure, mostly since she has always felt a little self-conscious about her teeth. She was about to join Binibining Pilipinas for the third time—and third try has got to be the last, she thought.

 

Wurtzbach had researched long enough to know she needed dental veneers. So just a few weeks before the Binibining Pilipinas contest that forever changed her life, Wurtzbach, with a tight budget saved up from modeling and acting stints, mustered enough courage and popped in at the posh CAD clinic.

 

It was now or never.

 

“They were so nice. CAD let me pay in installments and even gave me a good discount,” Wurtzbach told Lifestyle.

 

 

She knew then she had found a keeper.

 

At a time when even hospitals demand a downpayment before taking in a patient in the emergency room, meeting a cosmetic dentist who didn’t ask for outright payment was enough to renew Wurtzbach’s faith in humanity.

 

That may sound frivolous to others, but to a beauty queen wannabe, that meant the world, er, the universe. The procedure, after all, was not cheap, at P20,000 per tooth. (A veneer is a thin layer of porcelain permanently placed over a tooth to change its color, shape and placement.)

 

“Before that, their beauty queen clients had already been winning in competitions, so I felt that they knew what looks good in pictures, on stage and on camera,” Wurtzbach said.

 

 

Smile makeover

 

CAD is run by cosmetic dentist-sisters Dr. Nelda V. Eufemio and Dr. Mia V. Angeles, and Dr. Lito H. Librando. CAD made a name for its retinue of model-patients. Its first clinic in Legaspi Village, Makati, was next to advertising firms whose models often needed what Dr. Eufemio calls “a smile makeover.”

 

Soon models trickled into their small clinic. It didn’t take long for other celebrities and beauty queens to follow. Cosmetic dentists, like those in CAD, focus on improving the appearance of the mouth, teeth, gums and smile, while taking care of the overall health of the teeth as well.

 

“We have the only machine with RF (radio frequency) technology that not only whitens teeth but also rejuvenates the collagen of the gums,” Dr. Eufemio said. “And since we pride ourselves in being the center for advanced dentistry, we also have the quietest drill machines.”

 

All three CAD principals are trained in cosmetic dentistry focusing on veneers, restorations like crowns and bridges, in specialized educational institutions in Europe.

 

CAD’s first big break, said Dr. Eufemio, was when they were tasked to do the smile makeovers of Luis Manzano and Heart Evangelista. Both actors have since become CAD’s celebrity partners.

 

 

Real deal

 

“I like that they improved my smile but didn’t change it,” said Wurtzbach. “The CAD approach was the real deal—it was not just for the pageant or what looks good on camera. They do what looks good on you when you talk to a person face to face, and I like that.”

 

The trio have more than 26 years of experience in dental practice; they set up CAD six years ago. Celebrity and high-profile clients include Charo Santos Concio, Gov. Chiz Escudero, Jessy Mendiola, Georgina Wilson, Isabelle Daza, Bianca Gonzalez, Bianca Manalo, James Yap, Rajo Laurel, Nix Alanon, Mak Tumang, Tweetie de Leon Gonzalez, Rissa Mananquil, Joey Mead, Sam YG, Lani and Alan Cayetano, Iza Calzado, Kylie Versoza, Ina Raymundo and Gabbi Garcia, among others.

 

“Your smile really changes your face. You look better, and you’re smiling a lot more. And because you love it, you just naturally become confident. Everyone was saying I looked good, but that was the time when my stubbornness [to have my teeth fixed] worked,” Wurtzbach said.

 

CAD delivers the ultimate CAD smile by working with what clients have and improving on them. Wurtzbach said the doctors do not overdo the makeover such that the smile is “no longer you.”

 

No unnecessary procedures

 

They don’t recommend unnecessary procedures, the Miss Universe 2015 titleholder said, and that has earned CAD her respect. But while the stunning results wowed her, and the universe, it was CAD’s generosity that ultimately won the beauty queen’s loyalty. (So loyal that her entire family and close friends have had their veneers done at CAD as well.)

 

“Usually, it’s after you win that you get free services. I was on a tight budget, and there was no assurance I was going to win Miss Universe. We’re family now,” Wurtzbach said.

 

“I keep coming back to CAD because I feel like I can talk to them and tell them my concerns,” she said. “They’ve been honest since Day 1, and tell me what can and can’t be done. You know that your smile is better, and you’re more confident. When I look at my old photos now, I say, why didn’t I get this done before?”

 

 

 

CAD has branches at G/F The Infinity Towers, 26th Street, BGC, Taguig; 3/F O Square 1, Greenhills Shopping Center, San Juan; and soon to open at Ayala Malls Manila Bay on the first quarter next year. For more info, visit www.cadclinic.com, Facebook at Center for Advanced Dentistry, and Instagram @cadclinic.