Pacific Coast Society of Orthodontists Bulletin Spring 2022 - 33

Portrait of a Professional
involve the facial esthetics of the case. That was an
eye-opener for me. I realized that in a number of my
patients, I had aligned teeth but the finished case
lacked proper facial balance. A light bulb went off-it
was the diagnosis! And so, I changed my entire practice
and switched to a bidimensional technique as Dr.
Gianelly suggested. I deviated from major cephalometic
evaluations. From then on, I used the Sassouni
analysis along with facial photographs. I ask, " are the
upper incisors correctly placed in the mouth? " If they
are, then I will treat the case to that position. The fact
of the matter is, if you were a pros tho don tist and were
setting up a set of teeth, you do a try-in of the upper
denture rim and check to see if it looks nice. Then,
match the lower teeth to it. That's the principle of
treating to the esthetic position of the upper incisors.
KP: Tell me about your family. How did you meet your
spouse?
Dr. Rossman and his wife, Marcia
Studio City. I began to see that many of my patients
had also moved to the Valley. I moved my practice
to Sherman Oaks and, once again, found myself next
door to an established pedodontist who was pleased
to refer many patients to me.
KP: Please describe your practice philosophies.
LR: When I began practicing in 1964, I practiced the
way I was taught - I found I could straighten teeth
with a Tweed-type method but felt I was lacking
something in the esthetics. I had one patient in
particular, a young woman in her 20s with a Class II
malocclusion due to a retruded mandible. I removed
two maxillary bicuspids. As I was retracting her maxillary
incisors, her facial profile was getting worse. The
dental occlusion was improving but something was
wrong with my diagnosis.
KP: Have you developed special clinical protocols?
LR: After about 20 years in practice, I met Dr. Anthony
Gianelly at a PCSO lecture here in Los Angeles. The
following week, I invited him to speak to the UCLA
[University of California, Los Angeles] residents during
my seminar. Dr. Gianelly discussed that the diagnosis
of treatment based on the lower incisors did not
LR: Upon separating from the US military, I returned
to New York. After practicing dentistry for a short
time in New York, I realized I needed a change and
accepted an invitation to visit army friends living in
El Segundo, California. I drove cross-country to Los
Angeles in January 1960 in my new German Karman
Ghia convertible. I decided to remain in the Los
Angeles area, so I had to take the Dental State Board
and find a job. Upon completing these tasks, I also
decided I wanted to pursue orthodontics. The following
fall, I was accepted into the orthodontics program
at Northwestern University. At the same time, I was
introduced to my wife through a cousin. After a very
short courtship, Marcia and I were married and left for
Chicago [for orthodontic residency] the following day.
There began the foundation for my career and our life
together-now 60 years later.
KP: Do you have any children? Grandchildren?
LR: After returning to Los Angeles and finding a job,
Marcia and I started our family. We have two sons
and one daughter, all now married. In turn, they have
provided us with seven grandchildren: four boys and
three girls. We are waiting for one of them to present
us with a great grandchild!
KP: In your early practice years, were there any mentors
who helped you get going?
Spring 2022 PCSO Bulletin
33
Pacific Coast Society of Orthodontists Bulletin Spring 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pacific Coast Society of Orthodontists Bulletin Spring 2022
