Ocean Oaks Dental Group has cared for Vero Beach since 1962. Four dentists and a fully licensed dental lab share one building on 37th Place, across from Cleveland Clinic.
the year Ocean Oaks began welcoming patients. Most new ones still arrive by referral.
Fellowships and memberships held by our dentists
Our story, since 1962
No absentee owners, no outside lab. Dr. McDonald has been here since 1989, and some of our patients have been coming since the 1980s.
Meet the dentists
Time. Rather than moving patients in and out, our dentists slow down to understand your situation first. Four of them on staff makes the hours more flexible, and means a difficult case gets a second pair of eyes down the corridor.
Each one works with the lab technicians directly, so an adjustment happens here instead of a restoration being sent back to a lab for weeks.
Practised five years in Texas, then moved to Vero Beach in 1989. Fellow of the International College of Dentists, past president of the Treasure Coast and Atlantic Dental Associations, and the dentist who built the in-house lab after training in Milan.
University of Texas at San Antonio, 1984
Grew up in upstate New York, practised in Erie and then Melbourne, and joined in October 2021. Works closely with the lab on crowns, bridges and dentures, and uses SmileCloud to preview cosmetic work.
LECOM School of Dental Medicine, 2020
Originally from Fort Myers, with a biology degree from Nova Southeastern's honors college before dental school there. Worked in Fort Pierce before joining, and lives close to family in Vero Beach.
Nova Southeastern University, DMD 2024
General practice residency at the University of Washington, then a full-time implant fellowship back at SIU. Fellow of the Academy of General Dentistry and member of the American Academy of Implant Dentistry.
Southern Illinois University, DMD 2015
Administrators, hygienists, assistants and something most practices do not have: dental lab technicians. Roxanne has been a hygienist since 1993, and Nanci began in dentistry the same year.
Our on-site dental lab
Most offices mail every crown to an outside lab, sometimes out of state or out of the country, and wait weeks. Ours is a fully licensed laboratory in the same building, where Jenna, Cody and Chris work beside the dentists.
Your restoration is designed 100% digitally from a scan of your teeth, so a refinement takes a matter of seconds.
The design is milled from solid ceramic on 5-axis industrial CNC machines, faster and more accurately than it could be carved by hand.
3D printers make impressions, crowns, dentures and the surgical guides used to place implants, and a replacement can simply be printed again.
Sintering furnaces temper and harden the milled ceramic before it is colored and glazed.
As many as twenty custom colors are fired on in the lab, so the crown matches the teeth beside it in depth and translucency, not just shade.
Every crown, bridge and denture is checked and finished under a microscope, down to the fit at the margin.
Same-day crowns & faster dentures
Because the lab is here, we know exactly when your crown, veneer or denture will be ready. It is not waiting in a queue of other offices' cases, and if it needs an adjustment, that happens here too.
Dentistry in Vero Beach, FL
Preventive, restorative, implant and cosmetic dentistry. Cases that are especially hard for an office relying on an outside lab are the ones this practice is set up for.
Hygienists who take extra time with you, cleanings every four to six months, and oral cancer screening. Gum disease is treated at the earliest stage with scaling and root planing.
Tooth-colored fillings instead of amalgam, crowns milled and fired in the building, and full mouth reconstruction planned with digital articulators that record how your own jaw moves.
Implants placed and restored under one roof by Dr. Heimerdinger, guided by CT scans and 3D-printed surgical guides. Dentures are printed in the lab, typically in less than a week.
See the result before you commit: virtual smile design edits a photograph of your own teeth. Veneers and crowns are then made and color-matched in-house.
A CT scan and planning software set the position; a surgical guide printed in the lab places it. The implant then bonds with the bone over three to six months before the tooth goes on.
A full arch of teeth on four implants, sometimes without a bone graft, and a temporary set the same day. The permanent arch follows once you have healed.
A custom oral appliance small enough to fit in your pocket, made by the in-house lab, with treatment possible within 24 hours.
Scanned, designed, milled and fired here with iMES-iCore milling, so a full-strength zirconia crown can be placed in less than a day.
Advanced technology
The technology here serves two things: showing you what the dentist sees, and designing your restoration around your whole face, not just one tooth.
Smile gallery
Four cases from the practice's own gallery, photographed before and after treatment here. Drag the handle to compare.
Zirconia hybrid implant bridge. Periodontal disease, severe wear and fractured upper teeth from clenching. He wanted fixed teeth he never had to take out: implants and a bridge on the upper arch.
New patients
Your first appointment is a thorough exam, so we understand your dental history, your health and what you want from your smile. Here is how it runs.
Questions first? Ask Erin. Office manager, treatment coordinator and a registered dental hygienist since 2007, she guides patients from the first phone call through treatment.
Payment is due when the service is provided. If you have a dental plan, we file your claim electronically for direct reimbursement.
Larger treatment can be spread out through two financing partners. You can apply to either one online.
We make time to see urgent cases right away, often the same day. One of our doctors is always on call for established patients after hours, at weekends and on holidays.
4.9 on Google · 100+ 5-star reviews
★★★★★I recently broke my front tooth veneer in an accident. I called Ocean Oaks Dental Group Jocy was able to schedule me the next morning at 8:00 am with Dr. McDonald. … I could have a new veneer made (in-house lab, lab tech Jenna) and fitted that day. My Veneer matched perfectly to the rest and was placed properly and feels Better than the original one.Susan Faust DoratoVero Beach, FL
★★★★★Having recently retired from my own dental practice of 42 years, I came to Ocean Oaks Dental with a critical eye. I came away with complete confidence in them to take care of my dental health.Carl RockermannRetired dentist
★★★★★I have been a patient for over 15 years. Excellent care and happy, compassionate group of professionals in a beautiful, peaceful environment. I actually look forward to my appointments!Rebecca JohnsonVero Beach, FL
★★★★★I came here for a second opinion after having a nerve wracking visit at a different dentist. Everyone I interacted with were super friendly and professional. They took the time to explain everything to me and make sure all my questions were answered.Molly FoxCame for a second opinion
★★★★★I have sleep apnea and traveling with a CPAP Machine it's not always doable. … The next thing I knew, I was all set up with a device that has changed my world. I am able to sleep through the night and wake up refreshed.Cynthia ThomasSleep apnea appliance
Eight patients told their own stories on camera, for the practice's video testimonials page.
Common questions
Here. Dr. Josh Heimerdinger completed a full-time implant fellowship at Southern Illinois University and is a member of the American Academy of Implant Dentistry. Implants are planned on a CT scan, placed with a surgical guide printed in our own lab, and restored with teeth made in that same lab.
Call the office and tell us what happened. If a same-day appointment is truly needed, we will arrange to see you as soon as we can. One of our doctors is always on call for established patients after hours, at weekends and on holidays.
In most cases a tooth can be repaired in a single appointment, because the lab is in the building. A zirconia crown can be designed, milled and fired in less than a day.
It depends on how many teeth and the health of your mouth. A bridge may take a few weeks, and a full set of implant dentures can take closer to a year. A new denture from our 3D printer is typically ready in less than a week.
A thorough exam, so we understand your dental history, your health and your goals. A member of the team takes x-rays and photos, then you sit down with your dentist to talk it through. You can fill in the new patient forms online beforehand.
To work out costs properly, we invite you to a complimentary consultation with no obligation. Payment is due at the time of service: Visa, Mastercard, Discover, cash, checks or debit. Financing is available through CareCredit and Cherry, and if you have a dental plan we file the claim electronically for you.
No. It usually means too much pressure, or a minor gum infection. Try a lighter touch for a few days, and if the bleeding keeps up, call us. Acting quickly stops a minor infection from becoming a major one.
880 37th Place, Vero Beach, across from Cleveland Clinic. Most of your other healthcare providers are within a few minutes of 37th Street and 37th Place.
Visit us
A doctor is always on call for established patients after hours, at weekends and on holidays.
Send the short form and the team will come back to you with open appointments. If you are in pain, please phone instead. Please do not send private health information through this form.