UH Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital Pediatric Dentistry Opens New Smile Suite

CLEVELAND – University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital (UH Rainbow) will soon open the Smile Suite, a state-of-the-art pediatric dental clinic located on the first floor of UH Rainbow. The Smile Suite was thoughtfully designed as a space for children with special health care needs, those with craniofacial conditions, and those requiring routine pediatric dental care in a child-friendly environment. 

“We are thrilled to bring a full-service pediatric dental care clinic back to our main campus,” says Patti DePompei, President, UH Rainbow and UH MacDonald Women’s Hospital. “The Smile Suite will help to address a tremendous need in our community and beyond for high-quality pediatric dental care, especially for children with complex conditions.”

The 6,879 square foot space was brought to fruition in part through a generous gift from local philanthropists as well as funding from the state of Ohio and the Delta Dental Foundation. The Smile Suite will also provide care for children of all ages who suffer from facial-skeletal deformities, traumatic facial injuries, cancer or congenital conditions.

“Our pediatric dental team at University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children’s is uniquely experienced in providing dental care to patients with special health care needs and behavioral challenges,” says Kelly Kirtland, DDS, Chief of Pediatric Dentistry, UH Rainbow. “We hope this beautiful new space helps to bring comfort and alleviate anxieties for the children and families we serve.”

Highlights of the new space include a state-of-the-art cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) machine, a digital intraoral scanner, and a 3D printer. The intra-oral scanner will be used for infants with cleft lip/palate and the 3D printer will be used to create naso-alveolar molding (NAM) appliances for babies who require them. All of the Smile Suite’s seven operatories have nitrous oxide available. One room is slightly enlarged to accommodate special monitoring equipment for dental care performed using oral conscious sedation.

The Smile Suite joins UH Rainbow Pediatric Dentistry at the UH Rainbow Ahuja Center for Women & Children in Midtown and the UH Rainbow Ronald McDonald Care Mobile which brings dental care directly into communities to meet the dental health needs of children in areas with limited access to dental practices.