From routine exams and preventive care to cavities, broken teeth, fillings, crowns, and gum concerns, LPS Dental provides general dentistry for Chicago patients at every stage of their oral health. Our approach is straightforward: understand what is happening, treat what needs attention, and preserve as much healthy tooth structure as possible. Visit us in Lincoln Park, Downtown Chicago, or Norwood Park.
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Serving Chicago
Across Chicago
Trusted by Chicago — our associations, accreditations and partners.
What We Offer
From routine exams and preventive care to cavities, broken teeth, fillings, crowns, and gum concerns, LPS Dental provides general dentistry for Chicago patients at every stage of their oral health. Our approach is straightforward: understand what is happening, treat what needs attention, and preserve as much healthy tooth structure as possible.
A dental exam gives us a chance to look for changes before they become painful or expensive to treat. We evaluate the teeth, gums, existing fillings and crowns, bite, and other areas of the mouth. When appropriate, dental imaging gives us information that cannot be seen during a visual exam alone.
Plaque and tartar collect in places that are difficult to manage completely at home. Regular professional care helps us remove buildup, monitor gum health, and spot changes while they are still manageable. We can also talk through brushing, flossing, sensitivity, dry mouth, and other everyday concerns without turning the appointment into a lecture.
A cavity often starts quietly. By the time a tooth hurts, decay may already have progressed farther than it needed to. Routine exams allow us to identify areas of concern earlier and talk about the reason decay may be developing, not just repair the hole after it appears.
When a cavity or small area of damage needs repair, tooth-colored composite can rebuild the affected part of the tooth while blending with the surrounding enamel. How much treatment is needed depends on how much healthy tooth structure remains.
Some teeth need more support than a filling can provide. A crown may be recommended when a tooth is badly fractured, heavily restored, significantly weakened, or otherwise unable to support a smaller restoration predictably. The decision should be based on what the tooth actually needs, not simply because a crown is an available option.
Healthy teeth need healthy support. Bleeding, swelling, tenderness, gum recession, and persistent bad breath can all be reasons to take a closer look at the gums. Some concerns can be managed through routine preventive care, while more advanced periodontal problems may require additional treatment.
Comfort, Expertise, And Trust
Patient story from Lincoln Park Smiles
Tell us what you notice. The recommendation comes after we understand the problem.
Treatment should look like your smile, not a one-size-fits-all result.
We evaluate the health of the teeth and gums, existing restorations, tooth position, and bite before treatment.
We explain why something is recommended, what alternatives exist, and what treatment involves before you decide.
How It Works
Tell us about sensitivity, pain, bleeding gums, a broken filling, changes in your bite, medications, health conditions, or anything else you have noticed. And if nothing feels wrong, tell us that too. Routine visits are partly about confirming that things are staying healthy.
Your dentist evaluates the teeth, existing dental work, gums, bite, and other oral tissues. We are looking for decay, fractures, wear, gum inflammation, failing restorations, and other changes that may need attention.
Not every dental problem can be seen from the surface. X-rays and other dental imaging may be recommended based on your history, symptoms, age, previous findings, and what needs to be evaluated. The point is to gather information that will actually affect your care.
When appropriate, professional cleaning removes plaque and hardened deposits that cannot be fully removed with normal brushing and flossing. If the gums need something beyond a routine cleaning, we will explain the difference and why additional periodontal care may be recommended.
Sometimes the answer is simple: everything looks healthy and we see you again at your next preventive visit. Other times, we may find a cavity, cracked tooth, gum concern, worn restoration, or another issue. We will explain what we found, what your options are, and how urgent the treatment actually is.
Meet The LPS Dental Team
LPS Dental's roots in Chicago go back to 1999, when Dr. Jack Manikowski opened Lincoln Park Smiles.
Today, LPS Dental has three Chicago offices and a team whose experience extends across cosmetic, restorative, implant, periodontal, prosthodontic, and general dentistry.
Treatment planning that considers appearance, tooth structure, function, and long-term health together.
Dr. Jack Manikowski is a member of the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry.
Digital scanning and planning tools help us evaluate and communicate proposed treatment.
It is normal to have questions before treatment. Here are some of the things patients often want to understand first.
A general dentist provides routine and ongoing dental care. That includes preventive exams, diagnosis, monitoring oral health, treating cavities, repairing damaged teeth, managing common dental concerns, and helping determine when more specialized treatment is appropriate. For many patients, the general dentist is the main point of contact for their oral health.
"General dentist" describes a dentist whose practice covers broad preventive, diagnostic, and restorative dental care rather than focusing exclusively on one recognized specialty. A general dentist may provide many different treatments and refer or coordinate with specialists when a problem requires additional expertise.
There is no schedule that is perfect for every patient. Many people benefit from preventive dental visits at regular intervals, but someone with active gum disease, a history of frequent decay, extensive dental work, or another ongoing concern may need to be seen more often. Your dentist can recommend an interval based on your actual oral health.
A dental exam generally includes evaluation of the teeth, gums, bite, existing dental restorations, and other areas of the mouth. The dentist looks for problems such as cavities, fractures, gum inflammation, worn dental work, and other changes. Imaging may also be recommended when additional information is needed.
Not necessarily. The need for X-rays depends on factors such as your dental history, age, symptoms, previous findings, risk for disease, and when your last images were taken. They should be used when they provide useful information for diagnosis or monitoring.
A routine dental cleaning is preventive care intended to remove plaque, tartar, and surface buildup from a generally healthy mouth. "Deep cleaning" commonly refers to scaling and root planing used when periodontal disease has developed below the gumline. They are not interchangeable treatments. Your gum measurements and periodontal health help determine what type of care is appropriate.
Bleeding can occur when the gums are inflamed, particularly when plaque has accumulated around the gumline. There can also be other contributing factors. Occasional irritation may not indicate a major problem, but gums that bleed regularly should be evaluated rather than simply accepted as normal.
Treatment depends on how far the decay has progressed and how much healthy tooth remains. A smaller cavity may be repaired with a filling. More extensive damage can require a different restoration. Finding decay earlier generally gives us more conservative treatment options.
Maybe everything feels fine and it is simply time for a checkup. Maybe a tooth has started bothering you.
Maybe it has been longer than you would like since your last dental appointment. Wherever you are starting from, we can take a look, explain what we find, and help you decide what comes next.
