Two Offices, Two States, One Dental Practice in Fort Smith and Roland

We built this practice on both sides of the state line

Dr. Beau Sparkman grew up in Sequoyah County and went to high school in Muldrow. When he finished the University of Oklahoma College of Dentistry in 2011 and came back to practice, he came back to the same stretch of river valley he was raised in, which is why Valley Family Dental has an office in Fort Smith and an office in Roland instead of picking one side and making everybody else drive.

That matters more here than it would somewhere else. Families in this area work in one state and live in the other. So we run two offices, both open Monday through Thursday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., with the same doctors, the same records, and the same prices at each one. If it is easier to see us in Roland this time and Fort Smith next time, do that. Your chart follows you.

We are a general and family practice in the real sense. We see the two-year-old for a first visit, the fourteen-year-old in braces, the forty-year-old who needs a crown, and the seventy-year-old deciding between a denture and implants. Most of what you need, you can get here, from the people who already know your history.

We look at the airway, not just the teeth

Here is the thing that makes us different from the practice down the road, and it is not a slogan.

Teeth do not sit in a jar. They sit in a jaw attached to a tongue, a nose, and an airway, and the way you breathe and swallow shapes all of it. A child who mouth-breathes through allergy season develops a narrower arch. A tongue that rests in the wrong place pushes teeth out of alignment faster than any retainer can pull them back. An adult who wakes up unrested with a clenched jaw and worn-flat molars is often dealing with something happening at 3:00 a.m., not something happening at the toothbrush.

So we ask different questions. How do you sleep. Do you snore. Do you wake with headaches. Does your child sleep with the mouth open. Then we look for the causes behind the damage rather than only patching the damage.

That is why we offer myofunctional therapy, sleep apnea oral appliances, Myobrace for growing kids, and 3D airway imaging alongside ordinary fillings and cleanings. It is also why Laura Williams, our registered dental hygienist, is a practicing myofunctional therapist with more than ten years in that specialty. No other practice in this market has that credential in the building.

Screening tools are educational, not a diagnosis, and a sleep disorder diagnosis comes from a physician. What we can do is spot the signs in your mouth and help you get answers.

You will know the plan and the price before anything starts

We put treatment in writing. You get the plan, the number of visits, and the cost estimate before you commit to anything. If insurance is involved, we verify your benefits first and tell you what it is likely to cover and what it will not.

If money is the obstacle, say so out loud. We have in-house membership plans starting at $36.67 a month, financing through CareCredit, Cherry, and Proceed Finance, and we accept HSA and FSA. There is almost always a way to do the important part now and the rest on a schedule you can carry.

We also offer sedation dentistry, and we do not treat dental anxiety as something to be embarrassed about. A lot of our patients came to us after years of avoiding dentists. That is a normal way to arrive.

The equipment we bought, and the reason we bought it

Image Guided Implantology. We plan implants in 3D and place them through a surgical guide. That drops typical placement time from roughly 50 minutes to 10 to 15 minutes per implant, with less time in the chair and better positioning for the final crown.

CBCT 3D imaging. A three-dimensional scan shows bone height, sinus position, nerve location, and the shape of your airway. It is the difference between guessing and knowing.

Invisalign and Myobrace. Clear aligners for teens and adults. Myobrace for children, which works on the habits driving crooked teeth rather than only the teeth themselves.

Fractional cold CO2 laser therapy. Used inside our sleep and airway programs as part of the treatment sequence.

EMA and ProSomnus oral appliances. Custom-fit devices for patients who cannot tolerate CPAP or want an alternative. Candidacy is determined by consultation, and results vary.

The three dentists you will see

Dr. Beau Sparkman, DDS is the owner and practices at both locations. Orthodontics and sleep apnea are his focus areas.

Dr. Joseph Farmer, DDS was born and raised in Fort Smith and practices at both locations.

Dr. Blain VanNice, DDS practices in Fort Smith and came to dentistry from engineering, which shows in how he plans a case.

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Hygienists

• Laura Williams, RDH — More than 25 years in dentistry, beginning in 1997. Registered dental hygienist since 2013 and a practicing myofunctional therapist with over 10 years of experience. Sees patients at both Fort Smith and Roland.
• Cynthia "Cindy" Saulsberry, RDH — Practicing since 2011. Fort Smith office.
• Raegan McGee, RDH — University of Arkansas–Fort Smith, 2016. Roland office.
• Sarah Trotter, RDH — Licensed in both Arkansas and Oklahoma, which means she can see you at either office.

These are the people who will know your name, remember that your youngest hates the suction, and call your insurance company so you do not have to.