Dr. Brian J. Hockel grew up in Walnut Creek, CA where he now provides expert dental and orthodontic care to the community. He followed in his father's footsteps, practicing with him for over a decade before taking over the family practice. Combining his distinguished education with commitment and expertise, Dr. Hockel serves individuals with outstanding patient care. At Life Dental & Orthodontics, patient-centered care is our primary priority. We look to prioritize the welfare and needs of every patient, utilizing the latest technologies and techniques to attain that mission. Dr. Hockel cherishes family time with his wife, Beth, and their 11 children, a testament to his dedication to both his career and personal life.
With a strong foundation in dental technology and hands-on experience as a dental technician, Dr. Hockel embarked on his journey toward becoming a dentist. He graduated from the UCSF School of Dentistry in 1989 where he learned advanced skills and honed his expertise even further. Throughout his career, he has continued to stay at the forefront of dental innovations and techniques. Dr. Hockel is actively involved in several professional organizations, including:
Dr. Hockel has an extensive understanding of cosmetic and restorative dentistry, airway orthodontics, and gnathology (the study of how the bite fits together), which allows him to implement comprehensive treatments that offer significant improvements in both dental and overall health. Notably, he stands out as one of the few Northern California dentists who practices and teaches Orthotropics®, a groundbreaking process for guiding facial growth for growing children.
I came to Doctor Hockel due to problems with sleep apnea. He diagnosed a narrow palate and some other issues that ultimately are obstructing my airway and recommended a course of palate expansion (upper and lower) before going for more extensive surgery to correct problems with my jaw. It's been really great working with him and his staff! They're all extremely knowledgeable and very helpful. They've answered every question I had and taken the time to explain what's being done each time (in what's going to be a couple-year-long process.) They're definitely using the latest tools and techniques and I feel completely comfortable with whatever they recommend. All in all, a *really* great dentist! [Edit from 2+ years in the future - 10/18/2023] I had my jaw surgery (total TMJ replacement and MMA (Maxillomandibular advancement, to move the upper teeth forward) in St Louis in May (via the only surgeon Dr Hockel trusts to do the surgery, who really is great) and returned to Dr Hockel's care in late June. Sleep apnea is cured, my bite was lined up and everything went well. Today was a great day - I got my braces off! We're now in the process of stabilizing the teeth with a retainer, but they look great and feel even better, with everything in my bite closing in the right places and all the teeth nice and straight and even. Dr Hockel's staff were awesome as usual - I showed up 20 minutes early and they said "come right in!" and we got to work. If you ever need to deal with airway issues (or indeed with orthodontia and other dental procedures), definitely give Life Dental and Orthodontics a call. They're the best!
Life Dental has an excellent Dental staff! Everyone is friendly & accommodating. Please consider Life Dental & Orthodontist for your next visit.
Absolutely love this place! Friendly and accommodating staff and I really appreciate Dr Hockel’s knowledge of what’s going on with not only my teeth, but how it all works together with my airway and everything else too!
I went with my 3 girls and the customer service is excellent. They were Warm, inviting, gentle. They gave lots of details and information. You come in and get to see the pictures of their staff. Overall it felt great. My kids were actually happy!
I took my young boys to Life dental & Orthodontics because they were airway focused and that was really important for a family! We were mostly helped with Katie the RDA and she was so great with the boys made everything fun and super patient with them. I also really appreciated how in-depth Dr. Hockel explained everything to myself and our kids. My boys can get easily overwhelmed and he had such gentle and calm energy throughout the whole process! I really appreciated that! Highly recommend this team! :) Jessie at the front desk is also super helpful and sweet!
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