Dr. Michael J. Gunson, DDS, MD

Oral surgery covers a lot of ground—wisdom teeth, implants, jaw corrections, biopsies, even facial trauma. Dr. Michael J. Gunson, DDS, MD handles those procedures from an office on the second floor of a low-slung medical building on South Patterson. The address is 334 S Patterson Ave #205, Santa Barbara, CA 93111, a quiet stretch between the freeway and downtown where the palms are tall and the traffic thins out by mid-afternoon.

Patients end up here for extractions that dentists won’t touch, bone grafts that set the stage for implants, or corrective surgeries that fix misaligned bites. The same suite also manages sleep-apnea appliances and TMJ treatments, so the practice sees everything from teenagers with impacted molars to adults rebuilding their smiles. No referrals are required, but most people arrive with one from their regular dentist or physician.

Questions or scheduling go through (805) 682-8462. For directions, the map is here. The neighborhood stays unpretentious—strip malls, a few medical offices, and a taqueria that fills the parking lot with pickup trucks at lunchtime.