Dr. Kathryn Bullwinkel
DMD, MS • Board-Certified Orthodontist
5.0 Stars · Nearly 400 Google Reviews
Board-Certified Orthodontist
Serving Charleston Since 1984
Best of Charleston · 6 Consecutive Years
MY STORY
How I Got Here
I didn't plan to end up in Charleston. But the older I get, the more I think Charleston had a plan for me.
I was sixteen years old when I decided to become an orthodontist. And honestly, I didn't decide so much as someone saw something in me before I saw it in myself.
I was originally headed toward architecture. I loved design, structure, the way things fit together. But something felt missing — I craved the daily human connection that architecture couldn't quite offer. Dr. John Pitner, an orthodontist in Chapin where I grew up, recognized that before I did. He suggested I look into orthodontics. And then, instead of waiting for an opportunity, I wrote him a letter outlining exactly why hiring me after school and during summers would benefit his practice.
He hired me. I worked for him throughout high school and into college. That experience didn't just point me toward a career. It shaped everything about how I practice today.
Dr. Pitner and his daughter Dr. Leslie Pitner remain mentors of mine to this day. My thesis examined positive psychology in adolescent orthodontics — specifically how undergoing treatment within a true team approach teaches kids that they can do hard things.
I still believe that. You'll hear me say it in the chair.
FINDING MY WAY
Charleston, a Plan I Didn't See Coming
I grew up in Chapin, South Carolina, just outside Columbia, and attended Wofford College before earning my DMD from the Medical University of South Carolina right here in Charleston. I fell in love with this city during dental school, but it was my husband Matt who sealed it. He grew up here, with family woven all through the Lowcountry, and when it came time to choose where to raise our own family, Charleston was never really a question.
After completing my orthodontic residency and earning my MS at the University of Illinois Chicago, I came home. I joined Pierce Orthodontics in Mt. Pleasant in 2014, and during that time I also drove part-time to Columbia to work with Dr. Leslie Pitner, deepening my training in lingual orthodontics and clear aligner therapy. I was building skills deliberately, learning from people I trusted, and figuring out what kind of orthodontist I wanted to be.
In 2019, nine months pregnant with our youngest Thomas, I bought my first practice in Summerville. The following year I acquired the James Island practice that would become my full focus. I ran both simultaneously for a time, but eventually made the deliberate decision to sell Summerville to a wonderful local orthodontist and put everything I had into this community. That decision has never felt anything other than right.
A LEGACY
Dr. Vincent
My connection to this practice started long before I owned it.
My sister-in-law Lauren is a dentist, and when she found out I was heading to orthodontic residency, she told me there was one person I had to meet: Dr. Howard Vincent. I shadowed his practice in 2009 and wrote him a thank you note when I left. I stayed in touch throughout residency and after moving back to Charleston. When he was ready to bring someone in, he called me first.
I've been part of this practice since 2019, and I don't take the responsibility of carrying his legacy forward lightly. Dr. Vincent spent four decades building something rare: a practice where patients are known by name, where care is never rushed, and where the standard has always been excellence without exception. That standard was here before me. My job is to make sure it's here long after.
He still has that thank you note.
CLINICAL FOCUS
On Airway-Focused Orthodontics
Early in my career I started noticing patterns. Kids coming in for crowded teeth who were also chronic mouth breathers. Adults seeking cosmetic treatment who hadn't slept well in years. Patients whose bite issues were symptoms of something deeper.
The more I learned, the more I understood that orthodontics and airway health are inseparable. The floor of the nose is the roof of the mouth. What happens in the jaw has a direct impact on how a person breathes, sleeps, and grows. Once you see that connection, you can't unsee it.
I pursued advanced training in airway-focused orthodontics because my patients deserved a provider who could address the whole picture. I work closely with ENTs, sleep physicians, oral surgeons, pediatricians, allergists, and functional medicine providers because I'm just one piece of the puzzle. Getting it right takes a team.
Orthodontics has always been a team sport in my practice. I can't get you where you need to go without your buy-in, your consistency, and your trust. What I can do is explain the why behind every decision we make together.
THE CONNECTION
The floor of the nose is the roof of the mouth. Jaw development directly affects how a person breathes, sleeps, and grows.
COLLABORATIVE CARE
Dr. Bullwinkel works with ENTs, sleep physicians, oral surgeons, pediatricians, and allergists — because the right outcome takes a team.
CBCT IMAGING
3D cone beam imaging lets us evaluate airway anatomy as part of every comprehensive consultation — not just teeth and bite.
APPLIANCES WE OFFER
MSE, MARPE, DOME, and a full range of growth modification appliances alongside braces and Spark clear aligners.
EDUCATION & CREDENTIALS
Credentials & Continuing Education
Board-certified by the American Board of Orthodontics. DMD, Medical University of South Carolina. MS, University of Illinois Chicago. Active member of Charleston Airway Aware, the Pankey Institute Study Club, Spear Education, and several study groups focused on interceptive orthodontics and comprehensive care.
I spend more weekends away from my family pursuing continuing education than I'd like to count. I do it because the field moves fast and my patients deserve a provider who moves with it.
Our practice offers traditional braces, Spark clear aligner therapy (clear aligner treatment using the Spark system), and a full range of airway and growth modification appliances including MSE, MARPE, and DOME. Every treatment plan is built from scratch.