Having served the Umhlanga community for several years we now have a loyal following that includes moms and dads, toddlers and grandparents, some of SA’s revered artists, actors and architects, musicians, athletes and politicians.
Meet Our Team
Being an avid sportsman and outdoor adventure enthusiast, Dr Thinus van Niekerk spends his time away from the surgery either in search of the perfect single track, diving the reefs on the north coast, or planning his next trip into Africa. He is married to Lee van Niekerk and together they have three beautiful children. Anah, Leo and Joah. As a proud graduate of the University of Pretoria, a true Sharks and Springbok Rugby supporter, a believer of Faith and a rooted South African - Dr van Niekerk established this Umhlanga practice in 2014 with the goal to revolutionise and redefine the dental experience as modern, exciting and life-changing.
Dr Thinus van Niekerk and his practice have become synonymous with quality apex dentistry. Dr van Niekerk predominantly attends to large dental rehabilitations often centered around orthodontics and implant dentistry. Simply put, he is passionate about implants and completed his post-graduate diploma in implant dentistry with the University of Pretoria. He continues to attend local and international courses. Most notably he attended the University of Bern where he met two of his career idols, Dr Daniel Buser and Prof Urs Belser. He also attended a course at the University of Iceland lead by Dr Bjarni Elvar Pjetursson and Dr Niklaus Lang. In 2019 he visited the Implantology Institute in Lisbon, Portugal where he attended a course lead by Prof João Caramês.
He is an active member of the International Team for Implantology (ITI), the South African Association of Aesthetic Dentistry (SAAAD) and the South African Dentistry Association (SADA).
Dr Helena van der Linden recently relocated to Umhlanga in search of a slower pace of life for her and her property developer husband, Wian, her daughter Talia and her son Max. She is excited to be part of the team of dentists at The Cosmetic and Dental Emporium. When Helena is not perfecting someone’s smile, she loves riding horses with her daughter Tali or spending time with her family and two dogs.
With her father a maxillo-facial surgeon, her mother a dentist and two siblings who are dentists, Helena always knew that she was born to be a dentist. Coming from a family of dentists has instilled in her an understanding and appreciation for precision dentistry - as it is often in the small details that a smile is made. Dr van der Linden had her own private practice in Johannesburg for seven years and during this time became passionate about digital cosmetic dentistry. She is particularly passionate about using the latest technology to align and redesign smiles. Dr van der Linden is the Key Opinion Leader (KOL) for the ClearCorrect® aligner system in South Africa and recently travelled to Switzerland to represent South Africa. She is the leading provider of ClearCorrect® aligners in South Africa. Dr van der Linden was also the first dentist to provide Invisalign® aligners in South Africa. Today she continues to offer these services in Umhlanga.
Dr van der Linden has a keen eye for detail and understands the balance between perfection and natural aesthetics. She believes in minimally invasive treatment and practices a holistic approach to dentistry and facial aesthetics. She is passionate about building and maintaining long term relationships with her patients.
As a mother of two beautiful girls, Nerissa has a heart for people and is passionate at what she does. Having been with The CDE for several years, she has become an integral member of the team – not only taking care of her own patient’s oral hygiene and basic dentistry needs, but assisting Dr van Niekerk in all major surgical cases. It is however her prowess in the art of teeth whitening that has earned her the title “Queen of Zoom”. She loves seeing her patients happy with their new smiles, but Nerissa is undoubtedly at her happiest when shopping High Street.
Alicia is loved by everyone! She is the happy face of the Ballito practice and has been since 2015. It is from there that she manages both the Ballito and Umhlanga practices. Being a mom of three she is always on the go and by nature incredibly efficient. Her boy is Josh. Her girl is Chelsea. And the newest addition to her family is little baby Riley.
Savanah Emanuel completed her studies as a dental therapist at the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal. We are proud to have her as part of our team.
