Scattered during the early years of a long marriage, episodes of physical and emotional abuse escalated when the husband of one older Pittsburgh area woman retired.

The woman, who prefers to be unidentified except as Jane Doe, is a housewife with grown children. She left once and got counseling but ended up going back to her husband. "We came from that generation," she said.

But then came the winter night of an argument over his desire to "sow some wild oats," when he slugged her hard enough to knock out a few teeth.

She left again, this time for good.

The Crisis Center North, the Community Outreach Center and two individuals who asked Ms. Doe to protect their anonymity helped her get on her feet. There were counseling, assistance with her rent, even a cell phone. She learned how to live on her own, started volunteering at the Crisis Center and, after a couple years, even got involved with Parents Without Partners.

But every time she looked in a mirror the black gap on the left side of her smile reminded her of that life-changing night -- "I can still see it in my mind" -- and the man she still fears nine years after she walked out.

In time, a counselor at the Crisis Center told her about Give Back a Smile, a national program run by the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry's charitable foundation, which provides free cosmetic dental repairs to victims of domestic abuse. Ms. Doe applied for help, was accepted, and her case was taken by Dr. Stephen Miller of Oakland.

Ms. Doe got a removable partial plate on her lower teeth, where there wasn't enough bone for something more permanent, Dr. Miller said. On the top she got five implants, placed by Dr. Daniel Pituch, who was recruited by Dr. Miller, and five new crowns from Dr. Miller, who also found people to donate the implant parts and dental ceramic work. Dr. Miller, who continues to see Ms. Doe for checkups, estimated the work was worth $40,000.

Big numbers like that are not unusual.

Since its launch in 1999, 6,000-plus AACD dentists, laboratory technicians and related dental professionals have completed nearly $7 million worth of repairs for more than 700 survivors of domestic violence. Fifteen cases with a donated value of $133,264 have been done in Pennsylvania.

"We see dental injuries ranging from small chips to full-mouth reconstructions due to a gunshot wound," said foundation program manager Lisa Fitch in an e-mail. "Our volunteers are asked to treat the injured area but they are not limited to that. Treatment plans contain all aspects of dentistry from dentures to implants, depending on the patient's needs and what the volunteer is able to provide."

The Smile charity is one of three national pro bono programs designed to fix faces and bodies damaged by abusive domestic partners, be they men or women, who are the overwhelming majority. One of the others is Face to Face, a 14-year-old charitable project of the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, which does repairs to the face, head and neck. The third is S.C.O.R.E.S. (Skin Care Outreach Empowers Survivors), which is sponsored by the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery and repairs skin injuries to the body such as scars, burns and tattoos.

All three work with the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, which represents shelters for battered domestic partners. The coalition actually screens applicants and makes referrals to Face to Face and the Skin Care group, but the relationship with Give Back a Smile is more informal.

Smile and Face to Face require applicants to have been out of their abusive relationships for at least a year; S.C.O.R.E.S. requires only six months away from the abuser, a spokeswoman said.

"They need to be out of the relationship over a year before surgery because if they do stay, the chance of repeat damage is too high," said Dr. Andrew Jacono, a Manhattan, N.Y. surgeon who chairs the national Face to Face committee.

About 300 Face to Face volunteers have helped around 1,500 domestic abuse victims since its inception, The injuries have been the result of "horrible repeated battering," Dr. Jacono said in a telephone interview. "[There are] cheeks crushed, eyelids distorted, noses flattened like those of boxers, scars from knives or broken bottles, burns from cigarette butts. Those are all dealt with on a regular basis. ...

"The abuser doesn't want the woman to be desired by another man," he added. "[It is estimated] 80 percent of the injuries of the abused are to the face, head and neck so they feel they have no options to leaving the house or leaving the relationship."

Among the Face to Face volunteers is Dr. Paul Leong, a West Penn Hospital physician who also is part of a private practice in Sewickley. Dr. Leong has not had a Face to Face case since moving here about 14 months ago, but he worked on several while doing his fellowship in facial plastic surgery in Portland, Ore. He has continued to help the charity here in Pittsburgh by talking to hospitals, anesthesiologists, nurses and other medical personnel about donating time when he does take a Face to Face case.

"I've received a huge amount of positive input from hospital systems I work with here," he said, adding that medical personnel also have indicated they would help out.

S.C.O.R.E.S. volunteers around the nation total about 350, the association spokeswoman said, and include a dermatologic surgeon in Greensburg. Nearly 400 victims have been helped in the charity's decade of existence.

There is no doubt that the work done by the three charities is life-changing.

"It's the last piece of the rehabilitation," Dr. Jacono said. "They get the place to live, a job ... and when that's all completed. then they can get rid of what they remember, the scars they've suffered."

During the months of her dental work, Dr. Miller and his staff saw a metamorphosis in Ms. Doe, who said her new smile made her feel "fantastic."

"Total transformation. Total," said dental assistant Kolleen Tavormino. "She was still kind of shell-shocked by having had to go through the things she went through and by the time she left, this woman was just like totally brightened and was vibrant and beautiful."

Office manager Judy Kerr added, "She came in very quiet, almost very reserved, timid, and the last time she came in, after the work had been done, she came in very confident, outgoing, much more social. Along the way you could see her interactions with us were more positive. She felt more comfortable with the way she was looking, could understand she was able to get herself out of a bad situation, feel good about how she looked and could prove herself to the world."

For an application for the Give Back A Smile program, call 1-800-773-4227. For Face to Face and S.C.O.R.E.S., call 1-800-842-4546, an additional number for S.C.O.R.E.S. is 1-888-892-6702.