Cosmetic Dentistry Changes Lives

October 14, 2016, Matt Comfort DDS

There are people who have lived with unappealing teeth their entire life while others have teeth that have aged and become less attractive. For these reasons and others, they turn towards cosmetic dentistry as their go to solution. Considered a dental facelift, Cosmetic Dentistry changes people’s appearance so that they look and feel better about themselves. They include a number of techniques ranging from a longer process of braces to a quick procedure of adding porcelain veneers and more.

More often than not, dentists use a combination of these techniques in order to achieve the best results.

The first method is Porcelain Laminate Veneers (also known as veneers) that can be placed over an individual’s teeth, enhancing its shade and appearance. Veneers are ideal to correct unappealing smiles and whiten teeth.

Teeth whitening, another very popular way to change the appearance of an individual’s teeth has two options, in-office or at-home whitening. In-office whitening makes use of a high intensity light with 35% hydrogen peroxide. The whitening process takes about an hour. The outcome is very satisfying for patients that find their teeth four to six shades lighter.

The at-home systems utilize 10 and 20% carbamine peroxide. Impressions of the patient’s mouth are made in order to create trays that can be fitted in the patient’s mouth and are removable. They must be worn at night and the duration for the ideal result is usually varying between one to six weeks.

If a person has just a few unappealing teeth, there are three popular procedures that are trending. They include, bonded-bridge, tooth shaping and tooth colored, resin fillings.

Tooth shaping is a procedure where a doctor removes a small amount of tooth enamel in order to shape it and make it more visually appealing. This is usually used for shortening long teeth and rounding off angled teeth. This procedure costs $25 to $75 per tooth.

In order to replace a missing teeth, bonded bridge procedure can be taken. The procedure usually involves extracting small amount enamel from teeth on either side of the missing tooth and then creating an impression or mold.

Finally, people can opt for resin for tooth fillings. These are used to fill small cavities and also chipped teeth.   Resin saves money as well as time, but needs to be replaced often, as regard to porcelain veneers.

Cosmetic dentistry also includes gum-lifts and braces.

Gum-lifts recede gums to create an impression of longer teeth, thereby eliminating a ‘gummy’ smile. Uneven gum lines can make the teeth look uneven, causing an unattractive smile. The procedure is relatively quick and painless.

Finally, there are braces! Placed over crooked teeth to help fix their shape, these are time consuming and costly. They usually form an ideal solution for children. Some adults also opt for braces.

Cosmetic dentists use many procedures in order to improve their patient’s smile and overall confidence. Some cosmetic dentistry procedures can be expensive but are worth it. Thus, if someone has been unhappy with their smile for years and does not know what to do about it, cosmetic dentistry might just be the perfect solution.

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