“Beauty is power, a smile is its sword”
A beautiful smile is an incredible asset. At any age, a wonderful smile radiates health, happiness, personality, and warmth. A magnetic smile has its aura of attracting individuals. How you feel is largely dependent on how you look. So are you happy with your smile? If not, relax, you’re not the only one. A recent poll conducted by the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry (AACD) stated that about 70% of the people surveyed were not satisfied with their current smile. They displayed interest in improving their smile with the help of Cosmetic Dentistry.
What is Cosmetic Dentistry?
Cosmetic dentistry is the art of aesthetically enhancing the oral health, smile, and appearance of teeth of an individual. This is done by altering the tooth form or the gums or bite. It involves not only restoring the proper function of the tooth but also providing the most ideal and appealing smile line according to the patient’s demand. A high level of expertise is required to produce results down to the finest details such as how a tooth should be placed in a specific smile.
The “best cosmetic dentist near me” is the one who has a thorough understanding of tooth anatomy, has mastery over concepts of smile designing and has extensive knowledge of various dental materials to achieve the most outstanding smile for his patient. Besides, the cosmetic dentist should be excellent in communicating with the dental technician to produce the best aesthetic results.
Smile Analysis
The first step to enhancing your smile is “Smile Analysis” by an experienced cosmetic dentist. The cosmetic dentist will examine your oral cavity, tooth and gums alignment, your smile line, facial structure, and previous photographs and inform you if you need treatment. Tooth chipping, gaps, fractures, discolorations, cracks if any are analyzed. He will take a few x-rays and photographs. You can then communicate openly with the dentist regarding your expectations and desires and as to how you want to look in the future.
After a thorough discussion, the dentist will provide you with treatment options, approximate cost and treatment time duration. Nowadays modern software allows you to preview your final smile before the cosmetic procedure to help you get a better idea. A comprehensive smile analysis is the inception point to a pristine dazzling smile.
Cosmetic Dentistry Treatment Options
With the advancements in dental technologies and techniques, there are multiple cosmetic options to choose from:
-> Tooth Whitening
The safest, easy, popular, inexpensive and fastest way to brighten dull/discolored teeth. Teeth whitening near me can be carried out at home by using over-the-counter teeth whitening products like:
- Whitening strips
- Whitening lozenges
- Paint on whitening solutions
- Whitening gums
These techniques contain bleaching agents at low concentrations.
A professionally supervised tooth whitening is generally recommended. For home treatments, the dentist will provide you customized plastic trays in which you have to place whitening gels and wear in mouth approx. 30 minutes twice a day. It takes about 6 weeks to attain desired light shade. For in-office treatments, the dentist will use high concentration bleaching agents with lasers for high efficacy. This is a single visit treatment.
-> Veneers
Veneers are customized thin hard tooth colored laminates that are bonded to the tooth with help of dental adhesive. They are composed of medical grade porcelain. They are used to mask discolored teeth, crooked teeth, broken teeth and to close gaps between teeth. Some level of tooth reduction is needed for the placement of veneers. They bond to the front and sides of the existing tooth.
Lumineers are the latest ultra-thin form of veneers that require no tooth reduction for placement.
-> Tooth bonding ( Composite )
Minor tooth abruptions like minor cracks, emergency dental fractures, discolorations, chipping, worn down edges, decay, where extensive coverage like crowns or veneers is not required, can be treated by bonding tooth-colored material called composite resin. This technique is less invasive and cost-effective compared to crowns/veneers. The composite resin is sculpted into the defect to simulate natural tooth and cured by a high intensity LED light.
-> Orthodontics
Orthodontics is a specialized branch of dentistry that deals with mal-aligned teeth. It induces the movement of teeth into proper and functional position with the use of braces, elastics, aligners, and head-gears. Invisalign and Lingual braces are new advances in the field of orthodontics. Not only tooth position but the facial appearance is also enhanced by such treatment.
-> Dental Implants
Emergency dental injury cases where tooth loss has occurred can be treated by inserting dental implants. The oral surgeon and cosmetic dentist play a vital role here. A dental implant is a titanium stud that is placed in the jawbone. It simulates the natural tooth root upon which a crown is placed. It is the ultimate realistic prosthetic replacement for missing teeth.
-> Dental Crowns & Bridges
Teeth that are heavily damaged by trauma or extensive decay require dental crown placement. A dental crown is a cover that is made of metal/porcelain/zirconia that surrounds the damaged crown and supports the damaged tooth functionally as well as aesthetically. Bridges are a unit of 2 or more fused dental crowns used to replace missing teeth. A root canal dentist commonly places a dental crown on root canal treated teeth.
-> Dental restorations / Inlays/ Onlays
A dental restoration is a filling done to replace mild to moderate missing/damaged tooth structure. Nowadays tooth-colored filling material like composite resin has replaced conventional metal colored fillings.
Inlays and Onlays are customized tooth-colored restorations fabricated in the dental laboratory that are bonded to the deficient tooth structure using dental adhesive. They are usually made from porcelain.
-> Tooth contouring/ reshaping
This technique involves the removal of a small part of the enamel to improve tooth appearance. Discrepancies in tooth size are resolved by tooth contouring. E.g Excessively long tooth. This procedure is commonly known as enameloplasty/ stripping/ odontoplasty.
-> Laser treatments
Lasers are used in variety of cosmetic treatments like:
- Gum surgery
Gummy smile cases are treated by carrying out gum re-contouring using lasers. It gives an even gumline appearance. Treatment done using lasers is speedy, and involves minimized bleeding and fast recovery.
- Gum depigmentation
- Teeth whitening
How to choose the right cosmetic dentist in Modesto?
The cosmetic dentist in Modesto you choose has to have excellent credentials, skills, and expertise. He should be well-versed and experienced to meet your cosmetic expectations. He should be able to provide before and after photos of cosmetic cases of his patients for your referral. Always ask for a smile analysis prior to selecting a cosmetic treatment.
We at ProSmile Family Dental offer you a personalized approach to overcoming all your cosmetic trials with ease. Now is the time and era for the much-needed cosmetic enhancement. Book an appointment with us today and breathe confidence into your smile!