Cosmetic Dentistry

With the popularity of the new reality shows like “Swan” and “Extreme Makeover”, both men and women are showing an interest in cosmetic dentistry never seen before in the dental profession. Americans are now spending over $35 billion annually on cosmetic dental procedures. Indeed, a beautiful smile is powerful asset. It is an important facet of our daily lives. When we smile, people form opinions of us very quickly. From a smile people assess your openness, friendliness, honesty, intelligence, personality, and even your social status.

According to a national survey done by the Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry:

• 92% of Americans believe an attractive smile is an important social asset.
• 85% of Americans believe an unattractive smile makes a person less appealing to the opposite sex.
• 74% of Americans believe an unattractive smile can hurt a person’s chances for career success.
• 50% of Americans are not satisfied with the appearance of their own smile.

Now when Americans look in the mirror in the morning and see discolored teeth, uneven teeth, crooked teeth, crowded teeth, chipped teeth, worn teeth, or teeth with gaps, they are heading to their dentist in hopes of receiving that million dollar smile. Indeed, changing your smile in a positive way can increase your self confidence and self esteem. It can enhance your communication ability, increase your sex appeal and impact the success of your professional relationships. But before you lay your head in the dental chair for that transformation from ugly duckling to “Swan”, try to make sure your “Extreme Makeover” doesn’t become an extreme disaster or put you in extreme pain.

A June 29, 2004 article in The Wall Street Journal brings to light the true reality of cosmetic dentistry. The American Dental Association does not recognize “cosmetic dentistry” as a specialty. Any dental school graduate is licensed to perform cosmetic procedures. However, as a professor of implant dentistry at New York University’s College of Dentistry states “To do an entire mouth restoration and crowns is usually out of the scope of recent graduates without more continuing education.” The term “cosmetic dentistry” is also a broad term. It can simply mean whitening the teeth with a bleaching agent, or it can mean full mouth reconstruction and changing the bite with crowns and veneers. Many patients without real dental problems are opting to have perfectly good teeth ground down for cosmetic reasons, when other less invasive options are available. As with any medical procedure, there is a risk of failure. The president of the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry now estimates that 15-20% of cosmetic cases will fail and need to be redone because of misdiagnosis and poor dental work.

So, how do you keep from becoming a dental disaster victim? If you are interesting in changing your smile, take into consideration the following:

• Do you currently have facial pain, headaches or jaw joint pain? If you do, then you need treatment to eliminate the pain before considering major dental work. Changing a bad bite to another bad bite can increase your current pain level and cause the failure of your new restorations.
• Do you currently have root canals or areas of infection in your mouth? These areas need to be evaluated, diagnosed and treated before placing restorations. Infection can spread to adjacent teeth and again cause restorations to fail.
• If the dentist is changing the position of your bite, do not proceed with the final restorations too soon. Muscle function will change, neck position will change, jaw joint and disc position will change. The new bite needs to be stable for several months before finalization.
• Before cutting down perfectly good teeth, check to see if there are other treatment options that will give you the same result while preserving tooth structure. For instance, orthodontics (braces) that move the teeth into a more cosmetic arrangement may be an option. It is less expensive and less invasive. The disadvantage is that it can take longer, but this is not always the case.
• Make sure the materials used are compatible with your body, particularly if you have sensitivity issues.
• Make sure your dentist has the education and the experience to do the procedures that you want done.
• Get a second and even a third opinion if you are at all unsure about what to do. No one treatment and no one dentist is right for everybody.
• Ask to see pictures of other similar cases the dentist has done. This will give you some idea of the quality of work to expect.
• And finally, remember that as with any medical procedure there are inherent risks of failure even if the dentistry is done perfectly. Just drilling on a tooth can cause the nerve to die and the tooth to abscess and this often beyond the ability of any dentist to predict.

Full mouth reconstruction is often a viable and the only alternative to restore a broken down and cosmetically undesirable smile. With careful diagnosis and planning, cosmetic dentistry can restore your mouth to a healthy, comfortable, cosmetically pleasing condition.

Our office currently offers the following Cosmetic Procedures:

• One hour tooth whitening. No more messy trays to use at home. In just one hour, your teeth can be six to ten shades whiter.
• Correction of excessive or uneven gums with cosmetic laser surgery.
• Replacement of missing teeth with fixed bridges. Non-metal alternatives are available.
• Natural looking dentures and partial dentures.
• Restorations of chipped, cracked or worn teeth with cosmetic veneers..
• Crooked or crowded teeth can be straightened in just 2 appointments with crowns and veneers.
• Gaps between front teeth can be closed with veneers and crowns.
• Old and unsightly silver-mercury fillings can now be replaced with beautiful white resins, porcelain inlays and crowns.
• Crooked teeth can be straightened and gaps can be closed with orthodontic treatment (braces)

Our office offers real solutions to most cosmetic problems. Call our office for a free smile analysis today. We can show you how you can have the smile you have always desired.