What is Cosmetic Dentistry?

Cosmetic dentistry is an area of dentistry that seeks to create a more aesthetically pleasing smile. Cosmetic specialist, can bring smile on your face by whitening teeth, replace missing teeth and repairing chipped or fractured teeth through a variety of cosmetic dentistry options, including tooth bleaching, porcelain veneers, dental implants, bonding, dental crowns, and bridges.

When to consider Cosmetic treatment?

If you have any of the below mentioned traits than you should go for Cosmetic smile designing?

  • • Do you love the way your teeth look and the way you smile?
  • • Are there any spaces between your teeth?
  • • Do you have any missing teeth or bad shaped teeth?
  • • Do you have swollen gums?
  • • Do you have any silver (mercury fillings) in your teeth?
  • • Do you have yellow, stained teeth or old caps?

What procedures come under Cosmetic dentistry?

Some of the common procedures in Cosmetic dentistry are tooth coloured restorations, ceramic inlays or onlays, metal free crown and bridges, porcelain veneers and laminates, cometic surgeries and tooth jewellery.

Diastema Closure (spacings between the teeth)

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Bonding

Chipped or fractured teeth are best treated by bonding tooth colored restorative material to the tooth. These resins are in the form of paste somewhat clay like which can be shaped and colored to look like the rest of the tooth. Once exposed to a certain wavelength of light, the resin hardens into a permanent plastic. These materials are exactly similar to the materials used for tooth-colored fillings.

Bonding is among the easiest and least expensive of cosmetic dental procedures. The composite resin used in bonding can be shaped and polished to match the color and shine of the surrounding teeth. Most often, bonding is used for cosmetic purposes to improve the appearance of a discolored or chipped tooth. It also can be used to close spaces between teeth, to make teeth look longer or to change the shape or color of teeth. Sometimes, bonding also is used as a cosmetic alternative to silver fillings, or to protect a portion of the tooth's root that has been exposed when gums recede. Proper home care and regular professional cleanings are essential to keep the restored tooth health and beauty

Veneers and Laminates

Veneers and laminates are another conservative approach to enhancing the look of your teeth. They are a thin shell made of porcelain or composite resin that is cemented to the front surface of the tooth. Like bonding, veneers are used to cover up discoloration, cracks and chipping, and to change the shape or size of your teeth. However, porcelain veneers outperform bonding with greater resilience and a greater resistance to stains and dulling. Also, they tend to look more natural than a bonded tooth.

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Cosmetic Surgeries

Excessive Gingival Display : This can be a significant esthetic dilemma for many patients. The condition usually presents as incomplete exposure of crown portion of the tooth and a high lip line, which causes a "gummy smile". The cause is delayed migration of the gum margin apically during eruption. When full exposure of the crown portion of the tooth is achieved surgically, there is dramatic improvement in esthetics by the concomitant lengthening of the teeth and reduction of the gingival exposure.

Gingival depigmentation : If you are conscious of your smile due to the blackish appearance of the gums instead of the normal coral pink color, consider yourself to be a candidate for this cosmetic procedure. The condition is caused by excessive presence of certain pigment producing cells called melanocytes in the gum tissue. The treatment simply involves scraping of the superficial layer of the gum to remove the pigmentation. The results are evident within 7 days of healing.

Receding gum tissue : Worried about your receding gum tissue? Relax. With the recent advances in dentistry it is now possible to cover the tooth area exposed by recession.

Tooth Jewellery

The beauty of a dazzling white smile can be further enhanced by use of “Tooth Jewellery”. These jewels are made of crystal glass and are available in two different colors- crystal and sapphire blue. They are glued to the front surfaces of the upper anterior teeth. Placing these stones is a very brief procedure but it goes a long way in satisfying the dental cosmetic needs of the patient.

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