Teeth Whitening
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Cosmetic Teeth Whitening

This has to be the best cosmetic dental treatment available. A lighter and brighter smile without needing dentistry! Properly done, most people will achieve teeth 8-10 shades whiter or more.

CEREC
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CEREC

CEREC stands for CERamic REconstruction. It is an in-surgery CAD\CAM system that can make any laboratory dental restoration (crown\veneer\inlay) actually in the dentists surgery. It is without doubt that CEREC is the most advanced dental system in the world and all the longterm clinical tests and studies are showing teeth restored with CEREC are lasting as long as teeth restored with gold.

Gum Contouring
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Gum Contouring

Not everyone shows their gums when they smile, but if they do then having an even gumline along the top of the teeth is important for a natural smile. Gum contouring or gum sculpting as it is sometimes called, is a technique to reshape the gumline to give an even and balanced appearance.

Implants
dental implants

Cosmetic Implants

Dental Implants are replacement tooth roots and are used to put back missing teeth. The implant is usually placed into the bone in the same position as the original tooth root.

Common Types

  • Bicon
  • Nobel Biocare
  • Straumann (ITI)
  • Ankylos
  • Astra
Crowns
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Cosmetic Crowns

Crowns (or caps) are where the whole tooth is completely covered, as compared to a veneer where only the front surface is covered. Crowns have been used in dentistry since the 1920’s although materials have changed significantly since then. Originally, crowns were made from gold but in the 1950’s it became possible to overlay gold with porcelain and so tooth coloured crowns were made with a gold base

Cosmetic Veneers
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Cosmetic Veneers

Veneers are best though of as new tooth 'facings', which are bonded permanently to the front surface of the teeth.

Types

  • Ceramic
  • Cerec
  • Da Vinci
  • Mac
  • Lumineers

Bonding

Digestible Education Material

  • In this example composite resin bonding was used to close the gap between the front teeth.

Bonding

Cosmetic Bonding requires quite a lot of ‘artistic skill’ on behalf of the dentist and not all dentists carry out cosmetic bonding.

  • Average Cost:from £70
  • Treatment Length:From half an hour
  • Used to Treat:
  • Available From:Cosmetic Dentist

Bonding is where a composite resin material is bonded (ie dentally glued) to the tooth. Composite resins are tooth colored resins which can be used to repair chips in teeth, close small gaps, alter the shape of teeth or cover over marks and discolourations.

The composite resin chosen was colour matched to the patients teeth and directly applied to the teeth. The advantages of this treatment is that it is quick to do, can be undone if wanted, doesn’t affect the teeth underneath and is relatively inexpensive to do. Typical fees for bonding are £60-100 per tooth.

The patient below was unhappy with the discolourations on his front teeth and composite resin bonding was used to mask these discolourations.

Composite bonding can also be combined with other treatments such as tooth whitening. In the example below, the patient desired whiter teeth and didn’t like the small gaps between her teeth. A professional tooth whitening treatment was carried out and then the gaps were closed using composite resin bonding.

How long will it last?

Typically, 3-5 years. Composite resin is not as strong or durable as ceramic but it is easy to replace should any bonding composite wear or chip.

Another example where composite bonding was used to repair the biting edges of the upper front teeth following a professional whitening treatment.

Cosmetic Bonding requires quite a lot of ‘artistic skill’ on behalf of the dentist and not all dentists carry out cosmetic bonding. To find a dentist experienced in cosmetic dental bonding in your area click here. Many of the dentists on this site will offer a free consultation to discuss any cosmetic concerns and advise on whether composite bonding may be an appropriate treatment for you.


Finding The Right Dentist

Finding the right dentist can be tough. We have some advice on how to help you in your search.

Finding The Right Dentist

Procedure Overviews

A light summary on some of the most frequenly carried out procedures.

Cosmetic Treatment Overview

Copyright © Smyth Cosmetic Dentistry 2011

Photos courtesy of Dr Simon Smyth BDS CEREC® is Registered Trademark of Sirona Dental Systems GmbH