When to Consider Cosmetic Dental Services

If you are tired of imperfections in your smile, there is a way to improve its appearance. There are a range of cosmetic dental services to help you achieve a picture-perfect smile. Some services also effectively restore function to the teeth, such as if there are minor chips or hairline cracks. From providing whiter teeth to creating a more uniform smile, cosmetic dentistry can help patients with good oral health feel more confident.

What exactly is cosmetic dentistry?

A cosmetic dentist focuses on the look of a smile. Function is considered but not the main focus, as they do not fill cavities or provide more intensive dental restorations like root canals. Instead, they dedicate their efforts to beautifying the smile. This typically requires healthy teeth and gums as a base. (Patients should visit a general dentist first if a tooth is decayed or severely damaged.) For example, cosmetic dentistry services may fix the following imperfections:

• Discolored or stained teeth, such as yellowed front teeth
• Misshapen teeth that are too small or too large
• Misaligned teeth
• Gaps in the teeth
• Chipped teeth
• Cracked teeth

Common cosmetic dental services

There are a variety of services that can correct cosmetic imperfections. Each focuses on a different issue. Below are some of the most popular cosmetic dental services.

Teeth whitening

Professional teeth whitening corrects tooth discoloration and staining. Certain foods, drinks, and habits (such as smoking) can leave the teeth yellowed or stained. Discoloration is also a natural part of aging.

While teeth whitening can occur in the office, take-home teeth whitening kits are increasingly popular. These at-home kits contain professional-grade whitening gel and trays tailored to fit over each patient’s teeth. The result is a more comprehensive whitening than generic whitening strips or trays can deliver.

Dental bonding and crowns

While dental bonding can restore tooth decay (cavities), cosmetic dentists also use this tooth-colored resin to repair minor cracks and chips. Bonding is applied on top of the problem area, then shaped to resemble a natural part of the tooth.

When the damage is too severe to be repaired with bonding, the cosmetic dentist may recommend a dental crown instead. Crowns are tooth-shaped caps that, like bonding, resemble natural teeth once placed. The dentist will remove the damaged parts of the tooth before placing the crown.

Dental veneers

Dental veneers are thin shells that fit over the fronts of the teeth. (Many actors and celebrities get veneers, which is why the end result is also known as a Hollywood smile.) Cosmetic dentists use them to repair various cosmetic imperfections, such as cracked, chipped, discolored, uneven, or misshapped teeth.

Veneers are irreversible. This process involves grinding down a portion of the natural teeth to make room for the veneers before a dentist cements them in place. Note that the dentist only grinds away the outer layer of the teeth, or enamel, so as not to compromise the tooth’s structural integrity.