Popular Smile Makeover Treatments
The difference between a beautiful smile and one marred from imperfections can be astounding. If you are currently embarrassed by the appearance of your teeth, imagine the confidence and social benefits that would come from an all new smile. Our Virginia Beach cosmetic dentistry center offers a variety of techniques to improve the color, shape, and size of teeth, although no one treatment can solve everything. For smiles that suffer from a number of flaws, a combination of treatments may be the best way to achieve truly satisfying results. With a smile makeover, you have the opportunity to improve your teeth dramatically and comprehensively.
How Does a Smile Makeover Work?
A smile makeover is simply a blend of cosmetic options that are tailored specifically to your needs. By meeting with your dentist, you can discuss the ways in which you hope to improve your smile, and a treatment plan will be created accordingly. For some patients, one or two techniques may be enough to achieve the desired results, while other patients may require a more multifaceted approach. Typically, however, there are a few procedures that stand out as particularly effective and popular among our patients.
Porcelain Veneers
Porcelain veneers are an excellent way to conceal flaws while enhancing the overall appearance of teeth. By placing a thin, customized layer of porcelain over a tooth, a veneer can mask some of the most common and glaring cosmetic defects, including:
- Chips and cracks
- Intrinsic stains
- Undersized teeth
- Misshapen teeth
- Gaps between teeth
- Eroded teeth
In some cases, porcelain veneers can even be used to correct teeth that are mildly crooked, instantly producing a straight, full smile. Furthermore, porcelain offers the highest quality of aesthetics among dental materials. It can be matched to virtually any shade, is stain resistant, accurately mimics the textural qualities of enamel, and is carefully crafted to enhance each individual tooth.
Dental Bonding
Like porcelain veneers, dental bonding can be used for a variety of flaws. This includes many of the same problems, such as chips, stains, erosion, and gaps. However, bonding is applied over tooth enamel instead of replacing it, resulting in an easier and less intrusive procedure. On the other hand, bonding is better suited for smaller or milder problems, as composite resin does not blend in as seamlessly as porcelain.
In a bonding procedure, composite is applied directly over the enamel in thin layers before being hardened through a special light. Composite can thus be used to build upon a tooth’s structure, reshaping it, or to cover blemishes such as discoloration.
Teeth Whitening
Discoloration can occur in one of two ways: intrinsic stains or extrinsic stains. The former can be very difficult to remove, as intrinsic (or “deep”) stains are embedded within the inner dentin of a tooth. Such stains are better left concealed through veneers or bonding. Extrinsic (or “surface”) stains, however, are usually much more easily removable through a teeth whitening procedure.
A single whitening procedure in our office can brighten your smile for years to come, removing the most common stains that tend to create a darker or more yellow smile. Teeth whitening is both safe, quick, and carries few side effects. To see if your smile could benefit from a whitening procedure, speak with Drs. Parr or Frey.
Invisalign®
Crooked teeth are a common problem, especially for adolescents or adults who never received orthodontic treatment. But braces and similar traditional orthodontic methods can make patients both frustrated and self-conscious during treatment. With invisible braces by Invisalign®, many patients can straighten their teeth with similar results and timelines to those of conventional braces.
Invisalign® utilizes clear plastic trays that slide over teeth, gradually straightening them while remaining surprisingly inconspicuous. Not only are invisible braces a better cosmetic option, but because they are removable, they also allow patients to eat and brush their teeth as they normally would. For mild to moderate crookedness, consider the long-term advantages of Invisalign®.
Come In for Your Consultation
Your smile makeover begins with an initial consultation, wherein you can let us know which improvements you’d like to see in your smile. Through an in-depth discussion of your treatment goals and our available cosmetic services, we can help you decide on one or more techniques to meet your expectations. Contact us to set up your first appointment.
