Smile Makeover
Everyday people wonder whether they should fix their teeth. This thought starts in the morning whilst brushing their teeth and proceeds throughout the day. Conscious of their smile, whilst at work or out socially they mumble their words or cover their mouths whilst laughing or talking all because they do not want to show their teeth. Most of them have been thinking about fixing their teeth for months, or even years. These people are not confident with how they look affecting their personality and day-to-day life.
Reasons for not fixing ones teeth
- Afraid of dental treatment
- Cost of treatment
- Lack of time
- Unsure of what the result will look like
But what do patients dislike about their teeth?
- Different colours: Some teeth look darker than others, some have black stains due to old fillings, some old bridges have metal showing along the gum line.
- Different shapes: some teeth are or appear longer than others, some look crooked.
- Missing teeth: spaces in between teeth or different sized teeth give an asymmetrical appearance that jars with the rest of the teeth.
- Mobile teeth: Old sets of dentures replacing single or multiple missing teeth which would have been tolerated to the best of their ability but still feeling uncomfortable and highly unsatisfactory.
- Painful teeth: Some teeth may be mobile or infected giving daily discomfort when eating, drinking or even at rest.
- Facial appearance: Missing teeth, incorrectly inclined teeth, as well as worn down teeth, give the appearance of facial creases, overly closed jaws as well as causes them to look older or does not allow them to chew properly.
Picture 1 below shows many of the above features: different coloured teeth, visible metal, old looking bridges, incorrectly proportioned teeth and behind all of this an unhappy person wishing a change. So how does a dentist tackle this? Firstly a long discussion during consultation is an absolute must. The dentist needs to know exactly what the person wishes to achieve. All detail must be collected and recorded. The dentist will propose a treatment plan:
The treatment Plan
- Options for treatment
- Times of treatment
- Cost of treatment
- Advantages and dis-advantages of the different treatment options
- Mock-up visuals including study models and digital mouth reconstruction demos of the final look of the proposed teeth.
Picture 2 shows the same patient having undergone a full-mouth rehabilitation. Note the uniformity, the symmetry and the overall new look! The success of the treatment is entirely dependant on ticking all the boxes on the patients list. Obviously time and patience are a must on both the dentists’ and patients’ sides. Together the results speak for themselves. Ask your dentist!
