At our dental office, not only do we care about your overall oral health, but we also care how you feel about your teeth cosmetically. With the holiday season quickly approaching, many individuals consider options to whiten and/or straighten their smile before gatherings and family photos. If you’re interested in enhancing your smile, various dental procedures allow you to safely and effectively achieve the smile you’ve been dreaming of. Here are a few options that we offer at our office:
1. Whitening – Teeth whitening is one of the most commonly requested dental procedures. Did you know you can safely whiten your teeth at home using custom trays made at our office? In most cases, a visit for whitening tray impressions takes less than 30 minutes. Your custom trays will be made in our onsite dental lab and are available for you to pick up by the following business day.
Our dentists recommend ways to prevent teeth staining and discoloration, but daily habits such as drinking coffee and tea and the use of tobacco products can contribute to unwanted staining. While some toothpaste, mouthwash, and drugstore products can whiten teeth, the best results come from your dentist. Along with your custom whitening trays, you’ll receive a whitening gel that you place in the trays and wear on your teeth daily for a short period of time to gradually whiten your teeth.
If you’re interested in a quick whitening tray option, we also carry Opalescence teeth whitening trays at our office. These one-size-fits-all whitening trays are “grab and go” so you can pick one up at your next appointment.
Whitening trays have proven to be an effective way to whiten and brighten your smile. Our patients are extremely pleased with the results. Give us a call if you’d like more information or if you’d like to schedule an appointment.
2. Bonding – If you’re interested in restoring a cracked, chipped or discolored tooth, a cosmetic procedure such as tooth bonding can give you the results you want. Bonding is a method that corrects the shape or the shade of your teeth. It can also close small spaces, black triangles in between teeth or increase the size of a tooth to achieve a more symmetrical smile.
The procedure can often be done without anesthetic and completed in one visit. Our dentists simply apply a tooth-colored composite resin to one or more of your teeth to repair damage. This whitening method is seen as a cost effective solution as it’s less expensive than other cosmetic dental procedures such as crowns and veneers. The best part: the results are instant!
Bonding is especially great for fixing any imperfections in your teeth and restoring confidence in your smile.
3. Veneers – Out of all the cosmetic teeth solutions, dental veneers achieve the most aesthetic results. Veneers are a thin porcelain covering that’s placed over your teeth. Many patients choose to have veneers placed on one or more teeth to achieve their desired smiles.
You can pick out the shade of the synthetic teeth covering, creating a white and bright smile. We can change the shape, length, or size of your teeth using veneers. Veneers are applied to the part of the teeth that shows when talking or smiling. That means we remove less tooth material, and the procedure is generally less uncomfortable than crowns.
If you choose to have a veneer placed on a single tooth, the shape of the veneer can be specifically made to fit that one tooth and create a natural look that blends in with surrounding teeth. Veneer placement is generally painless but requires two or more visits. Veneers do not stain and years after they still maintain the same shade and esthetics.
4. Invisalign – Clear aligners are the most popular way to correct a smile these days — especially adults who do not want a “metal mouth.”
Many people who formerly wore braces choose Invisalign orthodontic treatment as the discrete solution to correct any relapses. Invisalign treatment is the process of wearing a series of clear, removable aligners/clear trays that gradually straighten your teeth. There are no brackets and wires, and none of the restrictions that come with metal braces.
Even if your teeth are slightly misaligned, it can affect your overall oral health. Crooked teeth are harder to keep clean, which puts you at risk of decay and periodontal disease, and can cause jaw pain. Depending on the complexity of your case, you could complete your treatment in as few as six months.
Most patients will start seeing results in a matter of weeks. Our doctors will ensure your aligners fit well, answer your questions, and let you know what to expect.
If you have questions about any of these ways to get a straighter or whiter smile, give us a call today.