Cosmetic Dentistry is constantly improving.
Treatments are becoming more beautiful, durable, and better for your oral health. One of the most common trends in cosmetic dentistry is the smile makeover. ‘Smile Makeovers’ have the power to transform a yellow, crooked, misshapen, or gappy smile into a beaming Hollywood one.
Not so long ago, porcelain veneers could be spotted across a crowded room. Thick and opaque, these cosmetic “enhancements” often resembled horse teeth and were hardly an improvement over a person’s natural teeth.
The demographic, in patients ages has changed in recent years. This is largely due to social media. We are getting Millennials, who want an instant fix, though some just want to subtly enhance what they already have, rather than Hollywood smiles that scream, “I paid a lot for this!”
Thankfully, the materials used in cosmetic dentistry and techniques have improved drastically in recent years.
‘Smile Makeovers’ are divided into multiple treatments, every smile makeover is tailored to the individual patient. For instance, if you’re struggling with your yellow teeth, but the shape is good, a simple teeth whitening treatment, maybe recommended.
Every dentist should takes several elements into consideration, when recommending the subtle cosmetic enhancements, which will take your smile to the next level.
If your teeth could use a little more TLC, veneers could be recommended, veneers can transform the colour and shape of your smile. We can help you achieve your goal of having an attractive, natural-looking smile, rather than one that garners attention and not for the right reasons.
Longer teeth tend to look more youthful than smaller, worn-down teeth, so lengthening maybe recommended, this is done by bonding all or some of the teeth, or veneers, or crowns another possibility is a gum lift.
The smile line, is where the bottom edge of the top teeth line up with the lower lip when you smile, can help determine the ideal length of the enhanced teeth. Tooth proportions are another consideration, and it is generally accepted that an aesthetically pleasing smile has two central top teeth that are slightly longer and wider than the other teeth.
We also look at the differences in tooth texture, and characterisation between males and females, can alter tooth shape and surfaces to make a person look more masculine or feminine.
All these treatments can be completed at home in UK more often than not they will only take a couple of visits.
It has become a growing trend for Millennials to travel outside the UK, for both dental and medical treatments.
The question is ARE these cut price treatments abroad simply too good to be true?
What I see is a trend in the rise of the ‘Natural Smile’ an increase in alignment and whiteness of the teeth. Patients are now understanding the real issues of ‘Drilling Teeth Down’ in order to create, what was perceived as the ‘Ideal Smile’!
I have always told my patients smile makeovers, and improvements are always a possibility. Though the risk of maintenance and longevity, is the crucial aspect that needs to be understood. Liken it to buying a Ferrari and having to maintain it for the rest of your life, that is the investment you are actually making.
Having 28 EMAX crowns, completed in the UK, or even Turkey (as the current trend has been) is not an ideal solution for the majority of smile makeovers. Though it has trended on ‘Instagram’ and strangely; particularly in the North West, during the past 2 years.
However, with the package holiday, the sunshine and now the perfect smile, (average cost £3.5k) comes life-time maintenance and with that comes cost.
Any veneer, crown or prosthesis placed into the mouth, does not last forever. Patients DO NOT consider this, and this is where the problem lies.
Also the classic ‘bleached block teeth’ we have all someone with them, thankfully it appears to be losing popularity.
At Tracey Bell, we provide all types of dentistry and most of all, understand risk and longevity. If we can avoid, excessive preparation of sound teeth, we will. Instead we will try and enhance what the patient has already. This is even more important in the younger demographic, who present with youthful teeth that simply need a ‘Tweekment’.
Take a look at these three women, early 20’s and all with beautiful teeth. I can guarantee that these patients had researched all possibilities, veneers, crowns and the bed smile. Probably originally influenced by Love Island, Bloggers and other Instagram influences. BUT did they understand the ‘risks’? After careful consultation and consideration all three of these patients chose to enhance what they already had and WOW! Look at the results – Bright white, natural smiles with a little imperfection and better still no porcelain – that is what nature intended!
Niamh’s Story
Niamh is a fashion student at Liverpool and she hated her snaggle tooth smile. She was adamant that she wanted veneers or composite bonding to improve her smile.
We discussed all the risks and benefits involved and advised that if she had a whiter brighter smile and we straightened her teeth with orthodontics, her smile would be greatly improved without any invasive treatment.
A treatment plane was tailored for Niamh, she had a short course of orthodontic treatment . Three months later, we took impressions to have bespoke whitening trays made. The teeth were whitened with Enlighten Tooth Whitening Home Kit, this was used for 2 weeks. Niamh then came back into surgery to have her colour locked in. She was thrilled with the colour achieved. We then assessed the smile line, a smile is the point where the bottom edge of the top teeth line up with the lower lip when you smile, this was adjusted slightly with a treatment called stoning and as you can see, the results are stunning in Niamh’s words ‘a beautiful smile never goes out of fashion’.
Saxon’s Story
Saxon is an accounts executive, she too wanted veneers or at least an easy way to improve her ‘wonky’ smile. Saxon always covered her mouth in photos, she just wanted to smile with confidence. We discussed all the risks involved with drilling down virgin teeth. It was explained if she were to have veneers, it comes with a lifetime of dental treatment. Veneers do not last forever and normally need to be replaced every 10 years. This is something Saxon hadn’t considered when she was looking pictures on social media.
A treatment plan was discussed in detail with Saxon and we explained again we can correct her ‘ wonky smile ‘ with a course of orthodontic treatment. She was conscious at the thought of having metal braces, she didn’t want to look like a teenager. The issue was easily resolved, we offered her ceramic brackets and white wires which were almost invisible. This was the perfect solution for Saxon. Once we straightened her teeth, she then wanted to enhance the colour. There are lots of different whitening systems out there, again we chose Enlighten Whitening system.
Enlighten system is:
A 3 part whitening treatment, visit one consists of dental impressions to make her custom make whitening trays
Visit 2 the trays are collected. The whitening system comes with instructions, the system is used at home for the next 2 weeks
Visit 3 locks in the colour, this takes approximately 1 hour
Saxon was delighted with the results she now has the million dollar smile/
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