Elevate Your Smile With Expertly Crafted Crowns & Bridges
Using advanced cosmetic dental treatments and materials, your Shelton, CT cosmetic restorative dentist, Dr. Smith, can make a real difference. The skill, experience, and commitment of our practice — using a unique combination of science and artistry — can literally redesign your smile.
Even a subtle change in your smile helps you to project an image of self-confidence and high personal esteem. When you feel good about yourself, it shows in your appearance.
Bonded Restorations
Bonding is an alternative to inlays, onlays or veneers, and can be used as a restorative procedure for teeth that are chipped, cracked, discolored either in front teeth or back teeth.
How Does it Work?
The tooth is prepared for the procedure by removing either the old or defective filling, re-prepping the tooth, and removing any decay. Then the surface of the tooth is lightly etched and a bonding solution is applied. A plastic resin is then applied and sculpted into the desired shape by the dentist and cured using a visible light curing light. Once set, the resin is trimmed, smoothed and polished to a natural appearance.
Considerations
The bonding procedure is completed in a single office visit, and can improve the appearance of a tooth significantly in addition to restoring it to proper function. This is a good choice for small to moderate sized restorations. As with all dental treatment, its expected lifespan is dependent on how well it is done (the dentist's job) and how well it is taken care of (the patient's job - regular flossing and brushing and twice yearly professional cleanings).
Porcelain Veneers
What are Porcelain Veneers?
Porcelain veneers are thin shells of porcelain that bond directly to the front surfaces of the teeth. They are an ideal choice for improving your smile and have become popular due to the fact that they require the removal of less tooth structure than a crown. However, they still do require removal of enamel from your teeth and as such are a permanent commitment.
Placing custom veneers requires a high degree of technical skill as well as attention to cosmetic detail. We place veneers routinely, and design each case individually to match and enhance the characteristics of each patient’s smile.
Will they look like normal teeth?
When bonded to the teeth, the ultra-thin porcelain veneers are virtually undetectable and highly resistant to coffee, tea and other stains. For strength and appearance, their resemblance to healthy, white tooth enamel is unsurpassed by other restorative options.
How Durable are Porcelain Veneers?
With proper care, porcelain veneers will brighten your smile for well over a decade.
Dr. Smith will ensure that your veneers are crafted from the highest quality porcelains and are bonded with the most advanced and proven materials available.
Refraining from using your veneers as tools to open and cut things will prolong their life, and if accidental breakage or damage occurs, it is usually possible to replace only the veneer involved.
Inlays & Onlays
When more than half of the tooth’s biting surface is damaged a dentist will often use an inlay or onlay.
What are Inlays and Onlays?
Inlays and onlays can be made of porcelain or gold, These pieces are bonded to the damaged area of the tooth. An inlay, which is similar to a filling, is used inside the cusp tips of the tooth. An onlay is a more substantial reconstruction, similar to the inlay but extending out over one or more of the cusps of the tooth.
Traditionally, gold has been the material of choice for inlays and onlays. In recent years, however, porcelain has become increasingly popular due to newer, stronger materials and color, which can match the natural color of your teeth.
How are Inlays and Onlays Applied?
Inlays and onlays require two appointments to complete the procedure. During the first visit, the filling being replaced or the damaged or decaying area of the tooth is removed, and the tooth is prepared for the inlay or onlay. An impression of your teeth is made by the dentist. The dentist will then place a temporary inlay or onlay on the tooth and schedule the next appointment. The impressions are sent to a dental lab where the inlay or onlay will be custom made.
At the second appointment, the temporary is removed.
Dr. Smith will then make sure that the inlay or onlay fits correctly. If the fit is satisfactory, the inlay or onlay will be bonded to the tooth with a strong resin or other cement and polished to a smooth finish.
Considerations for Inlays and Onlays
Traditional fillings can reduce the strength of a natural tooth by up to 50 percent. As an alternative, inlays and onlays, which are bonded directly onto the tooth using special high-strength resins, can actually increase the strength of a tooth by up to 75 percent. As a result, they can last from 10 to 30 years. In some cases, where the damage to the tooth is not extensive enough to merit an entire crown, onlays can provide a very good alternative.
Teeth Whitening
Having a beautiful smile may be even easier than you think. Many people achieve the look they’ve been dreaming of with our simple “whitening” procedure.
What Are the Details of Teeth Whitening?
Dental whitening can be used to correct tooth discoloration. Discolorations can be caused by staining, aging, or chemical damage to teeth. Using the latest in whitening technology, we can offer a safe method for creating a beautiful “brilliant” smile.
We offer three different types of whitening. For most patients, custom trays and take home whitening is the best choice. It’s safe, quick, and inexpensive. Just let us know at any appointment if you would like to whiten your teeth. You can lighten only your upper teeth or both the upper and lower, depending on how much you show when you talk and smile. However, most patients choose to do both. Also, if you are having any crowns or veneers done in the area, whitening should be done before the shade is selected for a new crown.
For some patients, a preliminary in office procedure done immediately after teeth cleaning, followed by the at home method mentioned above will give an extra degree of whiteness. This adds slightly to the cost.
The third option offered is for cases of extreme tooth discoloration, often caused by tetracycline taken while the teeth were forming in the mouth prior to eruption. This involves a preliminary in office procedure, followed by two weeks of at home use of whitening material in special trays, and then another in office procedure.
If none of these procedures seem to be appropriate for you, then crowns or veneers may be a better choice, but because of the low cost of whitening treatments, whitening is nearly always worth a try. Whitening will not change the color of existing crowns, veneers or composite restorations.
How Is Teeth Whitening Done?
An impression is taken which is used to make a custom “tray” to hold the whitening solution against the teeth. We provide you with a special bleaching agent that you put into the clear trays. The material is used daily for about 30-45 minutes for a week or two, and at the end of this time, significant whitening should have occurred.
With less than an hour of wear per day, the special whitening agent bubbles stains right out of your enamel in a very short time without altering tooth structure or existing dental work in any way. When your teeth reach the desired brightness, only occasional treatment is needed to maintain your new smile.
In some cases, the change is nothing short of brilliant. For confidence in appearance, whitening technology allows us to provide improvements in yellowing, aging or stained teeth.
Considerations for Teeth Whitening
Over-the-counter whitening agents are available for purchase at many stores and online. However, since these products use a weaker strength whitening agent than that able to be prescribed by a dentist, and do not use a custom tray, it’s better to use products that our practice recommends.
Key Benefits of Teeth Whitening
- Corrects brown, yellow and spotted tooth staining
- Works on people of any age
- Is a near-permanent solution for a “dull” smile, restoring brightness and brings a smile alive
Ready to get your best smile? Schedule an exam today – call us at 203-924-1613.