Reasons To Consider Dental Bonding

Dental bonding is probably the simplest and most cost-effective procedure to correct small cosmetic problems. You are very possibly one of those people who takes very good care of your teeth, i.e. you have adhered to a strict oral hygiene routine, have your teeth professionally cleaned on a regular basis, etc. However, your teeth are still subject to some small issues. For example, one or two of your front teeth may be slightly crooked or have a gap between them. You may chip a tooth, or notice that they are not quite as white as they used to be.  In this case, dental bonding is probably the simplest and most cost-effective of all possible procedures that correct small cosmetic problems. While bonding cannot withstand the pressure that dental veneers and crowns can, and is, therefore, usually done on front teeth, it is one way to make the problem tooth (or teeth) look new again without breaking the bank.

What is Dental Bonding and How Is It Done?
In a nutshell, dental bonding uses a tooth-colored composite material that is applied to the tooth, sculpted into the right shape, then hardened with a curing light. It is called bonding simply because the material 'bonds' to the natural tooth and improves its appearance. Bonding can used to fill in gaps, cosmetically repair small chips, and change the shape and color of the tooth, even making it look longer if necessary. We also use dental bonding to protect a partially exposed root of a tooth caused by receding gums. We also can use bonding as a more cosmetically preferable alternative to silver fillings in a small cavity.

We will first use a shade guide to carefully select the resin that will closely match the shade of your natural teeth. After which a phosphoric acid solution is applied to the surface of the natural tooth. This acid performs the same function as roughing up the surface of any object that is to be painted. This step is closely followed by the application of the adhesive, then the putty-like resin. We will then carefully mold and shape the resin until it looks exactly as we want it to, and then harden it with a curing light. The final steps are to smooth any rough edges that might be present, then polish the resin so that it matches the sheen of your natural teeth.

Advantages and Disadvantages
Dental bonding is completed very quickly, the entire procedure taking no more than between 30 minutes and an hour to complete. This is a considerably shorter time than dental veneers that have to be shipped from a laboratory after being made from an impression. Additionally, crowns and veneers require much more enamel to be removed from the surface of the natural tooth than does dental bonding.

Under normal circumstances, dental bonding will not need to be repaired for several years. However, because the material used is not as strong as that in crowns and veneers, you will need to avoid doing anything with your teeth other than what they were intended to do, i.e. eat. Chewing on ice, biting your fingernails or opening bottles with your teeth can cause the resin to chip.  Especially in the first 48 hours, it is also imperative to avoid eating or drinking anything that will stain the resin. This includes red wine, tea, and coffee. In order to keep your teeth looking as good as they can, you should continue to have them cleaned professionally on a regular basis.

Cosmetic Dentist  >  Teeth Whitening

Dental Crowns Have an Important Role in Restorative Dentistry

We use dental crowns on a frequent basis.  If you think of dental crowns and an image of a silver tooth pops in your head, it is time to learn about the new and improved version.  Silver amalgam crowns still exist and many patients enjoy using them.  They are durable and can last for a long time.  However, they stand out when you smile and are not a good solution for any of your front teeth.  This has made many people shy away from crowns as a restorative solution.
However, the modern dental crown looks nothing like this.  In fact, it is created using a tooth-colored material that mimics your natural teeth.  This way, when it is placed, it will blend in seamlessly, and you will not be able to tell the difference between your natural teeth and the crown.  It looks that fantastic.

Dental Crowns as Restorations
Given how natural crowns look, they are being used in restorative dentistry all of the time.  We like them because a crown is a cap that surrounds your tooth entirely.  That means that you can bite down with force and not have to worry about causing further damage if your tooth was previously cracked or chipped.  You can also smile without worrying about someone knowing that your tooth was chipped a few weeks ago.

Dental Crowns in Cosmetic Dentistry
Since crowns look completely natural, they are also an excellent solution for simply improving the appearance of your smile.  We can place a crown on the two teeth that have a gap in between them and use the crowns to close the gap.  We can also use them to change the overall shape or size of your teeth if they are too small or too large.  If you have teeth that are dark or severely stained, we can also cover them up with this solution.  Some teeth can even be made to appear straight once a crown is in place.  If you have something that you do not like about your teeth, you can probably have it corrected with a crown because the solution is incredibly versatile. As a bonus, a crown surrounds your tooth like a cap so that nothing can touch it directly.  If your teeth are feeling sensitive due to enamel erosion, this is a way to protect them so that you can go back to eating all of your favorite foods without irritation.

This solution can work very well for all of your oral health problems.  In fact, we can even create a dental bridge to replace missing teeth by placing a dental crown on each of the two teeth that are surrounding the missing ones.  They will serve as anchors to support the bridge so that you can have a smile that is perfectly restored.

If you have amalgam crowns in your mouth and are tired of how they look, we can replace them with tooth-colored ones as well.  To learn more about this versatile solution, call and schedule an appointment today.

Teeth Whitening  >  Dental Veneers