Today, cosmetic dentistry is the most popularly sought after dental service. It focuses on enhancing the look of your smile by improving the color, position, shape, size, and alignment of teeth.

Cosmetic dentistry not only improves the appearance of your smile but also boosts your confidence and self-esteem. It makes you more prepared for social and professional events. It is capable of giving you a full smile makeover by:

• Adding dental prosthetics to teeth and gums.
• Removing unsightly tooth structure or gums.
• Eliminating dental stains and discoloration
• Straightening teeth to achieve a symmetric smile.

What are the different cosmetic dentistry procedures?

1. Professional dental cleaning

The road towards a flawless and beautiful smile begins with clean and healthy teeth. A clean mouth is also a beautiful mouth. People brush and floss regularly to maintain good oral health but routine brushing and flossing often fail to remove  deposits of plaque and tartar. Teeth inflicted with layers of plaque and tartar look unhygienic, unsightly and are often accompanied by bad breath. A professional dental cleaning entails the elimination of plaque and tartar deposits from the surface of teeth to give them a healthy and lustrous appearance. Dentists recommend that you have your teeth professionally cleaned twice every year.

2. Tooth whitening

Tooth whitening is the most popular cosmetic dentistry procedure. It removes stains and discoloration from teeth and makes them look bright and lustrous.

3. Lumineers

Lumineers are thin shells of Cerinate (patented porcelain) used to cover the topical surface of teeth to fix cosmetic dental imperfections. The surface of the affected teeth is etched and Lumineers are directly bonded to it. Their thin appearance makes them hard to notice and their tooth-colored nature perfectly mimics the appearance of natural teeth.

Lumineers can be used to fix:

• Discoloration.
• Small teeth.
• Imperfectly shaped teeth.
• Chips, fractures, and cracks.
• Unsightly gaps between teeth.
• Minor orthodontic imperfections.

4. Enamel reshaping

Enamel reshaping is performed to recontour the surface of teeth to make them appear smooth and symmetric. It makes fine adjustments in the shape of teeth by removing chips and rough spots.

5. Crown lengthening

Crown lengthening is a surgical procedure performed by a cosmetic or periodontic specialist. It is performed to remove extra gum tissue that covers the teeth and makes them appear smaller in size.

6. Dental crowns

Crowns are tooth-shaped caps used to cover the anatomical surface of damaged teeth to restore their color, shape, or alignment. Porcelain or ceramic crowns are used in cosmetic dentistry because they are tooth-colored and can be easily used to fix the imperfections of the front teeth. Also, they are custom-designed to suit your personal needs.

7. Bridges

Tooth loss is common. You may lose your natural teeth due to various reasons like decay, damage or advancing age. However, missing teeth need to be replaced as soon as possible because a smile inflicted with gaps makes you conscious about your appearance. Dental bridges are used when you have one or more missing teeth. They consist of one or more artificial teeth (known as pontics) connected to dental crowns on either both or one side. The artificial teeth fill the gap left by missing teeth and the crowns are cemented onto the teeth (known as abutment teeth) adjacent to the gap. This provides for strong anchoring and prevents the bridge from moving.

8. Dental implants

Dental implants also provide a solution for missing teeth. They are the closest you can get to natural, healthy, and fully-functional teeth. A dental implant is a titanium screw which is surgically placed in the jaw to act as a false tooth root for dental prosthetics like crowns, bridges, or dentures. The basis for dental implants is osseointegration. It is a biologic process which allows biocompatible materials like titanium to integrate with the natural bone and become a part of it. Due to osseointegration, dental implants or false tooth roots become well integrated with the jawbone. Connectors or abutments are attached to implants to hold dental prosthetics in place.

At Glenn Dental we employ the practices of modern dentistry to systematically repair damage and enhance the appearance of your smile. Dr. Glenn Ong-Veloso and Dr. Joy Helou will design a custom plan for you to meet your individual requirements. We welcome you to contact us at 760-284-3060 to schedule your consultation with Dr. Glenn Ong-Veloso and Dr. Joy Helou to achieve a picture-perfect smile in Apple Valley and California City, California.