Cosmetic Dentistry – FAQ

Options include teeth whitening, composite bonding, porcelain veneers, crowns, implants and gum contouring. Treatment plans usually include a combination of treatment options. The process is simple

Step 1 – Assessment & Consultation

Opportunity to discuss your main concerns and your desired outcome to help achieve the smile you have always wanted. In achieving smile aesthetics, dental elements, facial elements, gums related factors and physical elements are evaluated collectively. We tailor your personal needs to decisions in treatment but will also take into consideration your budget and a wide variety of options are available to create your best smile. Treatment payment plans can be discussed at your consult.

Step 2 – Treatment Options

A Smile Makeover treatment aims to improve your smile in many ways. It may align crooked teeth, close gaps, reduce protrusion, widen a narrow smile, change the length of teeth, replace missing teeth, whiten teeth, reduce a gummy smile or any combination of these treatments. Options include tooth whitening, composite bonding, porcelain veneers, crowns, implants and gum contouring. Treatment plans usually include a combination of treatment options.

Step 3 – Treatment Visits

The number of expected visits will be all planned out around your tailored treatment plan.

Composite Bonding or Dental Bonding is the least invasive of cosmetic dentistry techniques. Often done without anaesthetic a composite resin is shade matched and attached to your cleaned and etched tooth and hardened with a UV light. It is shaped and highly polished to blend with your natural tooth. It can be used to fix chips, fractures, close gaps and change the shape of your tooth. When the full front surface of your tooth is bonded it is known as a composite veneer.

• Preserve your natural tooth; generally no tooth structure is removed
• Pain free, no need for injections – simple and effective option
• Less expensive than porcelain veneers (approx €250 for full composite veneer)
• Quick, immediate results in one visit
• Suitable for all age groups
• Gives a natural look and can whiten teeth in certain cases

Minor contouring and polishing can make a big impact in little time especially when combined with tooth whitening. This can smooth away small chips and reshape pointy teeth and redefine flat or worn teeth

Teeth Whitening is a simple and affordable way to restore your teeth to their natural colour to give you that glossy healthy smile you’re proud of. Say goodbye to stubborn stains from coffee, alcohol and tobacco. Our whitening system can achieve shades up to 4 times lighter

Using our controlled tooth whitening system we can brighten your teeth to achieve whichever level of whiteness that suits your skintone. That could be the answer to enhancing you smile.

A Crown is an artificial restoration placed over an existing tooth used to preserve a weakened tooth, to replace a large filling when insufficient tooth remains or to cover a broken or discolored tooth.

Porcelain Crowns

Porcelain Crowns are a long lasting reconstruction to a broken, weakened, damaged or discoloured tooth. Like veneers they will look just as natural leaving no black line at gum level like traditional metal reinforced crowns. This very versatile treatment can be used to align crowding or protruding teeth, close gaps or lighten colour. The strength of the porcelain crown rivals that of natural teeth and can make a long lasting difference to your smile.

Dental Implants are the gold standard to replace missing teeth. The implant is made from titanium and fitted into the bone where the tooth would normally be. When this is fully integrated with your bone, normally over a 12 week period, a post or abutment is attached to the implant and a crown is put in place to replace the missing tooth. It is like having your own tooth back again. The implant systems we use are Nobel Biocare, Southern Implants and Thommen Implants.

Designed by your cosmetic dentist and fabricated by expert dental ceramists these are custom-made ultra thin porcelain shells bonded to the front of your teeth.

Most of our veneer cases are patients who just do not like the overall appearance of their teeth. They may be unhappy with the colour, shape, gapping, length or alignment of their teeth and as a result have lost confidence in their smile. Some of our patients simply have had thicker, less attractive veneers done elsewhere and wish to change to a more natural appearance. Many patients also have composite bonding done previously and while it has greatly improved their smile they are looking for a treatment which provides better aesthetics and is more durable and resistant to chipping.

The Consultation Appointment

This is the most important stage in our opinion. Some patients are just not suitable for veneers and if so we can advise them if orthodontic treatment will provide a better outcome. At this appointment we will discuss what the patient’s main concerns are and try and customise the treatment plan to address these problems and find solutions. X-rays are often needed at this point and sometimes we take impressions in order to provide the patient with a lab made diagnostic wax–up or trial smile in order to help them visualise the final result before any preparation is done.

Preparation and Impression Appointment

Once you commit to your veneer plan we normally arrange a long appointment to prepare your teeth to accept the veneers. Sometimes there is little or no preparation of your teeth but often we may need a reduction of 0.5-0.75mm of enamel under local anaesthetic to provide space for the porcelain veneer and avoid protrusion. We then provide temporary veneers which will act as your trial smile. These can be adjusted to your preferences and once you are fully satisfied with the appearance we can transfer this information to our ceramist for duplication.

Veneer Fit Appointment

While the external appearance of a veneer is highly glazed and polished for an ultra smooth finish the fitting surface is etched to provide retention using a bonding cement or resin to your natural tooth. This adhesive is hardened with a UV light to secure everything in place permanently. Your teeth will look great and you will be able to chew practically any food with complete confidence.

Fillings are used as a treatment for tooth decay but also to repair cracked to broken teeth that are worn down to improve shape and colour.

Replace your old amalgam fillings with new natural white ones. We will mimic the natural tooth structure to disguise your fillings.