Did you know you can transform the colour, shape and size of your smile in a short amount of time? Porcelain Veneers can help you achieve this.

Veneers are thin porcelain shells that cover the surface of your natural teeth, to transform their shape, length, size or colour.

They are fixed with a special bonding adhesive and used to cover chips, cracks, conceal gaps or even crooked teeth.

Completely natural-looking, veneers can be matched to the translucency of your smile, so no-one will be able spot the difference of your restoration!

What are the benefits of porcelain veneers?

• Lengthen and/or reshape your teeth
• Permanently whiten teeth
• Predictably whiten teeth where tooth whitening has failed to achieve the desired result
• Fix the problem of unevenly coloured teeth
• Conceal crooked teeth
• Cover cracks, discolouration or gaps
• More resistant to staining and wear
• Made to fit your natural smile
• Long lasting – for up to 10 years!

Veneer placement

Before the veneer is placed, your tooth will be prepared by removing a small amount of the surface to allow for bonding.  Your dentist will then take an impression of your teeth, in order to create your veneers.  Before the veneers are placed, your teeth may feel a little different, and your dentist may provide a temporary placement.

Veneers that are placed without a preparation technique may have a slight ridge where the veneer meets the tooth. Preparation allows for a secure placement of your rejuvenated smile.

To learn more about Porcelain Veneers don’t hesitate to contact the team at A Smiling Place today!

What is a dental implant?

A dental implant is a replacement for a natural tooth root. It is used to replace a diseased, injured or missing tooth root. It is the foundation over which a new tooth (crown) can be built or it can hold precision attachments or mini-magnets that can then serve to anchor a bridge (non-removable prosthesis) or a denture (removable prosthesis). The implant stimulates the surrounding bone maintaining facial profile and conservatively facilitates restoring function and aesthetics to what would have once been a hopeless situation. Success rates are very high where indicated and appropriate.

Why replace a missing tooth/teeth?

When a tooth is lost, the following happens.
Firstly the tooth biting on or the teeth on either side of the missing tooth can slowly drift and fall into the space. This collapse causes a loss of contact with other teeth leading to gaps between those other teeth causing food packing in those gaps. This causes gum disease and decay to set in leading to a vicious cycle of problems and accelerated tooth loss. Placing an implant will stop this.

Secondly bone is a dynamic living tissue and it is stimulated with function and dies away without function. Taking a tooth out and not replacing it usually leads to collapse of bone and ultimately facial support. Placing an implant will help stop this.

Losing a tooth is like losing a leg under a table. It leads to the table becoming less stable and also to a proportionate increase in loading of the remaining legs of the table. This increased loading on the remaining legs takes its toll over time. Placing an implant will help restore stability to the bite and balance to the loading of teeth.

What are the benefits of dental implants?

1. Restore your smile where teeth have gone missing
2. Laugh without worry of loose teeth
3. Get rid of the pain and discomfort and of loose or diseased teeth spreading ill health to the rest of the body
4. Enjoy the foods you used to enjoy, the way you used to enjoy them when you remembered the pleasure of eating with your own teeth
5. Allow the proper tearing/ cutting and chewing of food, which is the first stage of digestion, to allow proper functioning of the rest of your digestive tract
6. Get rid of the infection and stagnation of loose teeth
7. To restore cheek and lip support. Don’t let a sunken face be how you will be remembered or the “reverse-smile” of an over-closed bite.
8. Enjoy life without worrying about how your teeth are going to get in the way of simply living

If you have one or a few teeth missing you may have these teeth reconstructed to a healthy, comfortable natural bite without unnecessarily affecting your good teeth.

Denture wearers

It is fair to say that almost all long term denture wearers forget what it was like to eat with firmly anchored teeth. An objective assessment of yourself or someone you care about who wears dentures will reveal the following trademarks

1. A notable absence of once enjoyable “hard” foods in the diet
2. A fondness for over-cooked, mushy food
3. The regular over-cutting of food from “normal” bite-size to “extra-fine” nibble-size before consumption.
4. The signature hand over the mouth when smiling or laughing to avoid anyone seeing the denture slipping or worse still, falling out.
5. Food packing under a denture is not uncommon necessitating a visit to the bathroom after a meal or sometimes during a meal if something “disastrous” like a tomato seed gets stuck under the denture.
6. Wrinkles are more commonly seen as bone loss (resorption) almost always follows long term denture wear. Sometimes folds appear at the corners of the mouth if the height of the bite is inadequate leading to “over-closure”. A fungal condition known as angular cheilitis occurs after a long time of saliva pooling in the corners of the mouth with over-closure.

Implants allow a much more comfortable situation as there is no slipping or movement of dentures. Conventional or particularly Mini Dental Implants (MDIs) work very well in this situation. This also eliminates some of the key worries with dentures of poor fit, gum irritation and pain from exposed nerves due to bone loss from prolonged denture wear.

If you have many teeth missing or wear a denture of some sort it is possible to use some or many implants to securely anchor and rebuild your teeth and save your bone.

Q. How long does it take?

A. This varies in individual situations but can be anything from about one hour to 6 or more months

Q. Is it suitable for me?

A. You will have to be seen for a consultation to determine this but as a general rule if you are fit and healthy and ideally not a smoker, implants are very successful

Q. What if the implant fails?

A. In rare situations healing may be less than ideal and an implant can “fail”. However success rates are very high and generally re-treatment with added care especially in the delicate healing stage is all that is required.

Q. How much time will I need off work?

A. In most situations it is okay to go straight back to work after the procedure if you are sitting still but generally as with most surgery it is not a bad idea to rest at least overnight before getting back to your routine. Most surgery is done after detailed study of 3D reconstructed radiographic scanning. Then utilizing a key-hole approach there is almost no bleeding by the end of the appointment. It would not be unusual for patients to not even feel like they have had anything done by the following day.

Q. How much does it cost?

A. The cost to rebuild one whole tooth with an implant, abutment and crown will start at about $4,500. If many teeth are missing it is not necessary to have one implant per tooth. If you are otherwise happy with a denture but just want it to hold better you won’t need to rebuild whole teeth but may just need two or more implants with attachments (studs), to clip the denture (up to 14 teeth) into place. Mini Dental Implants (MDI’s) also have a place and work remarkably well at a much lower cost in appropriate circumstances.

If you have any specific questions please feel free to e-mail, call or preferably come in for a consultation so I can thoroughly assess your individual situation and give you relevant and more specific advice.

Did you wish to achieve that brilliant smile in minutes? Now you can with the help of Snap-On Smiles!

Snap-On smiles are made to fit over your natural teeth, in order to produce that dazzling ‘Hollywood’ smile!

Not everyone can invest money and time into achieving that beautiful smile; however this patented and pain-free fixture is a fast and affordable way to reach it.

Snap-On Smile

Composed of a high-tech dental resin, the Snap-On fixture is thin to wear, yet highly durable. It sits securely over your natural teeth, without adhesive glues or polishes, so it can be removed whenever required.

This is a great alternative for those who desire change without compromising any of your natural tooth structure.

Candidates for Snap-On smiles include patients with…

• Crooked, stained, or missing teeth
• Patients who desire a’ Hollywood’ smile, without extensive dental work or expenses
• Patients who are not suitable candidates for bridges or implants
• Patients who desire a comfortable alternative to dentures

Simply smiles in no time!

Snap-On Smile requires two simple treatments, the first to choose your shade, and a second so we can take a mould of your teeth. Within a few weeks, patients return for a final fitting and are free to wear their Snap-On Smile home.

Snap-on Smiles are sure to boost your smile confidence and can be a great addition for your next social event.

If you would like to learn more about Snap-On Smiles contact us at A Smiling Place today, to find out more!