Reviews: I’m a little confused about smile makeovers. I was told that THE procedure for this was porcelain veneers, but when I went to see my dentist for this, he is suggesting I have teeth whitening, Invisalign, and porcelain veneers. Is all this REALLY necessary? I was under the impression that porcelain veneers can make teeth look straight. The only thing I have like that is one front tooth goes just slightly over the other. I would think you could shave that down, though I am not a cosmetic dentist. Am I misunderstanding something here?
Susan
Dear Susan,
There are a few things going on here. First, you are correct that porcelain veneers are the way to go if you are getting a smile makeover. You mentioned that you are not a cosmetic dentist so maybe you did not understand how they worked. The trouble is your dentist may not be a cosmetic dentist either. Believe it or not, cosmetic dentistry is not a recognized specialty. Any general dentist can do cosmetic dentistry regardless of the amount of training they’ve received. That leads me to answer your questions. Some of what he said could be necessary and one is not.
Let’s start with the teeth whitening. Unless you are placing porcelain veneers on every single visible tooth, then teeth whitening will be a good idea. You did not mention how many porcelain veneers you are getting. Most smiles are 8-10 teeth wide. Unless you are getting that many veneers, the whitening will help the adjacent teeth to blend in nicely and is less expensive than additional veneers. Just make certain that you do the teeth whitening before the veneers.
The Invisalign is a completely different story. Some cases are so complicated that it might be necessary, but from your description, it is NOT necessary in your case. An experienced cosmetic dentist could definitely make those teeth look straight. I don’t think your dentist is an expert cosmetic dentist. That is why he is suggesting Invisalign. It will help compensate for what he is not capable of doing on his own.
My suggestion is you find an expert cosmetic dentist to do your case. You will be much happier with the results. To find one with real expertise and proven artistry, I would look on the mynewsmile.com website. These are some of the best cosmetic dentists in the country.
This blog is brought to you by New Orleans Cosmetic Dentist Dr. Duane Delaune.