What Goes Into Designing your Cosmetic Treatment Plan

When you have a tooth that’s stained, decayed, chipped, or cracked, restoring it to its natural, healthy appearance requires skill and precision. Cosmetic dental treatments should look as natural and seamless as possible, which means that all of the following needs to be taken into consideration:

Soft Tissue Height – Part of making sure that your restoration – veneers and dental crowns – matches the appearance of the rest of your teeth, is taking soft tissue into consideration. A restoration shouldn’t be placed too far into the gum tissue, throw-off the aesthetic balance, or cause gum irritation and inflammation.

Picking the Right Restoration – It’s not uncommon for some dental offices to recommend the restoration that requires the most work and therefore the higher price tag; however you don’t necessarily always need the most extensive treatment. It’s important to save as much of your natural tooth structure as possible and select the restoration that is best for your oral health and treatment goals. Even small changes, like teeth whitening, can provide a significant boost for the appearance of your smile.

Comfort and Durability – Your cosmetic treatment shouldn’t irritate soft tissue and should remain a beautiful addition to your smile for as long as possible. Selecting the appropriate materials, such as porcelain, ceramic, tooth-colored composite, and zirconia help you achieve bio-friendly treatment that stands the test of time, and looks as natural as possible.

Matching Color and Luminosity – A treated tooth shouldn’t stand out in your smile by looking obviously fake, or being a completely different color than surrounding teeth. Considering the shade, hue, and luminosity of your natural teeth are important factors in a cosmetic dental restoration. With this information, your new tooth can be created to be a perfect complement for your natural smile aesthetic.

Planning Your Treatment at Peninsula Dental-Facial Esthetics

Dr. Kinsel puts a great deal of care into helping you meet your cosmetic dental goals and has specialty training in prosthodontics, dentures, crowns and fixed bridges. With an on-site, full-service dental laboratory, we’re able to ensure that your restorations are created with all of the above criteria in-mind. We also have an on-staff Master Ceramist who is especially skilled at creating life-like reproductions of your natural teeth for use in cosmetic dental prosthetics.

If you have questions about getting cosmetic care, please feel free to call our Foster City cosmetic dental office for more information.

Dental Implants May Result In Better Quality Of Life For Osteoporotic Women

Science Daily (6/12) reports on a study published June 11 in the Journal of International Dentistry that “suggests dental implants may be the best route to take” as treatment for tooth loss in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis. The study looked at women with one or more adjacent teeth missing, excluding wisdom teeth or third molars, who had restoration work done that included implants, a fixed partial denture, a removable denture, or no restoration work. “Women with dental implants reported a higher overall satisfaction with their lives, said Christine DeBaz, a third-year Case Western Reserve dental student,” who served as the study’s lead researcher.

When to Consider Implant Dentures

If you’re a removable denture-wearer, you enjoy the full and complete smile that dentures provide. However, there are some downsides to removable prosthetics that can begin to cause problems over time, or have an effect on quality of life.

It may be time to think about a more permanent restoration if you’re experiencing:

Ill-fitting prosthetics – Dentures that don’t fit comfortably can cause problems all day long – from shifting out of place more frequently, to making eating a hassle. While removable dentures can be re-sized to be more comfortable and secure, this is often a lengthy process that may be need to be repeated, depending on wear and tear of your appliance and whether gum tissues have shrunk
.
Soft tissue irritation – Because removable dentures are not fixed in place permanently, they can become loose and rub or slip on gums. As mentioned above, this causes tissues to shrink over time. In short, removable dentures can be hard on gum tissue and cause more problems than they solve.

Dietary restrictions - If you’ve begun to feel limited by the foods you cannot eat while wearing removable dentures, it may be time for a fixed prosthetic. Removable denture wearers typically do not have full biting and chewing power, so crunchy foods and foods that are difficult to bite into should be avoided. But having to refrain from eating some of your favorite foods in order to accommodate your dental restoration is frustrating.

Choosing Implant-Supported Dentures

Getting dental implants to permanently secure your full dentures provides a huge boost for your oral health and function. If you’ve been in and out of your dentist’s office for repeated fittings lately, a fixed denture could be the solution. Implant dentures rest on dental implant posts, not on gums, and therefore do not create soft tissue problems or limit your eating habits.

A few dental implants could be a significant difference in how you feel about your smile, and how your dental restoration improves your daily life – not detracts from it.  Dr. Richard Kinsel helps patients get strong new smiles with full-arch implants in Foster City. Contact our office today for more information on trading your removable dentures for a fixed implant denture.