Cosmetic Dentistry in Maryland
Cosmetic dentistry is dentistry that takes care of the general appearance of your teeth, gums, and/or bite. Cosmetic dentistry can give you a great smile if you have gaps between your teeth, your teeth are misshapen, misaligned, discolored, stained, chipped, broken, or worn. Through one or more cosmetic dentistry procedures, you can finally get the smile you have always wanted.
Types of Cosmetic Surgery
There are several different kinds of cosmetic surgery that can help improve your smile.
Teeth Whitening
One of the simplest ways to improve your smiles is teeth whitening. Firstly, your dentist will clean your teeth from any plaque or tartar that might have appeared on your teeth. Then he will use a bleaching or whitening solution on them. With teeth whitening, you can achieve shades that are lighter than your natural tooth color.
Dental Veneers
Dental veneers are thin shells that are custom-made of resin or porcelain and they cover the surface of the teeth. They bond to the front of the teeth after the dentist removes a small amount of enamel from your tooth. Veneers can change the size, color, shape, or length of your teeth. Also, they can fix issues like cracked enamel, crooked teeth, or a gap between the teeth.
Dental Bonding
With dental bonding, a tooth-colored resin is applied to the tooth. Then, its solidified with a laser or ultraviolet light which bonds the material to the tooth. Then, the dentist trims, shapes, and polishes the tooth. Bonding can fix misshapen, chipped, cracked, or decayed teeth.
Dental Implants
Dental implants replace missing teeth. For this procedure, the provider surgically inserts a small screw into your jawbone. Once the screw has healed, it serves as a support for the implant’s crown.
Dental Crowns
A dental crown fits over the entire damaged or decayed tooth above the gum line. They are made from metal, ceramic, ceramic-on-mental, porcelain-fused-to-metal, or resin. Crowns can cover severely discolored or misshapen teeth or to hold a cracked tooth together.
Inlays and Onlays
Indirect fillings, also known as inlays and onlays, are made from composite materials, porcelain, or gold and fill damaged or decayed teeth. They are created in a dental laboratory and molded into place by your dentist. When the filling is bonded in the midpoint of the tooth it is called an “Inlay”, and when the filling includes one or more points of the tooth it is called an “onlay”.
Benefits of Cosmetic Dentistry
There are lots of different benefits of cosmetic dentistry besides an improved smile.
- Improved dental health – Other than improving your appearance, cosmetic dentistry helps you in preventing future dental problems. For instance, you can prevent damage to the gums and bone with dental implants and you can prevent your teeth from deterioration with dental crowns. Cosmetic dentistry alongside regular dental checkups and good oral hygiene will improve your overall dental health.
- Improved diet – Having a missing or damaged tooth or having an uneven bite can cause difficulties in your ability to chew food. Cosmetic procedures like inlays and onlays will strengthen your bite, thus improving your chewing.
- Improved finances – When you treat your teeth in time, you will prevent potentially bigger issues in the future that ask for more complex and expensive dental procedures.
- Improved self-confidence – A perfect smile will give you an enormous amount of self-confidence, which impacts every aspect of our lives like our professional careers and personal relationships.
Cosmetic Dentistry in Maryland
Dr. Hackley and our knowledgeable and compassionate staff are dedicated to helping you create a smile you love. Contact us today to schedule an appointment!