Armchair diagnosis and cosmetic dentistry treatment plan.
- History:
If you'll notice, all of the cosmetic deficiencies associated with this person's smile are located at the gum line.
The front upper teeth have darkened areas, which in this person's case is either staining of or new decay formation around
white fillings (dental bonding). Different in color but similar in location, other teeth have whitened
areas at their gum line (especially the lower left teeth).
All of these cosmetic defects are most likely the result of the same set of events, dental plaque accumulation and the
subsequent formation of tooth decay. This picture actually illustrates various stages of tooth decay formation:
- The initial stages of tooth decay formation: The white areas found along the gum line.
- Active and arrested tooth decay: The dark areas of stain.
- Cosmetic dentistry treatment plan:
The most important aspect of this treatment plan is to help this person understand why tooth decay is forming.
(For more information about this check out our discussion about tooth decay.)
Typically high rates of tooth decay are related to both the presence of a diet high in sugar content and inadequate brushing technique.
Just as the white fillings that currently exist on this person's teeth have failed, any and all future dental work will fail too if her decay rate is not brought under control.
The dental work needed to make the changes illustrated in our "after" picture might be accomplished by the placement of new
white fillings (dental bonding). Certainly this would be the method of choice for some of the smaller blemishes. The upper teeth with
the most discoloration might be best treated by the placement of
porcelain veneers, doing so could also give the
dentist an opportunity to idealize the shape of the biting edge of these teeth (as shown in our "after" picture).
|
