Cosmetic Dentistry

Today’s modern cosmetic dentistry is putting beautiful, healthy-looking smiles within reach for more patients of all ages, with effective treatments that are often surprisingly affordable.

Talk with us to learn more about your options for relief from a variety of cosmetic complaints. We can help:

Replace missing teeth
Whiten and give your teeth an even tone
Change your teeth’s size, shape and alignment
Fill gaps in your smile
Replace old treatments with modern alternatives, such as amalgam to resin fillings

Services

Crowns and Bridges

Inlays, onlays and crowns are called indirect restorations, because the restoration is fabricated outside of the mouth, instead of being built in layers directly onto the teeth like a filling.

An indirect restoration is called an inlay if it covers part of a tooth, without extending to a cusp (pointed tip of tooth). It is an onlay if it extends to replace a tooth’s cusp. And if it completely covers the top surface of the tooth, it is called a crown or cap.

A crown is known as a full-coverage restoration. Crowns can be used to hold together cracked teeth, cover root canal treatments, cap teeth that have been damaged by decay, and help those teeth be more resistant to further decay.

Crowns can also be used to correct tooth colour and alignment defects, as well as correct structural damage to individual teeth. Having a crown placed is more invasive than getting a veneer, but it provides more reliability when added bite-strength is required.

Your dentist will take impressions of your teeth, then the restoration is shaped to match the part of the teeth it will replace. The restoration is attached with dental cement.

Inlays, onlays and crowns are more effective than fillings in reinforcing teeth to withstand biting forces. Indirect restorations are also more resistant to further decay. If a tooth’s original structure is too compromised to support a filling, an indirect restoration can provide fantastic, long-lasting, beautiful results.

Bridges

A fixed bridge is a dental restoration to that is fixed to surrounding teeth. The bridge fills (bridges) the gap left by the missing teeth, preventing the surrounding teeth from moving into the gap and becoming misaligned.

A fixed bridge is less invasive than a dental implant. In cases where the surrounding teeth are strong enough to support the bridge, it is an excellent solution for maintaining jaw-alignment and creating a beautiful smile. Your dentist can craft a bridge that will perfectly match the colour of your surrounding teeth, and shape it to enhance your smile!

Teeth Whitening

Teeth whitening or bleaching is a simple, safe, non-invasive way to change the colour of your natural teeth enamel and is an ideal way to enhance the beauty of your smile.

Having whiter teeth has become the number one aesthetic concern of many people and there are numerous ways to approach this. The most popular way is to use a home teeth-whitening system that will whiten teeth dramatically for most people. Since teeth whitening only works on natural tooth enamel, it is important to evaluate replacement of any old white fillings, crowns, etc. to match the newly bleached teeth.
Teeth whitening is not permanent. A touch-up maybe needed every several years, and more often if you drink coffee, tea, or wine or if you smoke.

Reasons for teeth whitening:

Fluorosis (excessive fluoridation during tooth development)
Normal wear of outer tooth layer
Stained teeth due to medications (tetracycline, etc.)
Yellow, brown stained teeth

What does teeth whitening involve?

This type of teeth whitening usually requires two visits:

Impressions (molds) will be made of your teeth to make custom soft plastic trays after we decide that this is appropriate for you.
You will try on the trays for proper fit, and adjustments will be made if necessary. The trays are worn with special whitening gel solution inside either twice a day for 30 minutes or overnight for a couple of weeks depending on the degree of staining and desired level of whitening. It is normal to experience tooth sensitivity during the time you are whitening your teeth, but it will subside shortly after you have stopped bleaching. You will receive care instructions for your teeth and trays, and be encouraged to visit your dentist regularly to help maintain a beautiful, healthy, white smile.

Porcelain veneers are thin layers of porcelain fixed onto teeth to enhance appearance, and in some cases, to protect the teeth. Veneers allow many patients to achieve a dramatic smile makeover without highly invasive treatments. The results are also durable, lasting 10-30 years.

Porcelain Veneers

Veneers typically require 2-3 appointments. The first is a consultation to determine the desired look, and plan the shape of the veneers to achieve it.

During the second visit, the tooth surfaces will be prepared, by removing a very thin layer of enamel, and taking impressions of the teeth. Using these impressions, veneers are fabricated to fit onto the surfaces, either on-site, or at a lab facility.

On the third visit, the dentist will apply a cleaning solution to prepare the tooth surfaces for bonding, and the permanent veneers will be cemented.

Porcelain Crowns

Inlays, onlays and crowns are called indirect restorations, because the restoration is fabricated outside of the mouth, instead of being built in layers directly onto the teeth like a filling.

Your dentist will take impressions of your teeth, then the restoration is shaped to match the part of the teeth it will replace. The restoration is attached with dental cement.

Porcelain Fixed Bridges

CAD/CAM

CAD/CAM is a cutting-edge field of dentistry and prosthodontics which uses computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing to design and create dental restorations. It allows for veneers, bridges, implants and other dental or orthodontic appliances to be created faster and more efficiently than ever before.