Tag Archives: orthodontics

Dealing with Congenitally Missing Lateral Incisors

August 4, 2020 writeradmin

My daughter never received one of her adult lateral incisors. When the baby one fell out, our dentist said not to worry about it because the adjacent teeth would shift to fill in the spot. While they did, it left a bit of a gap, which leaves my daughter feeling embarrassed by her smile. This is her senior year and I’d like her to be able to go off to college feeling good about her smile. I spoke to another dentist and they recommended we open up the space and then place a dental implant there. I don’t think she’d be too keen with a mouth full of braces during her senior year of high school. Is there another option?

Laurie

Dear Laurie,

The above image shows a smile with missing lateral incisors. In the place of them are her canine teeth. As you can see, the smile doesn’t look normal. Instead, it is almost vampiric. Your daughter’s smile would look even stranger with one canine tooth. The advice her childhood dentist gave you was horribly bad.

The second dentist’s advice is sound. Your daughter has other choices aside from a full mouth of metal. Her first option is Six-Month Smiles which will allow her to fix her front teeth quickly. A second option is for her to get Invisalign. These use clear aligners instead of wires and brackets. Most responsible teenagers do very well with these. Then, when that is ready, a dental implant will be a fantastic idea.

What Her Original Dentist Should Have Done

Ideally, when her baby tooth came out and there was no adult lateral incisor, her dentist should have provided her with a dental flipper. This would have held the spot open so when she was old enough you could have just placed the dental implant. Now, because of his bad advice, you are having to add orthodontics to the mix.

I say this as a cautionary measure to others reading this post in two ways. First, in giving them the correct way to handle this situation. Second, in knowing that anytime you have a major dental decision to make, there is never any harm in getting a second opinion before moving forward.

This blog is brought to you by Lafayette, LA Dentists Drs. Foreman and Thimmesch.

Invisalign

Solution for huge tooth gap

December 31, 2019 writeradmin

I have a large tooth gap. It was last measured at 9mm. I thought about doing Snap-on Smile, but after all the tests and things, it turned out I wasn’t a candidate for that procedure. I’m too old for braces, so I’m thinking about Lumineers. I have scheduled an appointment with a Lumineers certified dentist in a couple of weeks but thought I’d check and see if you thought that was a waste of my time and money.

Kevin

Dear Kevin,

I am very glad you wrote before going through with this plan of Lumineers. While I am sure you could find a dentist willing to do it for you, it would end up a disaster!

The size of your gap is enough to fit another tooth. Unless the dentist is a top of the line, expert cosmetic dentist you are going to end up with something that looks ridiculous. And I will tell you right off the bat, dentists who advertise as placing Lumineers tend to be at the bottom of the barrel of cosmetic dentists.

The Lumineers company markets themselves to inexperienced cosmetic dentists as being easy to place because they don’t require any tooth preparation, the way other brands of porcelain veneers do. There are two problems with that.

One, that rarely turns out looking anything but bulky. Some people have described it as horse teeth. And, two, there is a whole lot more to creating a beautiful smile than just the tooth preparation.

An Invisible Alternative to Braces

side by side compairison of braces — Braces versus Invisalign

You mentioned you were too old for braces. Has your dentist discussed Invisalign with you yet? These are sometimes called invisible braces.

Both people in the image above are wearing orthodontics. The one on the left is wearing traditional braces. The one on the right is wearing Invisalign. No one will be able to tell you are wearing them even at a conversational distance.

With the size of the gap you are talking about Invisalign would be my number one recommendation for repair. It has an added benefit as well. Invisalign uses clear plastic aligners to straighten your teeth. Those aligners can double as teeth whitening trays. This will allow you to straighten and whiten your teeth all at once.

If you don’t like the idea of any orthodontics, then you will need to go with porcelain veneers. However, as I mentioned above, you will need an expert cosmetic dentist in your case. I would only see an AACD accredited dentist to do your porcelain veneers case, if that is what you decide on.

This blog is brought to you by Lafayette, LA Dentist Dr. Mike Malone.

Cosmetic Dentist

Can a Cosmetic Dentist Fix Spaces Between My Teeth?

December 12, 2017 writeradmin

I have some spaces between my teeth that I want fixed, but I don’t want metal braces. Are there cosmetic options?

Fiona L.

Dear Fiona,

A woman with a gorgeous smile created by cosmetic dentist Dr. Mike Malone — A gorgeous smile created by cosmetic dentist Dr. Mike Malone

You have quite a few options to fix the spaces between your teeth. If you want to close the spaces, you have options other than traditional metal braces. Invisalign is a brand of orthodontics which uses invisible aligners to straighten your teeth. They’re very effective, working in less time than traditional braces.

The aligners have the benefit of being able to double as teeth whitening aligners. That way you can whiten your teeth and straighten them at the same time.

Cosmetic Dentistry Options for Closing Teeth

Tooth bonding: Depending on the size of the gaps between your teeth, dental bonding is a fantastic, fairly inexpensive option for you.
Porcelain veneers: If there are other things you want to change about your teeth, then veneers are your best option. They can change anything—the shape, size, color, and character.

Choosing your Cosmetic Dentist

If you choose the cosmetic option over the orthodontic option, it’s important you choose your cosmetic dentist carefully. You want to make sure the smile you get will be a beautiful one. Not every dentist can pull that off. It takes both technical knowledge as well as an artistic eye. It’s very challenging for patients to know who is capable of that type of advanced cosmetic work.

Because of that, the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry (AACD) started an accreditation program. It’s designed to test dentists on their technical skill and their artistic ability. There are stringent oral and written exams and they have to show a series of cases they’ve done of specific procedures to make sure they create not just technically proficient but gorgeous as well.

If you want a beautiful smile, go to an AACD accredited dentist.

This blog is brought to you by Dr. Mike Malone.

Cosmetic Dentist

Can I Close My Tooth Gap Without Invisalign?

October 24, 2016 writeradmin

I wanted to close a tooth gap. I wanted to do it with cosmetic dentistry, but my dentist wants to do orthodontics. Isn’t there a cosmetic way to do it?

Amanda L. – Idaho

Amanda,

Yes, there are a couple of cosmetic options to close a tooth gap without orthodontics. Two cosmetic options are dental bonding and porcelain veneers.

Dental bonding is the most logical if all you want to do is close the gap. A cosmetic dentist will use a composite resin to fill in the tooth gap.

Porcelain veneers are a bit of an overtreatment for simply closing a tooth gap. But, if you had several changes you wanted to change about your smile, such as the shape, size, and color it would make more sense.

However, let me give you a small word of caution. If your dentist didn’t suggest either of those, it’s likely because he’s not confident in cosmetic procedures. You’ll want to find a skilled cosmetic dentist.