While traditional dentistry focuses on oral hygiene and preventing, diagnosing and treating oral disease, cosmetic dentistry focuses on improving the appearance of a person’s teeth, mouth and smile. In other words restorative, general and/or family dental practices address dental problems that require necessary treatment, whereas cosmetic dentistry provides elective – or desired – treatments or services.

Cosmetic dentistry may also provide restorative benefits.

With that in mind, here are a few questions that first-time cosmetic dentistry patients frequently ask. Perhaps yours are among them:

Q: Can jagged teeth be remedied?

A: Yes. Typically, jagged teeth only requires a simple reshaping of the edges. The procedure can be done even without the aid of anesthetics. If there is no excessive chipping involved, a cosmetic dentist can simply use sanding or dental polishing discs to achieve the ideal height consistency for your teeth. However, depending on the extent of damage, a cosmetic dentist may have to attach a veneer or a crown.

Q: Veneer vs. crown—is there a difference?

A: Though the two are similar in which they are both glued to a damaged tooth, there lies a distinct difference between them: A tooth veneer is a specially shaped sliver made of porcelain or plastic that covers only the visible damaged portion of a tooth. Meanwhile, a crown covers a tooth’s entire damaged surface. Both procedures can give patients significant cosmetic improvements to their teeth, as well as give their teeth stability, strength, and durability.

Q: What can I do about teeth discoloration?

A: Teeth discoloration can be caused by a variety of reasons including age, cigarette smoking, frequent consumption of dark beverages (e.g. coffee, red wine), or certain diseases. Teeth whitening by a cosmetic dentist can remove or reduce teeth discoloration. Though generally done for cosmetic reasons, teeth whitening can also improve a patient’s oral health because the procedure gets rid of any existing plaque or tartar.

Hopefully, the information above has helped answer some of your questions. If you believe cosmetic dentistry is something you need, feel free to make an appointment with your nearest San Diego or Poway dentist anytime.

(Source: Cosmetic Dentistry: Treatments, Trends and Cosmetic Dentists, Consumer Guide to Dentistry)

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