Treatments
Digital Smile Design
Digital Smile Design is a treatment planning protocol that allows for careful analysis of the patient’s facial, mouth and dental structures through state-of-the-art videography and digital technology. The digital smile design, today known also as the Hollywood Smile, evaluates the structure of the mouth and teeth as whole. Deficiencies are detected and the factors that will provide the ideal smile are taken into consideration.
In general, a Hollywood Smile is an impressive and remarkable figure of smile that movie stars, celebrities and artists make in accordance with their profiles. In smile design procedure, firstly, a panoramic dental x-ray is taken. The design process starts based on the data obtained from dental x-ray, the result of intraoral examination and in line with the complaints.
Patients applying to our clinic for the smile design procedure take the following steps:
Taking panoramic dental x-ray and intraoral examination
Photo shooting recording several facial expressions during photo session.
Video shooting recording all natural facial expressions and smile design is evaluated within these limits.
Getting intraoral impressions and creating records with the dental laboratory.
Photographs taken are uploaded to the computer and digital measurements are taken.
While taking measurements, parameters such smile line, face shape, lip structure and asymmetries etc. are taken into consideration. The patient’s desire and ideal limits are combined in a common point. All measurements taken are shared with the dental laboratory and an ideal design is tried to be made as a result of this data transfer.
A prototype is prepared by using the measurements taken and the design made. This prototype is tested in the patient’s mouth without any operation. In this way, the patient can see the outcome of the treatment even before starting the procedure. The patient can decide what he or she desires in try-in session and the dentist can make a clearer plan.
What is smile design?
Today, the importance of first impression in communication is undisputed. A beautiful smile is a factor that keeps you one step ahead in social life and makes it easier to open doors with your self-confidence. A confident smile allows you to make a good impression on people.
Research show that we focus on the teeth of the people in front of us while laughing and talking. Therefore, teeth that have a proper alignment, colour and shape and are in the ideal smile line are more appreciated.
Smile design aims at the most ideal smile determined within personal limits and in line with the data received from the patient.
What is an ideal smile?
It is a smile that is in harmony with the whole face, pleasing ourselves and others and most importantly that has not lost its natural looking.
Which factors affect an ideal smile?
There are many factors affecting an ideal smile. For example, the differences between man’s and woman’s anatomy are reflected in their tooth structure. While men’s teeth are more prominent and sharp-edged, these lines of women are softer. While men’s teeth corners are flatter, those of women are more oval. The front two teeth of women are longer and more prominent.
One of the classical information is also that the tooth structures and the shape of face are similar. However, some exceptions provide better results. For example, long teeth to be placed in a patient’s mouth with oval face cause the face to appear longer and thinner.
With aging, the length of the teeth shortens, deformities in the tooth surface occur and colour of the tooth darken. Gum recession causes gaps to form between the teeth and aesthetic problems. It removes the effects of aging by teeth whitening, closing the gaps between the teeth caused by gum recession with the help of prostheses, eliminating tooth irregularities and deficiencies. With the elimination of dental deficiencies, speech improves, aesthetic needs are satisfied and collapse of the lip and the cheek are prevented.
With aging, the vertical dimension of the face decreases due to wear on the teeth. Therefore, the lips are closed on each other. The upper lip hangs down and the upper teeth become less visible. On the other hand, the teeth in the lower jaw become more visible. All these make the effects of aging visible. Depending on whether the lips are thick, thin, short or long, the teeth are positioned and the defects are tried to be eliminated.
No matter how beautiful your teeth are, if your gums are not healthy, this will spoil the beauty of your teeth. Oedema, redness and bright appearance in the gums caused by gingivitis will cause aesthetic problems. Sometimes the gums appear more than they should. This problem is called as “gummy smile”. Gummy smile can be treated by modifying the gingival contour for the appropriate position.
Another gum problem is the dark colour of the gingiva. This is due to the gingival pigmentation in dark-skinned individuals. Another reason of darkening is smoking. These problems can be easily eliminated with laser treatment.
Gum recession is also a problematic situation from the aesthetic point of view. If the degree of recession is high, open area is closed with the tissue grafts taken from the inside of the mouth. It is possible to solve all kinds of aesthetic problems with developing technologies. The important thing is that the diagnosis should be right and to choose the most appropriate treatment method.
Problems related to the tooth colour can be eliminated in a short time like 30 minutes with the teeth whitening treatment. In cases where bleaching is not sufficient, we solve problems with adhesive dental treatments such as laminate veneer, crown or bonding. Orthodontic treatment that protects natural teeth is our priority for cases such as teeth crowding. If the orthodontic treatment with brackets or transparent aligners is not enough, we support the treatment process with prosthetic treatments.
Dark-coloured fillings can cause a bad appearance while smiling. By replacing these fillings with tooth-coloured composite fillings or porcelain fillings, we can provide an aesthetic smile.
Deformities in teeth, tooth wears due to aging, fractures because of trauma can be treated with adhesive dental procedures and laminate veneers. It is possible to make big differences with minimal touches.