Modern dental treatments can make your smile look its best while improving your comfort and dental health. The following are some types of dental treatments your teeth may need:
Porcelain veneers and laminates
Veneers/laminates are custom-made to precisely fit and cover the front surfaces of your teeth. They’re bonded to the surface of your teeth and can improve their color, shape or size.
Veneers/laminates can be made from porcelain or resin composites, although porcelain is more resistant to stains and looks more natural.
Veneers/laminates are often used to address the following issues:
- Discolored teeth
- Chipped or broken teeth
- Uneven, worn down or irregularly shaped teeth
Porcelain crowns and bridges
Crowns and bridges are two examples of types of dental treatments involving fixed devices cemented onto your existing teeth.
Porcelain bonded to a metal shell creates a crown that’s strong, yet attractive. Crowns are used to entirely cover an existing tooth, often for the following reasons:
- To help attach a bridge
- To cover a discolored or misshapen tooth
- To restore a weakened or fractured tooth
- To replace a large filling when there isn’t enough tooth remaining
Bridges are used to fill gaps if you’re missing one or more teeth. Porcelain bridges can match the color of the surrounding, natural teeth, serving as a cosmetic function while also helping to prevent against problems caused by missing teeth, including the following:
- Rotating or shifting adjacent teeth
- Gum disease
Gum lifting
Gum lifting is another great dental treatment that utilizes lasers to reshape the gums, helping your smile look better. The procedure is effective for addressing the following issues:
- Gums that haven’t receded after a permanent tooth comes in
- Gums that have receded over time, exposing more of the tooth surface
This treatment is sometimes performed along with another cosmetic procedure. For example, if you’re getting veneers, these may look better if your gums are evenly lowered or raised to an attractive level.
Full mouth rehabilitation
Full mouth rehabilitation corrects poorly aligned jaws and teeth that are worn, missing, crooked or broken. It helps not only with cosmetic issues but also with pain and other problems. The process rebuilds or restores all of your teeth at once.
If you have any of the following, full mouth rehabilitation may be an appropriate dental treatment:
- Jaw, muscle pain, or headache due to bite issues
- Damaged teeth, including those that are worn or fractured
- Missing teeth
Dental implants
Dental implants are replacement tooth roots. They’re placed in your jaw, providing a stable foundation for a replacement tooth or bridge. This dental treatment can also be used to support dentures.
Dental implants provide the following benefits:
- They help keep your adjacent teeth from developing issues.
- They can assist in avoiding the bone loss that can occur because of missing teeth.
- They look and feel like natural teeth.
- Since they fuse with bone, they’re permanent.
Root canal treatment
This type of dental treatment can save a tooth when the pulp becomes inflamed or infected. The pulp is removed, the inside of the tooth is disinfected, filled and sealed, and a crown or filling is used to protect the tooth.
This procedure is very similar to getting a filling, and saving the tooth has the following advantages:
- Protects your other teeth from excessive wear
- Preserves normal biting force and sensation
- Allows you to efficiently chew
- Keeps a natural appearance
For more information about the types of dental treatments that can benefit you, contact The Sadati Center for Aesthetic Dentistry in Wellington/West Palm Beach for an appointment.
