Cosmetic Dentistry Washington, DC - City Dental DC
The practice of dentistry encompasses an amazing array of services and procedures, all with a common goal: to help you to preserve your natural teeth as long as possible, ensure your oral health, and keep you looking and feeling great throughout life.
There's so much that can be done these days to improve the appearance of a person's smile — at any age. From powerful, professional whitening treatments to amazingly realistic porcelain veneers to state-of-the-art dental implants, there's a wide range of exciting possibilities.
The first step in any smile makeover is a thorough dental examination to make sure that your cosmetic problems really are just that, and not a sign of underlying dental disease. Once your health has been established, your smile can be cosmetically enhanced in a variety of ways.
Cosmetic & General Dentistry Procedures
Modern dentistry offers a wide range of services to make sure your teeth stay healthy, function well and look great. These procedures include:
- Cleanings & Oral Exams, to keep your teeth and gums healthy, and catch early signs of dental disease
- Cosmetic Bonding, to repair small chips or cracks
- Crowns & Bridgework, to replace large amounts of lost tooth structure and/or missing teeth
- Dental Implants, for the longest-lasting tooth replacement available today
- Extractions, to remove unhealthy teeth that cannot be saved
- Fillings, to restore decayed teeth
- Inlays & Onlays, to fill teeth with larger cavities
- Invisalign Clear Aligners, for highly discreet orthodontic treatment
- Oral Cancer Screenings, to detect a dangerous disease that can be cured if caught early
- Orthodontic Treatment, to move teeth into the right position
- Porcelain Veneers, for repairing larger chips and cracks, and reshaping teeth
- Removable Dentures, to help you smile again
- Root Canal Treatment, to rescue diseased teeth
- Sealants, to help prevent cavities
- Teeth Whitening, to brighten a faded or discolored smile
- TMD Treatment, for pain in the jaw area that can interfere with biting and chewing
- Tooth-Colored Fillings, for a completely natural, healthy look
- Tooth Decay Prevention, so you keep your natural teeth as long as possible
Bonding
Bonding is a conservative way to repair slightly chipped, discolored, or crooked teeth. During dental bonding, a white filling is placed onto your tooth to improve its appearance. The filling “bonds” with your teeth, and because it comes in a variety of tooth-colored shades, it closely matches the appearance of your natural teeth. Bonding is less expensive than other cosmetic treatments and usually can be completed in one visit to our office.
Bridges
Dental bridges may be used in conjunction with crowns to replace missing teeth, help maintain the shape of your face, and alleviate stress on your bite. A bridge replaces missing teeth with artificial teeth, literally bridging the gap where one or more teeth may have been. Your bridge can be made from gold, alloys, porcelain, or a combination of these materials, and is bonded onto surrounding teeth for support.
Crowns
Crowns are a cosmetic restoration used to strengthen a tooth or improve its shape. Crowns are most often used for teeth that are broken, worn, or partially destroyed by tooth decay.
Crowns are "cemented" onto an existing tooth and fully cover the portion of your tooth above the gum line. In effect, the crown becomes your tooth's new outer surface. Crowns can be made of porcelain, metal, or both. Porcelain crowns are most often preferred because they mimic the translucency of natural teeth and are very strong.
Dental Implants
If you've lost a tooth (or a few teeth) due to injury or disease, dental implants can rejuvenate both your smile and your oral health. A dental implant is essentially a synthetic tooth root in the form of a titanium post that is surgically embedded into the jawbone. An abutment, also known as a connector, is built and placed on the top of the implant and connects to the replacement tooth. The replacement tooth is a crown that is created to uniquely match your natural teeth. Dental implants are a permanent solution to tooth loss and offer the best stability and durability.
Teeth Whitening
There are many products and techniques available for patients who want to achieve a brighter smile, and with so many options available, it can be difficult to choose the teeth whitening method that is right for you. The first professional option is commonly referred to as in-office whitening. This procedure is performed in a dental office. During an appointment, your dental professional will apply a whitening gel to the surface of your teeth. The entire office visit generally takes about 90 minutes and you will be able to see results immediately.
Tray bleaching is a type of professional whitening that uses custom-made trays and whitening gel only available through your dentist. The whitening gel is placed in custom-fitted trays that fit perfectly over your teeth. As the peroxide in the gel breaks down, hydroxyradicals help whiten stained teeth. Unlike strips, this process whitens all your natural teeth and may contain ingredients intended to provide maximum comfort. At-home professional tray whitening generally takes 10-14 days, although you may notice results in as little as 3-5 days.
Tooth-Colored Fillings
Tooth-colored fillings, also called cosmetic or composite fillings, can help restore your damaged teeth and provide cosmetic beauty. This type of filling uses composite resins which make for a more natural-looking appearance and blends right in with your natural tooth. This type of filling is an excellent choice for repairing teeth that are chipped, cracked, decayed, damaged, stained, or discolored.
Cosmetic fillings can also replace metal fillings. Large metal fillings can actually weaken a tooth, structurally cutting the tooth in half. When you bite hard on a large metal filling, there is a good chance the filling can fracture, taking part of your precious tooth structure with it. On the other hand, cosmetic tooth-colored fillings can strengthen damaged teeth because the material used actually bonds your tooth structure together.
Veneers
Veneers are thin, custom-made shells made from tooth-colored materials such as porcelain. They are designed to cover the front side of your teeth. Veneers are natural in appearance and are a perfect option for patients wanting to make minor adjustments to the look and feel of their smile.
With veneers, you can easily correct your teeth’s imperfections to help you have a more confident, beautiful smile. You no longer need to hide your smile because of gaps, chips, stains, or misshapen teeth.
Your Smile Makeover
The most important job you have as a member of your own smile makeover team is to communicate exactly what you don't like about your smile and how you'd like it to be different. Before the first consultation, give some thought to the following questions:
- What do you like or dislike about the color, size, shape and spacing of your teeth?
- Are you pleased with how much your teeth show, both when you smile and when your lips are relaxed?
- Do you want teeth that are perfectly aligned and a bright “Hollywood White,” or would you prefer a more natural look with slight color, shape and shade variations?
- Would you like more or less of your gums to show when you smile?
It is extremely helpful for you to bring in pictures you have collected — of smiles you like, smiles you don't like, and/or photos of the way your own smile used to look, if that's the result you're aiming for. Now is the time to get started on creating a smile that will make you feel as good as you look!
