Most studies show that the physical attribute that people notice first and remember the most when they meet someone new is their smile. The benefits of having a nice smile are clear - improved appearance, better self-esteem, improved personal and professional relationships.
There are many options today to improve someone’s smile - tooth whitening, orthodontics, bonding, veneers, crowns, recontouring teeth, gum reshaping, and combinations of each of them. The best choice is always the most conservative one that will achieve the desired result that also minimizes the need for future treatment.
The first thing that many patients looking to improve their smile think of are veneers because they read about them in the magazines and see the pictures of the movie stars with beautiful white teeth - that this option while expensive will give them the smile that they’ve always wanted in a very short period of time. In the right patient, veneers are a wonderful treatment option and can provide the patient a life-changing service. Unfortunately, veneers are oftentimes presented as the best option without much discussion of the longterm implications of this decision for the patient. Veneers are in fact the least desirable option for many patients; particularly for the young patient. with veneers, the healthy enamel of the tooth needs to be removed and this option can oftentimes involve multiple teeth (sometimes 12-14 teeth) - once completed, the patient unfortunately can be on the path to a lifetime of ongoing future treatment. Fracture of the veneer(s), recurrent decay, recession of the gum tissue, tooth sensitivity are all potential future problems that did not exist prior to the veneers. Having veneers placed without the preparation of the teeth generally will either result in a bulky non-aesthetic smile or veneers that are so thin that the strength of the material is compromised and fracture is likely in the future.
The starting point for someone looking to improve their smile would be having a detailed examination looking at close-up images of the existing smile using dental photography and analyzing the bite relationship using models to determine which option would be the most conservative and right one for you. If you’re looking to improve your smile, there is no better time to do this for yourself than now.
