As the saying goes, there is more than one way to skin a cat. And at Allen Park Dental Care, there is more than one way to fix a tooth. If you are the lucky owner of a set of perfectly healthy teeth, you may never need any of these procedures. But if you are like most of us, you will need to restore a tooth eventually, and there’s probably a cosmetic dentistry procedure just right for you.
Today’s post looks at six restoration procedures that are used routinely to repair damaged teeth:
A Porcelain Veneer
These wafer-thin covers can hide a chip or crack or fix the alignment of a tooth that is slightly crooked.
A Filling, Inlay, or Onlay
This procedure has been used to restore teeth for over a century though the materials and techniques have advanced. One fairly new option is white filling replacement for metal fillings. A traditional filling is shaped and molded after it is applied to the tooth. Because inlays and onlays are produced in a dental lab, they are commonly called indirect fillings. Inlays are applied to just the center of the biting surface of a tooth (not to a cusp or point) and are often smaller than onlays. An onlay restores one or more cusps of a tooth.
Dental Bonding
Bonding, officially called direct composite veneers, is used to fix chips, cracks, stains, and make teeth longer. It is also sometimes used to fill cavities. A skilled cosmetic dentist applies pliable composite resin and molds it to the perfect shape required. The resin is then hardened with a special curing light.
A Dental Crown
A crown replaces the entire visible portion of the tooth, restoring appearance, durability, and function. Crowns are used for teeth that have had a root canal, teeth with extreme decay, the replacement tooth in a dental bridge, and the visible portion of a dental implant. Crowns can be made of all metal (such as gold), porcelain-fused-to-metal, all ceramic, or all resin.
Dental Implants
Many dentists consider a tooth implant to be the ultimate restoration because it restores the entire tooth – both root and crown. Most dental implant recipients report that the implant is indistinguishable from a natural tooth. Another boon is the fact that an implant can prevent bone recession which is common at an extraction site. Dental implants are used in a variety of applications such as anchoring dentures and dental bridges.
To find out what cosmetic dentistry from Allen Park Dental Care can do for you, call our office to schedule an appointment. We also provide a wide range of family dentistry services.
Contact Szalai & Szalai DDS – Allen Park Dental Care:
313-928-2323
Location (Tap to open in Google Maps):
5329 Allen Rd
Allen Park, Michigan
48101
