Treating Black Triangles with Veneers

Hello, I'm Dr. Park Jonguk, director of Dream Dental Clinic.

To solve problems with the front teeth,

you need to use a material that can reproduce the color of the front teeth.

Currently, the materials that count as tooth-colored are

GI, resin, and ceramic —

these three,

and GI, for use on the front teeth,

is close to tooth color but has some difference.

So in the end, there are two options: resin and ceramic.

Compared to ceramic, resin has a simpler, faster treatment process

and is also less expensive.

The problem is that it discolors over time,

and while it's very similar to tooth color,

there's a difference in translucency and surface texture.

Compared to resin, ceramic

takes longer to treat

and requires a technically quite demanding treatment process.

But it can be made to look almost like a natural tooth.

Not all ceramic matches tooth color —

only well-made ceramic ends up matching tooth color.

There's inevitably a technical difference from one dental clinic or one dental lab to another.

When resin is used to treat the front teeth,

if the size gets beyond a certain point,

it becomes quite unnatural-looking.

As the gum recedes between the teeth,

the dark triangular shape that appears

is, literally, called a black triangle.

A black triangle.

As an aside, there are a few things we insist on saying in English even though we could just as easily say them in Korean —

maybe because saying it in English somehow makes it sound like the name of a specific condition.

Anyway...

A black triangle like this

needs to be treated with one of two methods, resin or veneers,

and as I mentioned earlier,

resin can't fully match tooth color

and discolors over time,

so veneer treatment shows a more lasting, more esthetic result.

One of the front teeth has a fairly strong yellowish tone.

It was treated with resin.

Not only that, but there are black triangles between the teeth as well.

To treat both the unnatural tooth color

and the black triangles,

we proceed with veneer treatment.

You can see that the resin area is quite large.

The shape and color of the teeth are also esthetically unsatisfactory,

so we improve them through veneers.

We proceed with an analysis of the current teeth.

Analysis of the current teeth is very important in every veneer treatment.

Especially in treating black triangles,

because there are so many considerations — the relationship between gum and tooth, tooth shape, proportions, and more —

diagnosis is especially important.

Because after treatment the teeth inevitably become somewhat larger and take on a more square feel than before,

that point needs to be discussed in detail during the consultation.

Also, depending on the gum and tooth shape, the amount of tooth reduction can vary quite a lot.

In every case,

the expected amount of tooth reduction must be decided before treatment proceeds.

Following the diagnosed plan,

tooth reduction was carried out.

Fortunately, with very minimal reduction,

we were able to prevent the black triangle

and improve both the shape and the color of the teeth.

The veneer treatment for the black triangle

was completed successfully.

The teeth retain a three-dimensional quality similar to natural teeth,

and the overall impression of the teeth is clean and bright.

Each area of the teeth has natural translucency,

and even though the black triangle is gone,

the harmony between the gums and teeth is quite good.

Natural beauty.

Since 2006, Dream Dental Clinic