A Transformation Into a Beautiful Shape: Veneers

In dentistry, there are two treatments for achieving aesthetic goals.

One is orthodontic treatment.

It's a treatment that can even change the overall look of the face by correcting a poor bite or moving the position of the teeth.

Because it works by moving the position of the teeth, there's no issue of reducing the teeth,

but it doesn't improve the shape of the teeth themselves, and it can't change the color of the teeth either.

The treatment that improves both the shape and color of the teeth, while also giving a slight alignment-correcting effect, is exactly veneers.

The thing that's always a question here is

should I get orthodontic treatment, or veneers?

That's the part that comes up.

There was even a time when veneer treatment was pushed through excessively

using the phrase "rapid orthodontics."

There are so many varied and complex cases that it's hard to flatly say orthodontic treatment for this case and veneers for that case.

Still, let me offer a few guidelines..

1. When pursuing the desired result with veneers would require root canal treatment because of the tooth reduction involved

2. When the main goal is to resolve a protruding mouth

In these two cases, I recommend orthodontic treatment.

On the other hand,

1. When the goal is to change the shape of the teeth themselves because of color, shape, chipping, and so on

2. When the gum condition is not suitable for orthodontic treatment

3. When, after comprehensively considering the amount of tooth reduction and the amount of change needed, veneers would not cause serious damage to the teeth

in cases like these, it can be considered fine to treat with veneers.

In this case, the edges of the teeth were chipped here and there, little by little.

The first treatment method that comes to mind would be resin.

Treating only the chipped tips of the teeth with resin involves no tooth reduction and is also quite advantageous in terms of cost.

However, resin starts to discolor after only 2–3 years, so it has the problem of not being a sustainable treatment.

Also, when only the tips of the teeth are treated like that, it tends to come off frequently.

Since treatment was being done anyway, the patient wanted to also improve the alignment of the teeth a bit further.

This was a case where the amount of reduction needed to make the teeth look pretty was quite limited, so we decided to go with veneers.

What matters here is having a detailed conversation with the patient about the amount of tooth reduction.

At our Dream Dental Clinic, we show examples of the amount of tooth reduction in similar cases so patients can make their treatment decision,

and for this case as well, the predicted amount of reduction is shown in advance.

Through case analysis, we show in advance exactly how much of the teeth will actually be reduced before starting treatment.

This process is something that absolutely must be done before treatment, as it's a process of giving the patient as much information as possible for their treatment decision, so we always carry it out.

And we proceeded with the tooth reduction as planned and completed the veneer treatment.

The most important thing we pursue in veneers is exactly a natural look.

Sometimes patients only think of the images of celebrities seen on TV or in magazines,

and want teeth that are white, opaque, extremely perfectly even, and boxy-square-shaped.

In reality, most teeth

can't help but look white when they receive the kind of lighting used for broadcasts or the lighting used for photo shoots.

But if teeth are actually made to look like that image, when seen in person,

they end up being shockingly awkward-looking teeth.

It looks something like this...

Actually, making teeth like this is quite easy and convenient from a dentist's point of view.

There's no need to pay attention to each individual tooth, and no need to worry about translucency or symmetry.

But when you actually see teeth like this in person,

they look like a row of xylitol gum sticks stuck together.

Anyone can tell at a glance that they look artificial.

Natural, yet beautiful teeth.. that's the direction Dream Dental Clinic pursues.