Emily's Invisalign and composite journey
By Dr.Chia Yeoh and Dr.Gagan Dhanjal
Initial presentation
Emily initially presented with concerns about the appearance of her teeth. She’d suffered trauma as a child which led to a proclined upper incisor, mal alignment and enamel defects on her front teeth. She was keen to achieve a more uniform alignment and to address the surface defects
Treatment
Treatment involved Invisalign clear aligners to move the teeth into the arch. This process took approximately 6 months of retainer wear. The Invisalign system is discrete and nearly invisible to the naked eye. After Invisalign, the teeth were ready for composite refinements.
Composite bonding
We scanned the teeth to make digital models. We sent them to James, our digital dental technician who made a digital design of our desired smile. We printed the models on one of our 3D printed at Perfect 32’s own digital laboratory. We carried out a trial smile so Emily could assess the design before we started the composite work.
To bond composite reliably, we need to place composite under a very dry environment. Contamination with water, oil and saliva can lead to poor adhesion and staining. We chose “edge” bonding, where we only bond to the edge of the tooth, for a number of reasons; Emily has a low lip line, meaning the top of the tooth isn’t highly visible. Edge bonding also means that Emily’s gum heath isn’t comprised with poor placed composite margins, which can sometimes happen on full coverage composite bonding. Composite edge bonding can technically difficult to place due to difficulty in shade matching and blending the edge of the composite to the tooth.
Composite bonding and invisalign are fantastic techniques in the modern dentist’s armamentarium. They can be minimally invasive and can often be more cost effective than alternatives.
At Perfect 32, we appreciate it can be difficult for patients to choose the right cosmetic dentist for them. Should you have any question or would like to talk to us about starting your cosmetic dental journey we would love to help.
The team at Perfect 32 are always available to help you with your dental journey. If you’d like to book in a consultation, please contact our team.
Telephone : 01482 863667
Email: info@perfect32.com