The procedure can be small or can involve a total overhaul of your dental components

A beautiful or a pleasant smile does wonders to your personality and boosts your social confidence. Smile makeover or “smile design” is the process of making some changes to your smile, the effect of which can improve your appearance, self-confidence and life style.

The smile makeover process starts with a pre-visualization of the desired end-result – this is done to educate the patient about the changes he or she can expect post the procedure. Your dental surgeon may make a wax model mock-up or a digital imaging of your teeth for you to visualize and appreciate the proposed changes.

The smile makeover procedure can be small or can involve a total overhaul of the dental components. This depends on the condition of teeth, the desired result as well as factors like what you dislike about your smile, costs involved, time & availability, etc. It also takes into account factors like skin tone, color of hair, tooth (color, size, shape), gum tissues, lip support. Every individual has unique features, so the smile makeover procedures are customized as per the needs of each one.

A smile makeover procedure may involve filling minor gaps/spaces between your teeth or improving the shape of your teeth to altering their position or changing the size or improving visibility. Most people today prefer minimal-invasive techniques i.e. preservation of maximum tooth structure.

Remember, all procedures require routine oral hygiene measures apart from regular professional care. Brushing twice daily, flossing and using mouthwash are vital in maintaining your smile makeover. Also, a quarterly visit to your dentist is mandatory to assess that everything is well. And refrain from high sugar diets or activities such as grinding of teeth and biting/chewing on hard objects such as pencils, pens, bottle caps etc.

Here are a few techniques employed during smile makeovers – they can also be mixed and matched to achieve the desired result.

• Tooth Whitening/Bleaching: Bleaching is a one of the most common methods to alter tooth color discrepancies. It can be done in office, at home or both, depending on the severity of discoloration. The results are achieved in a fairly short duration of time and no alterations are required to the existing tooth structure. The procedure basically involves oxidation of the impurities (which cause discoloration) in the teeth with a bleaching agent for a brighter and whiter smile.

• Recontouring: Using a fine polishing technique, teeth can be reshaped or re-contoured. Sharpened tooth edges, bulging or rotated part of the teeth can be slightly altered by minimal grinding. The aim of this procedure is to achieve harmony in the existing smile.

• Direct Veneers: This is a minimal-invasive technique that uses composite materials to reshape or rebuild teeth. Procedure involves coating a thin, tooth-colored composite layer to the outer surface of the teeth. Minor gaps and broken edges can also be repaired with this technique.

• Indirect Veneers: This is one of the best ways to achieve desired results in smile makeovers. It’s ideal for reshaping teeth, closing gaps, altering tooth shape problems, treating discolorations, trouble-shooting size discrepancies, etc. Veneers are minimal to moderately invasive – they require little alteration of the natural tooth structures to give astounding results and achieving a near perfect smile. They are customized for every individual as per his or her need.

• Composite Veneers: The direct composite veneers are polymerized, pre-fabricated nano-hybrid-composite enamel-shells that can be used to enhance the smile of a patient with minimal alterations of the natural tooth structure. The biggest advantage is that this is a single sitting procedure and is economical as well.

• No-Preparation Veneers: This is a non-invasive procedure. This type of veneer is 0.3-0.4 mm thin and can be placed without any preparation. They are prefabricated so re-contouring is necessary before placing these type of veneers. Achieving an exact fit may sometimes be a challenge and their scope is limited to only minor modifications.

• Orthodontics (braces): Orthodontics is all about the position of the teeth, i.e. what has caused them to arrive at their current position, what future movement may be needed, etc. Now, clear orthodontic aligners or invisible braces can straighten teeth without the wires and brackets of traditional braces. The aligners consist of a sequence of clear, removable trays that fit over the teeth to straighten them.

• Prosthetic work: Includes metal-fused porcelain, full-ceramic or zirconium crowns or bridges, which are employed when there are gross deficiencies in the smile like missing teeth, history of trauma, etc. For constructing a perfect smile in such a scenario, the existing tooth structure may require major modifications.