Everyone desires an aesthetic and natural smile. However, there are many dental problems that prevent smile and deteriorate the dental health. There are many different conditions such as gum problems, gum recession, tartar, yellowing of the teeth, and tooth distortions.
That is why the Aesthetic smile design is known as a multidisciplinary field. Each of the branches of dentistry such as endodontics, orthodontics, prosthesis and periodontics should work in harmony depending on the needs of the person whose smile design is made.
Smile appearance, which has a great place in people’s social lives, is very important in terms of self-confidence and social relations. A beautiful and glamorous smile should be suitable for person just like skin care, make-up and haircut. With advanced dentistry technologies and the ability of many disciplines to work in harmony, smile design nowadays it is done in a personalized way.
What is Smile Design?
Smile design is the process of aestheticizing the teeth, jaw and lip position during the smile in accordance with the person’s mouth and jaw structure and face. Smile design, which is the main branch of aesthetic dentistry, covers various forms of treatment. Different disciplines need to be applied according to the individual’s needs and outcome expectations.
Many different dental applications may be required, such as correcting crooked teeth with orthodontic treatment, completing with implant or bridge treatment if there is a missing tooth, and treatment by a periodontologist when there is a problem such as gum recession.
What are the Procedures Applied for Smile Design?
It is the duty of professional dentists to determine the needs of the person who applies to the dentist for smile design and to create the most suitable treatment plan for the person, considering the working area of all disciplines.
The aim of smile design is to meet the needs for healthy teeth first and then to provide an aesthetic appearance. Smile design planning is made depending on personal aesthetic requests. Frequently applied smile design applications are as follows.
- Determining the smile line and interfering with the tooth lengths
- Periodontology treatments for gum recession or diseases
- Orthodontic treatment or bonding applications for split teeth
- Porcelain, laminated or zirconium dental veneer applications
- Orthodontic treatment for crooked teeth
- Whitening application to achieve the desired color in the tooth.
- Endodontic treatment for broken or decayed teeth
- Other treatments and applications depending on requirements
What are the Processes in Smile Design?
Before starting the smile design process, 3D modeling of the oral and dental health structure with digital dentistry technologies should be done digitally. In this way, negative conditions that affect the dental health of the person are determined. It is possible to examine smile design in three main processes. These processes are as follows.
First Stage: Scanning and Planning
- Thanks to 3D intraoral scanning, the current structure is transferred to the digital environment.
- It is necessary to photograph the person’s smile and lip positions from different angles. By this way, the person’s smile is examined.
- The patient is informed by planning applications in a multidisciplinary manner.
- The smile design, which is planned with the 3Shape program, should be shown digitally and examined together with the patient. At this stage, the person who wants to have a smile design can see the final version of his/her smile without any procedure made on his/her teeth.
Second Stage: Treatment and Mockup Application
- Decayed teeth are treated.
- Applications such as root canals and fillings are made.
- Orthodontic treatments are applied.
- Gum treatments are performed.
- Digital dental measurements are made with 3D intraoral scanning.
Third Stage: Permanent Applications and the Result
- Tooth veneers such as zirconium, porcelain, and laminate, which are produced depending on the patient’s digital dental measurements, should be rehearsed first. It is then presented to the patient.
- Permanent applications are completed when the patient approves the rehearsal.
- After the smile design, the details about oral and dental care are explained to the patient.
The smile design process is usually completed in these three stages when the patient does not have a special condition. The patient gains his/her new smile as a result of three appointments.
