Jonathan came to Adler Cosmetic & Family Dentistry at his fiancé’s recommendation. He wanted to make sure his teeth were going to look good in time for his wedding.  This was a major concern for Jonathan because two of his front teeth were dark and discolored from previous root canals and he didn’t like the spacing or color of his other teeth.
Dr. Adler addressed Jonathan’s concerns by offering him several treatment options. One option was Zoom whitening to brighten the color of his other teeth, Invisalign to straighten all of his teeth, a post for #8 (his upper front right tooth) for support and veneers for his front teeth since teeth darkened because of root canals would not lighten to the extent of his other teeth with just Zoom alone.  A second option was veneers on the front four teeth with a post in #8 and the Zoom whitening with no Invisalign. This second option would fix spacing issues only in the front four teeth but not any of the other teeth. Jonathan chose the second option in order to have the treatment completed in time for his wedding and will consider doing Invisalign in the future.
Â
Jonathan started the Zoom whitening after having a thorough cleaning to insure healthy gums and a good result. It is important to have a cleaning within 6 months prior to whitening to insure the best results. Whitening dirty teeth is about as effective as painting a dirty car. During the Zoom whitening, Jonathan’s gums and soft tissue are protected by a liquid dam. The whitening solution was then applied to the teeth and the activating light was used. The process was repeated in four consecutive sessions. The whole process took approximately two hours. Customized whitening trays were made during the appointment to allow for any needed touch ups at home. Jonathan was at least two shades lighter by the end of the appointment.
Â
In order to fabricate the veneers and post, impressions were taken of Jonathan’s teeth and set to the laboratory so they could create a wax-up. A wax-up is a wax model of what Jonathan’s veneers will look like on actual models of his teeth.  This was used to insure that the look and size of the veneer would be correct to give Jonathan the most aesthetic smile. Once approved, Dr. Adler prepared the four upper front teeth for the veneers and post. Veneers require very little of the natural tooth to be removed in order prepare the teeth.  The post on #8 was needed to give added support since that tooth had been root canalled previously. Temporaries are then placed on the teeth until the final crowns are ready. Even with just the temporaries on, Jonathan’s teeth were already looking good.
Â
When fabricating any teeth, especially front teeth, Dr. Adler and the lab make sure that they have the best color match possible to give the patient a bright but natural smile. The aim is to have great looking teeth but not be able to pick out which ones are real and which ones are not. Careful consideration was taken to make sure that Jonathan’s teeth were both well shaped and shaded.  Once the custom fabrication was completed, Jonathan returned to have the final restorations cemented.  The temporary veneers where removed and a high quality translucent cement was used to chemically bond the veneers and post to the teeth. The results were dramatic. Now Jonathan has strong great looking front teeth. Jonathan was all smiles for his wedding pictures.
Â
