I went to my dentist in order to get a smile makeover. However, he is suggesting that I restore all of my teeth using dental crowns. I’m not sure about doing that with all of my teeth. I just wanted the ones you could see. It seems like a lot of money for teeth you can’t see that are healthy. What do you think about this situation?
Dustin
Dear Dustin,
Please don’t go forward with this. What your dentist is wanting to do is known as a full-mouth reconstruction. This isn’t something that is used for a smile makeover. This is done either because your teeth are ground down to nubs or because you have serious TMJ Disorder. You mentioned neither of these.
Another concern I have is that you were just wanting a smile makeover. This is typically done with porcelain veneers. The fact that your dentist is suggesting a smile makeover with dental crowns tells me that he does not have training in porcelain veneers. Rather than tell you that, he is steering you toward a procedure that he does know. This means that he is unlikely to be able to provide a beautiful result for you.
There is something even more dangerous with this, too. Like a smile makeover, a full mouth reconstruction takes advanced post-doctoral training. While with cosmetic work, the training will focus on getting it to look natural and beautiful, with a full-mouth reconstruction, your dentist will need both the cosmetic training as well advanced training on occlusion (how the teeth meet together). There are countless horror stories on badly done full-mouth reconstructions that led to people having TMJ Disorder.
I do not think this is the best dentist for you. I want you to find a dentist who has post-doctoral training in cosmetic dentistry and provide you with porcelain veneers instead of dental crowns. You will not need them on all of your teeth either, just the ones that are visible when you smile. Though, they will likely suggest that you have teeth whitening done first. This way the lower teeth will blend in with the teeth that have the veneers.
This blog is brought to you by Duluth, GA Dentist Dr. David Marion.