Veneers can protect the natural enamel of your teeth.
To begin, your Mission Viejo dentist will ask how you honestly feel about your smile. You'll discuss any issues or imperfections that make you feel self-conscious, and what would you would like to change about your smile appearance. Sharing these details helps your cosmetic dentist craft a precise cosmetic treatment plan made just for you.
During the comprehensive oral exam, your cosmetic dentist will determine whether or not you qualify for your desired cosmetic treatment. Cosmetic dentistry should only be performed on healthy teeth, so your dentist will discuss if any restorative work is required before beginning your cosmetic journey.
Once your consultation and exams are complete, a customized cosmetic treatment plan will be crafted to suit your needs and preferences. This outline will help you understand each step of your unique cosmetic procedure.
To help you choose the right treatment for your smile, your cosmetic dentist will offer a variety of different options. This allows you to select one that aligns with your lifestyle, budget, and priorities.
Once you and your cosmetic dentist decide on the perfect cosmetic treatment plan, our friendly team will schedule your next visit and guide you through flexible payment options.
Skip the office and whiten your teeth in the comfort of your own home with take-home whitening kits. Over the course of a week, you'll start to notice subtle, gradual results for a gleaming smile.
To create your reusable custom whitening trays, your dentist will take impressions of your teeth, using either dental putty or digital images with an intraoral scanner.
Once the trays are complete, we'll provide you with the whitening product and instructions for proper use. By following your dentist's instructions, you'll get professional-grade results right at home. We provide teeth whitening for the whole family!
In-office whitening is a swift treatment process completed by your dentist that can brighten your smile up to 10 shades in just one session. Patients looking to illuminate their smile for a special upcoming occasion will love the fast results from in-office whitening.
To begin your treatment, your dentist will place a special gel on your gums, which will protect your mouth during the whitening process. Retractors will be used to keep your cheeks away from your teeth and the whitening treatment. Next, a powerful whitener will be applied and activated with a UV light. The treatment will be rinsed away after one hour to reveal a brighter smile. This process may be repeated several times over multiple appointments to achieve your desired level of whiteness.
During the dental bonding process, your dentist applies a dental resin directly to your (chipped or cracked) tooth to match the natural shade of your smile. Tooth bonding also helps with discolored teeth, gaps between the teeth, tooth sensitivity and to prevent future decay. Your dentist will then correct the shape of your tooth by carefully shaping and sculpting the resin to restore your smile's overall look and functionality. This non-invasive process takes about 15-20 minutes for each tooth.
Also known as enameloplasty, shaping & contouring is a cosmetic process that is often used alongside bonding. To shape and contour, a thin layer of enamel is removed from uneven, chipped, or pointy teeth to ensure your desired shape and appearance.
Veneers are thin, durable, tooth-colored porcelain shells that are attached to the front of teeth. This cosmetic feature can treat small gaps between teeth, severe staining, misshapen or uneven teeth, and much more. Veneers can completely transform your smile and last for years. Once veneers are placed on the tooth, they cannot be detached. Taking a veneer off of the tooth removes some of your natural enamel, which is an irreversible process.
Similar to veneers, Lumineers fasten to the front of your tooth to improve its shape, color, and overall appearance. Lumineers are less than half of the thickness of a standard veneer, which is only about as thick as a contact lens. Despite their extreme thinness, Lumineers are still a durable and long-lasting cosmetic solution.
Thanks to their thin nature, Lumineers can often be placed without removing any of your natural enamel, which allows them to be potentially removed and replaced. Talk to your dentist to see if Lumineers are right for you and your smile.
Botox, or botulinum toxin, is typically used to smooth wrinkles and reduce the appearance of fine lines on the skin. Patients seeking solutions for TMD (temporomandibular joint disorders) can also turn to Botox for temporary relief. Dentists are experts on the mouth and facial muscles, making them ideal administers of Botox.
Fillers are injected into the skin to enhance facial features, such as the lips and cheeks. This treatment can also plump and rejuvenate aging skin to better complement the smile. For patients looking to enhance sagging cheeks or thinning lips, fillers can provide remarkable results.
If you're unsure of which cosmetic treatments are the best fit for you and your smile, or if you believe you may need multiple treatments to achieve desired results, talk to your dentist about a cosmetic dental makeover.
As a highly customized, multi-treatment plan, a cosmetic makeover is specifically tailored to treat all issues you may have with your smile. Every smile is unique, so processes differ from patient to patient. Multiple cosmetic and restorative dental procedures will be completed over a period of time to ensure you are proud of your brand new smile.
Invisalign is an excellent alternative to traditional orthodontics that utilizes a series of clear aligners made from a durable plastic called SmartTrack. If you lead an active lifestyle, or don't want to deal with the discomfort and look of metal or ceramic braces, Invisalign might be the solution you've been looking for.
With advances in Invisalign technology, we can now utilize the treatment to correct more complex orthodontic issues than ever before. Get in touch with us today to set up a consultation and find out if Invisalign is right for you
Crowns are typically thought of as a restorative treatment, but they offer cosmetic benefits, too. A dental crown can be fabricated out of tooth-colored materials such as porcelain, ceramic, zirconia, or porcelain-fused-to-metal materials so that it matches the rest of your teeth and doesn’t disturb the aesthetic harmony of your smile.
These cosmetic crowns can cover up aesthetic imperfections with your teeth, such as discoloration, chips & cracks, or an awkwardly shaped tooth. Dr. Naji can make a recommendation for crown materials that would work best for your tooth during your consultation.
When you lose a tooth, this affects your smile in more ways than one. The first and most obvious issue is the gap that the missing tooth leaves in your smile, especially when it’s located at the front of the mouth.
However, there are other long-term effects of tooth loss that can take a larger toll on your smile, such as bone loss. When you lose a tooth and fail to replace it, the jawbone begins to resorb. Over time, the surrounding teeth will shift and changes to your facial structure will occur.
By replacing a tooth with a dental implant, you’re left with a lifelong tooth replacement that restores your smile and never shifts. Implants look, feel, and function like real teeth because they restore the tooth root and crown.
An hour-long whitening session can whiten teeth by up to 10 shades.
Cosmetic dentistry can solve nearly any issue you’re facing that relates to the appearance of your teeth. Patients with stained and yellowing teeth can opt for teeth whitening treatments for a brighter, more youthful smile. Bonding, shaping & contouring can repair misshapen and uneven teeth back into a natural, appealing look. Dental crowns can also be used for cosmetic purposes. Veneers or Lumineers can correct gaps between teeth, cover severe tooth staining, and provide a solution to slightly crooked or crowded teeth.
A good candidate for cosmetic dentistry is free of any major orthodontic issues and has healthy teeth and gums.
If you struggle with oral health problems such as gum disease, cavities, or jaw and teeth alignment issues, cosmetic dentistry may not be the right treatment for you at this time. These problems can be addressed and resolved through restorative or orthodontic treatments before you decide to explore cosmetic dental procedures. For many patients, restorative care and orthodontics can provide a healthier and more beautiful smile.
Yes! It’s common to undergo multiple cosmetic dental procedures at once. For example, dental bonding and enameloplasty are often completed in the same appointment. Looking to see if you can have multiple cosmetic procedures done in one visit? Ask your dentist in Mission Viejo, CA for more information.
Dental insurance does not usually cover most cosmetic dentistry treatments. This is because cosmetic cases are often listed as elective and unnecessary to the health of your smile by insurance companies. You will need to pay for treatment out-of-pocket for most cosmetic treatments. There is a chance that your insurance may cover a portion of the cost for treatments such as veneers or cosmetic crowns, but this is not common. To understand the full details of your dental insurance coverage, contact your insurer. Reach out to our team to see if we can assist you with discounts or payment plans to help you cover treatment.
This depends on various factors, such as the materials your crown is fabricated from, the location of the crown, and wear and tear. Zirconia is a tooth-colored crown that is more opaque in color than porcelain or ceramic crowns, but they’re highly durable and have a lifespan of up to 20 years.
The most sought-after cosmetic crown material for aesthetic reasons is porcelain. If the crown is pure porcelain, it can last anywhere from 5 to 15 years but is at a higher risk of chipping. Porcelain-fused-to-metal combines aesthetics with durability to produce a crown that can last for 10 to 15 years.
Keep in mind that crowns that are placed at the front of the mouth can be made of more fragile materials, but when you place fragile crowns in the rear molars, they are at high risk of breaking or getting damaged because of the chewing forces.
Avoid chewing on hard and sticky foods, don’t smoke or consume a lot of staining foods and drinks, and practice good oral hygiene. If you use your teeth as tools or to chew on objects, you are at higher risk for damage.
Yes, dental implants can improve your face shape by preventing bone loss. The lack of stimulation being provided to the jawbone in the absence of a tooth root causes irreversible bone loss.
This can leave you with crooked teeth or bite problems and as bone loss worsens over the years, there will be reduced support to facial muscles, causing premature sagging or even collapse of certain facial features.
The only way to preserve the existing jawbone is to form an artificial tooth root with an implant. This provides stimulation to the jawbone and regenerates bone cells. Because implants prevent bone loss, this preserves the support to your facial muscles, preventing sagging and collapse of certain features over time. Implants keep you looking youthful in the long run.
Studies show that a person’s satisfaction with their smile has a strong effect on their mental health.
Tooth bonding (dental bonding) is a cosmetic dental procedure that repairs a chipped, cracked, or otherwise broken tooth to enhance your smile.It also helps with discolored teeth, gaps between the teeth, teeth sensitivity and to prevent future decay. We use a tooth-colored resin material to fill the abrasions. Unlike crowns and veneers this procedure is very conservative and requires minimum to no preparation on the teeth.