I am a 42 year old female with a gap in the middle of my front teeth and I have never had braces. I was at the dentist today to get 4 porcelain veneers (7, 8, 9 & 10), but chose not to go through with the procedure today as I am very nervous about removing my natural tooth structure and having issues with the veneers in the future. I am now considering Invisalign, but unsure...are my 2 front teeth too small? What is the better option for me, veneers or Invisalign?
July 24, 2013
Answer: Invisalign or Veneers?
From what I am able to see, I would suggest seeing an orthodontist for a consultation. You may need a combination of both braces and venners to achieve your goals.
Helpful
July 24, 2013
Answer: Invisalign or Veneers?
From what I am able to see, I would suggest seeing an orthodontist for a consultation. You may need a combination of both braces and venners to achieve your goals.
Helpful
July 24, 2013
Answer: Narrow arch with a gap.
I would not do veneers on anyone who wasn't 100% sure of what they were doing. Sounds like you are very apprehensive about removing tooth structure, which is understandable. That leaves you with hardly any options. Invisalign wont close that space. Conventional ortho may expand the arch but will leave probably more spaces that will need to be closed (veneers).
Have you considered bonding to close the space? I made some "crude" measurements of your photo using my calipers just to see what is possible while still maintaining some proportion. It looks to me like bonding could be added to the 2 front teeth to close the gap. It will violate golden proportion a little but will look much better. Also adding bonding to the laterals would help bring those into the arch form as well ass make them appear a bit wider. This will "hide" a little of the canines making them appear "thinner". This would help move things towards golden proportion. However, it wont get you all the way there, only 8-10 units of veneers with gingivoplasty will do that.
You will need to find a skilled cosmetic dentist to achieve this. Furthermore, because you have a "gummy" smile, you may want to consider gingivoplasty with the bonding. This would also help with height to width ratios. Again finding a skilled cosmetic dentist preferably one with a laser and experience with these kind of problems is a must.
Hope this helps,
John Schmid DDS LVIF
Helpful 1 person found this helpful
July 24, 2013
Answer: Narrow arch with a gap.
I would not do veneers on anyone who wasn't 100% sure of what they were doing. Sounds like you are very apprehensive about removing tooth structure, which is understandable. That leaves you with hardly any options. Invisalign wont close that space. Conventional ortho may expand the arch but will leave probably more spaces that will need to be closed (veneers).
Have you considered bonding to close the space? I made some "crude" measurements of your photo using my calipers just to see what is possible while still maintaining some proportion. It looks to me like bonding could be added to the 2 front teeth to close the gap. It will violate golden proportion a little but will look much better. Also adding bonding to the laterals would help bring those into the arch form as well ass make them appear a bit wider. This will "hide" a little of the canines making them appear "thinner". This would help move things towards golden proportion. However, it wont get you all the way there, only 8-10 units of veneers with gingivoplasty will do that.
You will need to find a skilled cosmetic dentist to achieve this. Furthermore, because you have a "gummy" smile, you may want to consider gingivoplasty with the bonding. This would also help with height to width ratios. Again finding a skilled cosmetic dentist preferably one with a laser and experience with these kind of problems is a must.
Hope this helps,
John Schmid DDS LVIF
Helpful 1 person found this helpful