Successful adult improves confidence through aesthetic dentistry!
As a consultant to big financial firms, this patient was aware that a powerful image was important to portray. However, she felt limited by having never lost the upper baby-teeth canines. The proportion between her teeth and lips was not balanced. She did not realize that the two large teeth in the position of the lateral incisors were actually her permanent canines. Her lateral incisors were congenitally missing teeth, and would never grow in (she did not have them).
We discussed her two main options: remove the primary (baby) canines and use orthodontics to move the permanent canines into their proper position, then place implants – vs. – use minimal braces to balance the spaces and gum heights across the teeth and use aesthetic dentistry to restore balance and symmetry to the existing teeth. Since the roots of her primary canines were strong and healthy, she confidently opted for minimal braces and bonding.
We used very conservative gingival sculpting (gum recontouring) and use resin bonding to create the look of the full adult contour. At this point she is enjoying the look of temporary plastic bonding while deciding whether or not to extend porcelain crowns to one tooth further back to widen the overall smile. Check back on her case for progress!
For more cases like this, see our FlickR page at https://www.flickr.com/photos/drcaughey/sets/