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TALK IT THROUGH BEFORE GOING FOR A ‘CELEBRITY’ TREATMENT

The importance of discussing any type of proposed cosmetic  treatment with your dentist has been underlined in a recent article on ‘celebrity smiles’ featured in a Body & Soul supplemt in The Times national newspaper.

Dental veneers and teeth-whitening treatments came under the microscope in the article written by Simon Crompton, who quoted the concerns of some dentists that patients are not always presented with the complete facts or alternatives.

Veneers, involving removing a layer of tooth to replace with white porcelain or resin, “have to be very carefully looked after and need to be replaced every 10 to 15 years”, said one dentist quoted in the article.

It was noted that some younger female patients, with slightly rotated teeth or with small gaps between them, asked for veneers – when orthondontics, which could correct teeth over several months without damaging them, was the best option.
He regularly referred patients to an orthodontist but, as the article makes clear, “Not everyone has a dentist who does this”.

Reassuringly, the qualified dental and orthodontic specialists at the Chelsea Dental Clinic have a great deal of experience in the complexities of cosmetic dentistry, and it is an absolute ‘must’ among all members of the team to discuss and communicate all aspects of treatment with a patient before it is agreed.

The article stressses the importance of discussing the  advantages and disadvantages of treatments with patients – which is common practice at the Chelsea Dental Clinic, where a range of orthodontic alternatives to veneers, such as Invisalign, the 6-Month Smile, Inman Aligner, Damon Braces and Lingual Braces, are regularly recommended and carried out by the team.

“Dentists have a professional responsibility to inform them (patients) of the options”, said the article, adding that “The General Dental Council’s code of conduct says that dentists must explain the treatment proposed, the risks involved and alternative treatments”.
Quoting James Goolnik, the president of the British Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry (BACD), which has a membership of 1,000, including specialists at the Hereford Dental Clinic, out of the 26,000 dentists in the UK, it continues:
“New orthodontic procedures, such as invisible braces, are much quicker and less obvious (than veneers), which make them more appealing to patients. Dentists are also more aware that veneers aren’t the only option, and are getting that over to patients”.

The article also covers the investigation by consumer watchdog Which? into teeth whitening advertised on some popular websites, and already discussed on Chelsea Dental Clinic  web pages, pointing out that dentists can safely tailor treatment according to your teeth and their sensitivities.
It concludes: “The simplest – and cheapest – way to foster a Hollywood smile is to look after your teeth: have them scaled and polished regularly, stop smoking, and cut down on strong-coloured foods and drinks that may stain”.

THE DIAMOND SMILE MAY BE A STEP TOO FAR

Diamonds may be a girl’s best friend, but using them as a row of new front teeth could be the latest ‘must have look’ according to a Dental Tribune report on how a toothy gap has become fashionable among celebrities.
Our website recently referred to an article in a Body & Soul supplement in The Times newspaper, quoting a medical student who had eight veneers attached to her top front teeth, while asking her orthodontist to keep the gap between the top two.
“It’s characteristic of who I am. Although I wanted the rest of my teeth as straight and neat as possible, the gap is part of me. Now I’ve started seeing it in magazines and people telling me it’s in fashion, I feel quite trendy”, the lady told The Times.
Top fashion magazine Vogue has featured gap-toothed model Lara Stone as its cover girl, and nominated Vanessa Paradis and Madonna as among 14 beauties with the gappy look.
Now the Tribune reports that American rapper Kanye West asked his dentist to extract his bottom row of teeth – and replace them with diamond ones – and that “dentists in America have even reported that veneers with slight staining grooves and overlaps are also growing in popularity”.

Whatever your thoughts on cosmetic dentistry and keeping up with celebrity trends, your best option is to discuss how to maintain your oral health, and retain your natural teeth, with a visit to the Chelsea Dental Clinic – and display your diamonds elsewhere!

How Lingual Braces London Can Boost Your Confidence

Lingual braces are an equivalent to regular braces except they are more convenient because they are not visible to other people so are more cosmetically pleasing. There are a number of places to get lingual braces London.

These braces are braces that attach to the inside of the teeth, both top and bottom. This means that they are not visible to other people and are therefore good for people who are worried about what they will look like to the world. A smile you are happy with is vital for your inner confidence and can improve the way you look, it can even make you look younger.

Like ordinary braces lingual braces are attached to the teeth with cement and are connected by a wire which gently applies pressure to improve the shape of the teeth. Because the wire and brackets are attached to the back of the teeth they are not visible to others.

The procedure of getting the braces fitted involves two trips to the orthodontist. The first visit will involve getting a mold taken then the mold will be sent to a laboratory where the brackets and wire are made. They will be unique to your teeth so may take a little longer and be a little more expensive than regular braces which are a uniform size. The second trip enables your orthodontist to attach your new brace.

Aftercare involves using warm salt water to keep your mouth clean and to help ease discomfort. This discomfort will pass in a week to four weeks and is caused by the pressure on your teeth. You won’t be able to thrust your tongue as you would normally do to help you swallow so you will have to learn a new swallowing technique.

What are STb Social 6 Braces?

Taking a look at STb Social 6 braces and how they work will quickly reveal a new and easily-understood method of applying what are called “invisible” braces or aligners. When it comes to a smile, these braces can quickly deliver great results to the upper frontal teeth, which are known as the “social six. In certain candidate patients, these teeth are susceptible to easy alignment.

Keep in mind that one needs to be a suitable candidate for this kind of orthodontic work. Generally, these types of braces are reserved to those with minor all the way up to moderate crowding of the teeth or even spacing that’s excessive. The social six teeth are those most often seen when a person engages in smiling openly, and most people would like for them to look the best they can.

These particular types of braces are truly invisible because they sit at the back of the teeth, which dentists and other medical professionals call the posterior area. Much effort in the past when it came to straightening teeth that were crooked or had lots of spaces between them used to fail to meet patient expectations. With these new kinds of braces, though, that doesn’t seem to be the case.

As far as obvious and apparent benefits from using these kinds of braces, a very apparent one derives from the fact that many candidates for these appliances can expect great results in as little as six weeks and, in most moderate cases, only sixteen weeks at the most. Keep in mind that only those with what are called minor to moderate cases benefit from these kinds of appliances.

Both orthodontists and their patients report receiving great benefit from the usage of these kinds of braces, by the way. The result is usually very nice, from the quality of the result and treatment outcomes that can usually be fairly well predicted. Even the most difficult of “moderate” cases, in fact, can be handled in less than 4 months, which is quite impressive.

In terms of technology, the braces use high-tech and extremely light wires that are affixed to the back of the social six. The technique is known as self-ligation, and it’s done in a fairly passive way that helps to reduce friction from wearing these braces down to almost nothing. Interference by the braces within the mouth is also almost nonexistent because the wires are very low profile and rounded.

Many orthodontists over in Britain and the rest of the United Kingdom have been advertising these braces and maintenance programs for about 1200 British pounds. When one stops to consider that someone with crooked or spaced teeth can get a new smile in less than four months, it seems that the price is relatively small over both the short and long terms.

It’s good to know that orthodontic technologies have kept pace with science, and STb Social 6 braces offer benefits to both patients and their orthodontists. The underlying technology for these braces is easy for an orthodontist to manipulate and patients also report little issues with having them in the mouth. In truth, there is much to like in very little to dislike about these kinds of braces, it seems.