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Ever shied away from being part of family photos? Instinctively covered your mouth when meeting someone new? Do you generally feel self-conscious about the look of your teeth? Cosmetic dentistry could be right for you. For many, our smile is directly linked to our confidence. Improve one and you’ll boost the other. Here’s a look at the most common cosmetic dental procedures and which problems they’re designed to treat.

Teeth Whitening

Food, drinks, medication and habits like smoking can stain your teeth over time. With teeth whitening it’s possible to restore your natural tooth color or even go several shades whiter than your original tone. Once plaque, tartar and other debris have been removed from the surface of each tooth, a bleaching agent is applied to lighten your teeth.

Dental Veneers

Manufactured from medical-grade ceramic or porcelain, dental veneers provide a quick and easy solution to chipped, cracked or heavily stained teeth. Veneers can even be used to hide misaligned or crooked teeth as well as filling in unwanted gaps. Dental veneers are simply applied to the surface of each tooth using a special dental adhesive for an immediate restoration of your smile.

Composite Bonding

A cost effective solution for repairing decayed or damaged teeth is to drill or grind down the problem area and then fill and sculpt the space with tooth-colored plastic or resins. Composite bonding is also an excellent solution for reshaping worn down edges. The dental bond is then hardened with a high-intensity light.

Dental Crowns or Caps

Crowns fit over your teeth to fill in cracks or chips or if part of a tooth is missing entirely. Manufactured off-site, crowns are applied with dental cement adhesive.

Inlays/Onlays

Similar to a crown but slightly different, inlays/onlays are essentially fillings that are manufactured off-site and then adhered to your tooth to repair a large cavity or similar structural damage. An inlay fits inside a portion of the tooth whereas an onlay is fashioned to cover the entire surface. Onlays are an excellent solution in cases where a tooth does not have sufficient structure to support a traditional filling.

Invisalign

Invisalign is a modern orthodontic treatment that presents a viable alternative to traditional braces. Using a series of individually crafted, plastic trays you can slowly and gently straighten your teeth over time without the embarrassment of having a mouth filled with metal. Invisalign is nearly imperceptible, meaning that nobody has to know!

Dental Implants

A permanent solution for missing teeth, dental implants attach a prosthesis to a titanium post embedded into the jaw bone. Implants are nearly indistinguishable from the surrounding natural teeth and can be cared for in virtually the same fashion, with regular brushing.

Implants are a more popular solution than traditional bridges and dentures and it’s even possible to do a full mouth restoration, either tooth by tooth or by attaching a full set of new teeth to 4 titanium posts. This procedure is called All-on-4.

Cosmetic Dentist Shrewsbury, NJ

For lasting cosmetic procedures and excellent dental care in Monmouth County, New Jersey, visit Ocean Dental at 167 Avenue at the Common, Suite 16, Shrewsbury, NJ 07702, call 732-935-0905 or go to oceandentalnj.com.

Video Conferencing has been at an all time high for the greater part of 2020 since the pandemic started.  Most people are spending their days attending countless hours of virtual meetings.  People have taken notice of their smiles as their faces have been displayed on Zoom grids for virtual meetings and parties.  It is pretty eye opening to sit and stare at your own smile during a virtual meeting.  As a result, people have had more time to reflect and focus on self- care, especially where oral health is concerned.  With social distancing and more time spent at home, more people are willing to improve their smiles so they are camera ready for virtual meetings and social media.  Who couldn’t use a little confidence booster right now?

The most common dental treatments offered in our office to improve smiles are Whitening and Invisalign.  We offer whitening for discolored and stained teeth.  Glo Professional Whitening is offered as an in -office procedure that utilizes a mouth piece that combines optimal warming heat and safe LED light to accelerate specially formulated 30% hydrogen peroxide whitening gel.  Patients get lasting results without the sensitivity.  It is a one visit procedure that has you in and out of the chair in just over an hour.  Most patients find the time spent in the chair relaxing.  We usually recommend bringing ear buds to listen to music or a podcast during this appointment.

Invisalign has been the most requested procedure for patients concerned about their crooked smiles and crowded teeth.  We offer consults and virtual simulations so patients can see what their teeth would look like when straightened with Invisalign.  This is made possible with digital scanning.  The scanner will take images of the teeth in the current position and used to educate patients about the position of their teeth and problems with their bite.  Invisalign offers the benefits of moving the teeth into an ideal position slowly over time with the advantage of being virtually invisible when worn.  The advantage is that it promotes better oral hygiene and home care because the aligners can be removed for eating, brushing and flossing.  With digital workflow for capturing a patients records, including photos and scans, it saves time and offers shorter visits.

New dental technology can make all the difference when it comes to providing a comfortable patient experience and beautiful results. Ocean Dental is proud to be able to offer the latest digital imagery to our patients with a new iTero Intraoral Scanner.

This article describes this state-of-the-art piece of equipment and how it can help give you the smile and first impression you’ve always wanted.

What is an intraoral scanner?

An intraoral scanner is a device that builds an incredibly accurate three-dimensional image of your teeth that can be viewed on a computer screen and used for creating a variety of dental prostheses. In just a couple of minutes, our iTero Intraoral Scanner can capture all the data it needs to create a full model of your mouth. The best part is, you won’t feel a thing!

Working with the model

Once the digital imaging of your teeth is complete, your dentist can use the model to perform a wide range of treatments, including the fabrication and installation of incredibly realistic crowns and bridges.

Not only is digital imagery far more accurate than the traditional method of taking impressions, it doesn’t require that you bite down on a liquid mold. Say good-bye to a gooey mess and hello to a more comfortable treatment experience. The digital impression created by the iTero model can even be used for all Invisalign services.

Straighten your teeth with Invisalign

Invisalign is a revolutionary system for straightening your teeth without the need for braces or other traditional orthodontics. Through the use of clear aligners, you can achieve the smile you want in as little as six months.

Using the digital image mapped by the scanner, your dentist can order custom Invisalign trays and even use the Invisalign outcome simulator to show you what your new smile might look like right there on the computer screen.

Invisalign offers a number of benefits over braces:

• Works just as fast or faster.
• Less discomfort compared to braces and other brands of clear aligners.
• Achieve up to 75% more predictable results.
• Made with see-through, nearly unnoticeable, material
• New SmartTrack material is easier than ever to take on and off.
• Can be removed for eating, sports or other activities.

Learn more about digital imaging

Watch this short video on our YouTube channel to learn more about the iTero Intraoral Scanner. If you have any questions, we’re here to help. Just give us a call at 732-935-0905. Ocean Dental is located at 167 Avenue at the Common, Shrewsbury, NJ 07702 and provides award-winning care including preventive, general, restorative, cosmetic and periodontal therapy, Invisalign and appliance therapy including sleep appliances for Obstructive Sleep Apnea. Visit oceandentalnj.com for more information.