DENTAL PROCEDURES

Tooth Whitening: Dr. Disraeli has been doing this since 1999, Tooth Whitening is a very safe and effective way to lighten your teeth. Dr. Disraeli utilizes two separate techniques to maximize your whitening potential.

1. Take Home Trays: An impression is taken and models of your teeth are made. A custom tray is fabricated that will fit comfortably over your natural teeth. Then a specific concentration of gel is placed inside the tray and inserted comfortably in your mouth and worn for an hour or two every day for up to two weeks. If whiter teeth are desired, the trays can be worn for an extended period.



2. Britesmile: A one-visit procedure is performed to minimize your time and maximize your potential whitening.

Bonding: Dental bonding describes the fusing of a material to your teeth. There are two types of dental bonding - direct and indirect. Direct bonding is used for fillings and minor color changes. Indirect bonding is used with crowns, caps and veneers.

1. Direct Bonding: This is an exciting development in modern dentistry. For the first time, we have the ability to attach something to a tooth without having to cut away tooth structure first. Even though we usually do prepare the teeth, the preparations are much smaller and much stronger than the preparations for the mercury-silver fillings.
   
   The material we use for this direct bonding is a hard resin/composite with very specific color considerations. The resin is usually totally invisible to the naked eye, and fillings are often so lifelike that the teeth appear to be untouched. We use direct bonding for fillings, minor tooth enhancement and to replace unsightly stains in smile zones
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2. Indirect Bonding: This is a cosmetically superb way to restore a tooth! We use the direct bonding material (the very hard resin) to laminate (or glue) a durable material like porcelain to a prepared tooth.
   
   One of the advantages of this technique is the ability to spend a lot of time in the lab to perfect the color, fit and position of the restoration before it is placed. The finished restoration looks exactly like a natural tooth.

Veneers: When you come in to our office, be sure and ask to see some of the beautiful before and after photos of veneers. Veneers (also called Laminates) are a perfect example of indirect bonding. They are used to change color, shape and position of teeth.

After a first visit where we prepare the teeth (removing approximately 1/2 millimeter from the visual part of the tooth), a temporary is made and placed. The temporary veneer is a replica of the final porcelain veneer and gives you a chance to preview your future smile and make any changes as you see fit. The final restoration fits beautifully and naturally.

Cosmetic Fillings: Cosmetic fillings are actually an example of direct dental bonding. The very hard resin is filled with microscopic particles to give it more strength and beautiful cosmetics which allow for a wonderful blend of color that matches a natural tooth. The older style silver-mercury fillings had some problems that the new cosmetic fillings have solved.

The metal fillings contained mercury which expanded and contracted rapidly (think of a one degree change in your mercury thermometer and watch the mercury expand), which caused cracks in the tooth or in the filling. When they started to fail, it was difficult to diagnose because the decay was dark and so were the fillings. When they failed completely, they usually took part of the tooth with it.

The cosmetic fillings bond to the enamel so well that they can actually hold a cracked tooth together. This bonded restoration makes for a stronger more natural appearance.

Porcelain Crowns: When the original tooth isn’t strong enough to hold a cosmetic filling, it is necessary to place a crown. The outer 1-1.5 millimeters of the tooth are removed and a crown is placed. The newer porcelain crowns have a dazzling depth of color that can match the existing natural teeth so that the new crown disappears. These crowns are the ones used in instant orthodontics – they can change the position of the existing teeth.

The newest technology uses a zirconia shell to cover the tooth and then the natural appearing porcelain to provide the aesthetics. The zirconia is translucent so the natural color can show through, and they are almost as hard as diamonds so they are incredibly strong.

Implants: What do you do when you have a missing tooth or teeth? One of the best choices is to replace the gap with an implant. The implant body is placed into the bone and allowed to integrate/bond for up to six months. A porcelain crown can then be placed to perfectly mimic the missing tooth.

Dental implants can also be used to stabilize or strengthen removable appliances like dentures or partials.

Bridges: An alternative to implants, bridges can replace one or more teeth and often are less expensive. A crown is prepared on both sides of the gap and tied together by a substructure (we can now use the incredibly strong zirconia for those patients who desire metal-free restorations).

Porcelain is cosmetically bonded to the substructure so that the bridge appears to be separate teeth.

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