I had braces as a child because of bucked teeth from sucking my thumb. My teeth had been fine until this year when I started developing this tooth gap. I want to get it fixed with either Invisalign or porcelain veneers, but my dentist said I can’t because of periodontal disease. Why would that matter? It’s my gums not my teeth.
Sunny
Dear Sunny,
Periodontal disease is serious. Once your teeth start shifting, as yours have, means they’ve already lost about half of their bone support and are now loose. If you don’t get your gum disease under control you are going to lose them. I want you to see a periodontist as soon as possible and see if your teeth can be saved at this point. Hopefully, they can.
Neither porcelain veneers nor orthodontics will be useful to you at this point. Any additional pressure on your teeth will only cause you to lose them faster.
After Your Gum Disease is Under Control
Once you get your gum disease healed, then is the time to look for solutions to the appearance-related issues. For a tooth gap, you have three options.
Dental Bonding
You could close in the gap with dental bonding. A great cosmetic dentist can use a composite resin to fill in the gap in a way that looks completely natural. The size of the gap will determine if this is a good option for you.
Invisalign
This can close the gap naturally. It is sometimes called invisible braces because it can straighten your teeth without any one knowing.
Porcelain Veneers
If you are looking for a dramatic change in your smile, like a total smile makeover, then this would be the treatment of choice. Porcelain veneers can change the shape, size, and color of your teeth all at once. However, be careful. It takes an artistic cosmetic dentist. Make sure you check out their smile gallery to ensure they get beautiful results.
This blog is brought to you by San Antonio Cosmetic Dentist Dr. Imam.