A Dental Guide To Smile Simulations

Whether it's genetics, injury, or poor tooth health, you may not like your smile for a variety of reasons. Thankfully, you have the opportunity to adjust the teeth that make up your smile with the help of professional cosmetic dental treatment. Instead of going into a cosmetic change for your mouth without any awareness of the final product, you can choose to go through a smile simulation.

A smile simulation includes several steps and allows you to preview what a new smile can do to improve your overall appearance. Follow this guide to learn about each step in the process and what you can get out of a smile simulation before you go through with the cosmetic dentistry changes.

Cosmetic Consultation

Before you make any major decisions for your mouth, you can consult with a dentist and see what your options are. A cosmetic consultation will go over all your desires for your new smile and concerns about the procedure. You may want replacements for chipped or missing teeth, or you may want to whiten your teeth to create a brighter smile.

Through the initial consultation, a dentist can present you with multiple options and go over different processes to give you a new smile. For example, in some cases, you may have any bothersome teeth pulled and replaced with dental implants. In other cases, you could have a dental veneer placed over an existing tooth.

No matter what choice you make, a dentist will guide you through the process and explain what each process entails.

Digital Smile Simulation

One way to see the changes you will make is with a digital smile simulation. Through the simulation process, a dentist will take a picture of your full smile. Through mouth measurements and advanced digital technology, a dentist can present you with a digital rendering of what your mouth might look like.

A visualization of the changes can help you decide which elements you want to move forward with. For example, you may feel like the front teeth look too big, or you may decide to do work on both the top teeth and the bottom teeth.

With a digital smile simulation, a dentist can show you multiple options and make adjustments digitally rather than physically in the future. It's far cheaper to work on digital design products rather than make physical changes once you already have the cosmetic work done.

Resin Smile Simulation

Many dentists who offer smile simulation can create physical products as well. A resin smile simulation is fitted to match your mouth and slide in naturally. The resin mold will showcase an example of what the final design will look like. Not only do you get to see how the dental work looks, but you can feel the physical difference in the way you talk or bite down.

You will often get to bring the resin smile home to test out in your everyday life. The resin material is not the same as the final product, but it can give you a basic idea of the changes you will go through. You can take some time to get used to the design and see the smile outside of the dental office to really help you reflect on the results and feel confident about your decision.

Changes & Final Decisions

Once you complete the resin smile simulation, you can request any changes and then lock in the final decision. From there, a dentist will schedule your next appointment and any follow-up appointments necessary to complete the cosmetic process. In some cases, you will need multiple appointments to complete the full transformation process.

For more information on smile simulations, contact us at Rabel Family Dentistry. We can set up your first consultation appointment and answer any questions you have about the process. From there, you can move forward with a smile simulation and enjoy the changes you seek for your smile.