The Cosmetic Dentistry Blog

June 22, 2008

What about GlamSmile?

Filed under: Porcelain veneers — iowasmiles @ 5:56 pm

Dear Dr. Hall,

I have recently heard of a new cost effective veneers called GlamSmile. It seems similar to Lumineers except the teeth moldings are made by a Belgium company and requires only one hour to bind on teeth. Would you recommend this product? Would you recommend Glamsmile to Lumineers? Thank you, and I look forward to hearing from you.

- Grace from Los Angeles

Dear Grace,
I’ll give you my ideas on GlamSmile. I see several potential problems.

First, the system is being marketed to dentists who don’t know anything about cosmetic dentistry, and the dentists are being told that the lab will pretty much do everything. This is similar to what the Lumineers people say, and it doesn’t work. But, as many problems as we’ve seen with Lumineers (and I have many e-mails from patients complaining of Lumineers), GlamSmile could be worse because I see nothing in the technique as they present it on their web site, for trying in the new smile before it is permanently bonded. This could spell real trouble. You have to be able to see the new smile before it is put on permanently. You have to. Blind faith is not smart when you’re dealing with a smile makeover.

Second, it is marketed to the dentist as a way to make a whole lot of money in just an hour — five times their normal rate of production. This is a recipe for trouble for the patient.

Third, I have real questions about their bonding technique, and if an hour is a realistic time for your regular dentist to get these on and properly clean up and polish. I think it could easily be a two-hour or even a four-hour procedure. That’s because it requires hardening the luting cement first and cleaning it off later. The GlamSmile web site hints that this may be a problem, and suggests rescheduling the patient for a second appointment to completely remove the excess cement, if necessary. I think it’s harder and more time-consuming than they let on.

Fourth, it is a very bad idea to go to a cosmetic dentist and ask for a particular technique or material. I caution about this throughout this blog. I have seen so many e-mails of patients who went to a dentist and asked for a particular material or technique. Cosmetic dentistry is art, and I strongly advise that you pick the cosmetic dentist, and trust him or her with the porcelain veneers technique that works best in their hands. Pick a cosmetic dentist who has the proper training and artistic ability, one you can trust, and let them take it from there.

I hope this is helpful.
- Dr. Hall

June 18, 2008

How will my teeth with porcelain veneers feel on the inside?

Filed under: Porcelain veneers — iowasmiles @ 5:56 pm

Dr. Hall
I have horrible teeth!! When I was in grade school my mom made me get braces. I had them on one year and after that they went back to their original places. I am now 21 and my teeth look almost as bad as they did then. My teeth now look much like the picture on your crooked teeth page.

I have been considering porcelain veneers. My question is this. When having veneers put in I know that they change the outward appereance of teeth, but is there anyway to fix the way my teeth feel against my tongue? Having perfect teeth is nice, but it wouldnt mean much if i could still feel the imperfection on the other side with my tongue. Or is there another procedure for that? Please help!!!
Thanks,
- Autumn from Kansas

Dear Autumn,
That “before” photo of the man with the crooked teeth is pretty bad. I think it would be a good idea for you to get your teeth fixed, if that’s how you look.

When they are that badly out of line, conventional braces, or Invisalign invisible braces, is definitely the best way to go, because the teeth are so jumbled that they are hard to clean. But porcelain veneers will give you a beautiful smile in only a couple of appointments, and many people prefer that.

When you have a tooth that is way out of line, usually an expert cosmetic dentist will do something to the inside surface of the tooth, too, and then it will feel more normal on the inside. But they will not likely be perfectly straight-feeling on the inside. So if it’s important to you that they feel perfectly straight, then you’d want to go with the braces. If it’s okay for them to feel somewhat straight, then the veneers would work.

Dr. Hall

Other links:
Ask Dr. Hall a question
Click here to find a cosmetic dentist.

June 7, 2008

The porcelain crown looks funny.

Filed under: Crowns for front teeth, Porcelain veneers — iowasmiles @ 6:00 pm

Dr. Hall,
I just had 4 veneers placed on my top teeth. One is a crown. After having them permanently placed, I noticed (on the crown tooth) an outline, sort of like a patch, underneath the tooth. The doctor said it was my original tooth. It seems there’s more cement concentrated on that tooth which shows through. The doctor said no one would notice it but I do and am unhappy about it. She said if she were to replace it, the new veneer would look different from the other 3 because it wasn’t made at the same time. I don’t know what to do. I signed a form stating I consented to the way they look however had I seen this prior to her placing them on permanently, I would have brought it up. Is there any truth to what she’s saying? Am I taking a chance getting a new one put in and having it not blend in with the others? Should she charge me?
- Janet in New York

Dear Janet,
This is typical of what happens when you go to a general dentist who isn’t expert in cosmetic dentistry, and I’ll see if I can help you.

General dentists are taught in dental school that they know what is best for you, and your job is to just accept that. True cosmetic dentists are different — they are very tuned in to what you think, and if you don’t like how the work looks, then they consider the treatment a failure, and they will stay with you until you love it, as long as you’re reasonable.

My opinion is that this dentist should fix this until you like it. The reason being, and I’m guessing somewhat at this, that you agreed to the porcelain veneers simply for the sake of the appearance. Thus, this dentist was representing to you that she was going to make your smile look great. And it doesn’t. Her response to you is typical of general dentists — she knows how it is supposed to look, and it doesn’t matter that you don’t like it.

And I’m a little confused in what you’re telling me. You said you signed a consent form that you liked how they look. But then you say you didn’t see this prior to her placing them on the teeth permanently. That’s confusing. And then you say this is the crown tooth, but then you’re going to replace the veneer, which is confusing, too. But I’ll guess at what you’re meaning and give you some general direction. True cosmetic dentists will let you get a long, hard look at what things look like before putting them on and will be sure you have examined every detail. General dentists generally give you a quick look in the mirror while you’re upside-down in the chair, and that’s it.

A good cosmetic dentist teamed with a good dental laboratory will be able to duplicate the shade and shape of the crown and match it to the other veneers. That may be beyond the ability of this dentist, but it is routine for a good cosmetic dentist. If it were me, I would ask that she do this, and in my opinion, it should be for no charge. And the way to make sure it looks the same is to insist on getting a complete look when it’s tried in and pin her down — does this look exactly like it’s going to look once it’s on? It isn’t acceptable to have it put on permanently before you see how it looks, to make sure it matches. There are ways to check this, and she should know these. But it shouldn’t be that hard this soon from when the case was first done. She should have a copy of her instructions to the lab on the shade to make this crown. The same instructions to the same lab should produce the same result.

And then, please tell your friends that when they want things done to beautify their smile, to go to a real cosmetic dentist. Only a couple percent of dentists are artistic enough and really care that much about beautiful smiles to do a good job at that. Check our list of recommended cosmetic dentists for help with this.

I hope this is helpful.
- Dr. Hall

Related information:
Porcelain crowns for front teeth.
Porcelain veneers
The difference between a cosmetic dentist and a general dentist
Read about one-visit Cerec crowns
Click here to find a cosmetic dentist

June 4, 2008

Looking for Lumineers at a lower cost.

Filed under: Finding a cosmetic dentist, Lumineers — iowasmiles @ 2:45 am

Dr. Hall,
I read on your page that Lumineers may be a little lower priced than the common cost of veneers that run approximately $1500 apiece. Can you recommend a dentist within an hour’s drive of me, where I may work with a dentist to do a Lumineers remake of my smile in the less than $1500 price range?
- Mike in Illinois

Dear Mike,
Before answering your question, I have a couple of comments.

First, let’s say you can do eight teeth with Lumineers for a new smile and you found a dentist willing to charge only $1125 apiece. And then let’s say you found a dentist who would charge $1450 apiece. The cheap dentist is just a dentist – not an artist, and your teeth would end up a little bulky and funny looking. It would cost $9000. And at the end, your teeth would be straight and whiter but kind of funny-looking. Or, you could go to the other dentist and for $11,600 you could get an absolutely stunning smile, with another brand of porcelain veneers, because this dentist is an artist and is also fully trained in cosmetic dentistry, with a passion for beauty. Which would you choose?

I’m reflecting this back to you, because this seems to me what you’re asking. You’re saying to me that you don’t care how artistic the dentist is or how your teeth end up looking, as long as you can get something pasted over the top of your teeth. You just want the best price. But cosmetic dentistry isn’t like general dentistry. Dentists are trained to fix things, and they generally do a pretty good job of that, with some exceptions. You have a broken tooth, they fix it. You’re in pain, they get you out of pain. But when it comes to creating a great-looking smile, dentists aren’t trained to do that. It takes a dentist with artistic talent and passion to do that, and only a small minority of dentists can pull that off. Oh, you would end up with teeth that would be white and probably would be straight, but they would be about two millimeters longer than your present teeth and would likely be bulky and funny-looking. I don’t know why you would want to spend $9000 for that, when for a little more you could get a truly fabulous smile.

Here’s what I’d recommend: Drop the idea that you HAVE TO HAVE Lumineers, and go for the end result. You’re always better off to pick the dentist/artist and let them use the brand of porcelain they’re most comfortable with. You get into all kinds of trouble when you pick the brand and then ask a dentist to do that brand and no other. You’re in the Chicago area, and we have a number of excellent cosmetic dentists that we list there (see our Illinois cosmetic dentists page). Call each office and ask what the fee is for porcelain veneers. See if you can find a great cosmetic dental office that will talk money with you and that will be in your price range. I bet you’ll find a great cosmetic dentist who will be within your price range. But if you don’t, then my advice is to save up your money for a little longer and get it done right.

I hope this is helpful.
- Dr. Hall

Related links:
Cost of Lumineers
Cost of porcelain veneers
Post-operative care of porcelain veneers
Click here to find a cosmetic dentist

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