Cosmetic Dentistry
Have questions about cosmetic dentistry? We are proud to offer cosmetic dentistry services to our patients at Lane and Associates Family Dentistry. One of our very own cosmetic dentists took some time to share information and answer common patient questions to help educate about cosmetic dentistry and the services available to our patients. View the table of contents below to learn more or find your question and get an answer from our dentists!
The following content was provided by Dr. Sunny Chung, D.D.S., and has been medically reviewed for accuracy. Some relevant links have been added to audio transcripts to provide resources for additional information.
Table of Contents:
Click on a question below to be taken directly to that answer and content.
- What is cosmetic dentistry?
- What is the difference between a cosmetic dentist and general dentist?
- What training do you need to be a cosmetic dentist?
- What are the different types of cosmetic dentistry?
- When should I go to a cosmetic dentist?
- Does insurance cover cosmetic dentistry?
- Professional teeth whitening vs. teeth whitening kits
- Can the dentist reshape my teeth?
What is cosmetic dentistry?
The following content was provided by Dr. Sunny Chung. Transcription provided below.
Dr. Sunny Chung:
Cosmetic dentistry is anything to improve the aesthetics and the patient’s smile rather than solely the health and function of the patient’s mouth, which is what we commonly do.
What is the difference between a cosmetic dentist and general dentist?
The following content was provided by Dr. Sunny Chung. Transcription provided below.
Dr. Sunny Chung:
Generally, most cosmetic dentists are general dentists, so a lot of them can still do a lot of the general dentistry. Many times the cosmetic dentist will have taken extra classes, extra CE courses to learn those extra procedures to help the patients with their cosmetic needs.
What training do you need to be a cosmetic dentist?
The following content was provided by Dr. Sunny Chung. Transcription provided below.
Dr. Sunny Chung:
A lot of times cosmetic dentists are general dentists. There are some dentists that really enjoy doing those aesthetic cases, and in order to service our patients, it does involve extra training, meaning extra courses, extra CE classes. For example, those Lumineer veneers that we do, that usually involves a course through Lumineer to become familiar with their products and everything that comes with it as far as the procedure and bonding technique and so forth. So, yes, typically it does involve extra courses, extra CE classes.
What are the different types of cosmetic dentistry?
The following content was provided by Dr. Sunny Chung. Transcription provided below.
Dr. Sunny Chung:
Typically, it could start with something extremely benign, just whitening your teeth, for example, all the way to more invasive procedure where we’re actually removing two structures for say crowns or veneers, anything to, like I said, improving the smile of the patient. So, there’s a huge variation in the things that we can do.
When should I go to a cosmetic dentist?
The following content was provided by Dr. Sunny Chung. Transcription provided below.
Dr. Sunny Chung:
If it involves, like I said, a lot of the anterior areas where you’re wanting to improve the aesthetics and the smile, for example, would be a good time to seek cosmetic dentist since typically with the cosmetic dentist those are the areas, like I had mentioned earlier, where they may have gotten extra training to concentrate, to get those types of procedures done for the patient.
Does insurance cover cosmetic dentistry?
The following content was provided by Dr. Sunny Chung. Transcription provided below.
Dr. Sunny Chung:
Okay. Typically, insurance will not cover for cosmetic dentistry. There are exceptions. For example, if we can show the insurance company through x-rays or through intra-oral pictures that there has been previous procedures being done to those anterior teeth, then sometimes we can get those covered. But I would say a majority of the cases it is difficult because a lot of times when we’re just dealing with the cosmetics, it is not because it’s medically necessary. It is just an improvement in the aesthetics that patients are looking for, and then it’s very difficult to get the insurance company to cover those things.
Professional teeth whitening vs. teeth whitening kits
The following content was provided by Dr. Sunny Chung. Transcription provided below.
Dr. Sunny Chung:
Probably the biggest difference is the strength of the ingredient that does the whitening, which is the carbamide peroxide. I believe most the over the counter products out there are anywhere between 10 to 15%. It still works. I want to make that clear. It still works. It may just take longer to achieve the shade that you’re looking for. Whereas, chair-side or the ones that we prescribe, it can go up to high as 35% of the carbamide peroxide, which means the whitening happens much quicker. So, it’s just like everything else in life. If you want that instant gratification, the chair-side whitening is a good way because you’ll leave at the end of that appointment in probably the lightest shade that you’re going to achieve.
Can the dentist reshape my teeth?
The following content was provided by Dr. Sunny Chung. Transcription provided below.
Dr. Sunny Chung:
What I found is that some patients may have been very self-conscious, there’s something that’s always bothered them. And once they bring it up and we get into discussion and I examine the patients, many times it could be something so simple as just me taking a polishing disc and reshaping and re-contouring just line angles and the corners and things like that, which is so, so easy, completely non-invasive. But it makes a world of difference for the patients. I’ve had numerous patients tell me that and they so appreciate that.
Not every single thing has to be something that’s extremely invasive, extremely expensive. Sometimes it could be something just so simple that makes a lot of difference, and you won’t ever know that until you bring it up with your dentist saying that those are the things that bothers you. So, I always find those cases very rewarding because it’s so simple. It takes just very little time. Patients sit up, and they’re like, “Wow. I had no idea a little thing like that would make that much difference.”
