Digital Smile Design: how to perfect your smile

Thanks to the latest in cosmetic dentistry techniques, such as Digital Smile Design (DSD), you can choose and create your perfect smile. We talk to one of our highly-experienced dentists Mr Raul Costa on how DSD makes having straighter, longer, shorter and whiter teeth, possible.
 

How do you use Digital Smile Design in your clinic?

The first thing I do in a consultation is to listen to the patient. Aesthetics is subjective and the dentist must understand in the first place what feelings that the patient has in regards to the appearance of her or his teeth. It’s then my job to be able to visualise how that smile can be improved. I have been using DSD as a concept for 15 years and its more recent technological tools enable us to design the patient’s smile from scratch in a very straightforward and very pleasant way.
 

How do you begin the process?

I start the process by listening, observing, and documenting. I do this using extensive photographs and videos.
 

Then what happens?

We use software that can help to digitally create a ‘trial’ of what the teeth could look like if we were to change a few things. That digital approach is an important guide for the patient so that they have a clear idea of what we are looking to achieve before any commitment. It will also guide the technician on the next step, which is the ‘wax-up,’ where the highly-skilled technician duplicates the digital design onto the models of the patient’s teeth.

I then transfer the wax-up onto the real teeth in a quick and easy step that is totally reversible, which is called a “mock-up”. The patient will be able to see an extremely accurate version of what the veneers would look like on her teeth before she even starts any clinical procedure. The patient will be able to see a very close plan of what the final work will look like ‘live’ on their teeth, which is crucial for patients so that there are no surprises.
 

How much input does the patient get to have in choosing their ‘new’ smile?

It is always a patient’s choice. The dentist has to explain the limitations of each case, which may be related to how the bite functions or the level of invasiveness. I refuse to do any treatment that I think will have the potential to somehow damage the teeth.

On the other hand, sometimes the patients don’t know why their smile is not right and they put the focus on something that maybe not so relevant when the reason for the disharmony lays somewhere else. It’s up to the cosmetic dentist to identify those reasons in order to design the smile. After the mock-up, the patient smiles and both of us confirm we are on a good path.
 

How do you manage the patient’s expectations?

The mock-up phase does this. It’s extremely accurate so that the patient will know, before any clinical procedure, what can and what cannot be done. We will only go ahead if we are confident that both of us are delighted with the new smile.
 

How long will the Digital Smile Design process take, including the procedures?

The first consultation is for one hour where we take the patient’s records. The next stage would be to show the patient the DSD and if they want to go ahead, we create the wax-up, which takes a week to make and carries extra costs.

Once this is done there’s the mock-up, another appointment and then it depends on the type of work. Usually, for veneers, it’s two appointments two weeks apart; but DSD can also be used in very complex cases, patients with missing teeth and extensive old restorations – in those cases the treatments take longer.

Do not hesitate to book an appointment with Mr Costa if you would like to discuss the aesthetics and health of your teeth.