James E Sullivan DDS Dentist Fort Washington Maryland

As a cosmetic dentist in Fort Washington, the work done by us is more significant than just whitening your teeth or improving your smile. In fact, as science is advancing, more people are becoming aware that there is a fine line between what is considered cosmetic dentistry and what is functional dentistry today. When you consider that your cosmetic dentist can perform complex procedures like gingivectomies and dental implants, you can start to see that there is more to cosmetic dentistry than just the purely esthetic. While the traditional view of cosmetic dentistry is that it is the dental art of improving the appearance of the mouth, teeth, bite, and smile, today’s cosmetic dentists are going above and beyond to improve your overall oral health.

For example, as a cosmetic dentist we perform a number of dental crown procedures each and every day. Dental crowns are still classified by many, including some insurance companies, as a purely cosmetic procedure. The challenge with this perception is that it does not take into account the functional loss a person has with a badly damaged tooth. We use our teeth for all kinds of functional things above and beyond smiling. The teeth are instrumental when we eat, bite, chew, and even for the correct use of language. Losing a tooth means that all of these functions are lost. When a tooth is badly damaged, cracked, chipped, or broken the tooth essentially becomes less functional until we have the opportunity to put a small ceramic cap over the top of it. A dental crown prevents further damage and also serves to fully restore the function and appearance of the tooth.

Another condition that we deal with frequently is people who have badly misaligned teeth. Misaligned teeth come in many forms, from a severely crowded mouth to people who have unsightly spaces between their teeth. Known in dentistry as malocclusion, misaligned teeth are not a dental emergency since they pose no direct threat to the wellbeing of the mouth and hence the fixing of malocclusion has fallen under the auspice of cosmetic dentistry. While malocclusion may not cause direct damage that is not to say that the misaligned teeth do not play havoc with the mouth in other ways. One easy example is the difficulty people have getting their teeth clean when they have a severe case of malocclusion. The weird shapes of the teeth and the uneven gaps make it extremely difficult to get a toothbrush into each and every crevice. For some patients, flossing becomes impossible as well. What this does is allow plaque and bacteria to build up, eventually leading to cavities, bacterial infections, and even more serious challenges like gingivitis or periodontal disease. As a cosmetic dentist in Fort Washington when we correct misshapen teeth, we are simultaneously improving your oral health.  This is just one of the ways that cosmetic dentistry is important for both function and appearance.