Dental Bonding
Dental Bonding in SoHo
Sometimes, small cosmetic complaints can add up, making you unhappy with your smile. Despite your complaints, you may be hesitant to commit to a procedure because of the cost or the length of the treatment. Dental bonding is a cosmetic procedure that acts as a great middle ground between affordability and longevity of the results. Not only can bonds repair and protect damaged teeth, but they can reshape and recolor the tooth to completely change the appearance of your smile. You don’t need invasive procedures to get the look you’re hoping for. At Greene Street Dental, you can get the best of all worlds–in just one visit.
How Does Dental Bonding Work?
Cosmetic tooth bonding starts with a typical dental exam. Using our iTero intraoral scanner and X-Rays, we will determine whether your teeth and gums are healthy enough for cosmetic dentistry. When you pass with flying colors, we may do a cleaning and fluoride treatment to ensure your teeth are in their best possible condition before bonding.
Your bonds are made of a composite resin that is designed to match your teeth’s natural shade. When we’ve established which changes you’d like to make, it’s time to start the bonding process. To begin with, we lightly roughen the enamel with mild acid, layer on a conditioning liquid, and sculpt the putty onto your teeth.
After hardening with UV light, it’s a careful process of sanding and polishing the bonds into the exact right shape.
How Long Does it Last?
While composite resin can stand up to a fair amount of wear and pressure, it’s not permanent. Dental bonds should be replaced every 3 to 10 years. Our dentist can assess you at these benchmarks to see how well your bonds are holding up. If they are still in great shape, they may be able to push your replacement procedure a little farther into the future.
How well you take care of your teeth will have a huge impact on the longevity of your bonds, so don’t forget to brush, floss, and stay away from hard, unforgiving foods. Definitely don’t bite down on that pen cap or use your teeth as tools because that may just lead to an expensive repair.
What Problems Can Tooth Bonding Correct?
Dental bonds are great for correcting these minor issues:
- Color. If you suffer from set-in stains, Fluorosis, or tetracycline stains, you can correct these cosmetic issues with dental bonding. The tooth-colored resin completely covers discoloration.
- Shape. Whether your tooth is misshapen naturally, or you’ve lost the natural shape of your tooth due to chips, bonding can reshape and protect your tooth by evening out the edges.
- Length. Broken and short teeth can be lengthened with bonding resin. Some people with “gummy smiles” (smiles where the gums are too prominent) prefer bonding over gingivectomies to lengthen the crowns of their teeth.
- Small spaces. Large spaces should be corrected with orthodontic treatment; however, small spaces can be corrected by expanding the edges of the teeth with resin.
- Chips and cracks. Injured teeth can be aesthetically improved and protected from infection and injury with bonding resin. Rebuilding the tooth this way reduces sensitivity and fortifies the dentin to stand up against pressure and bacteria.
Am I a Good Candidate for Dental Bonds?
As with most cosmetic procedures, you need healthy teeth and gums before getting started. We can repair tooth decay and gum disease to help make you eligible; however, there are a few other considerations. You might be a good candidate for dental bonds if you:
- Are not a smoker. Smoking is one of the most harmful habits for your oral health. If you are a smoker, your bonds may not be worth the cost of replacements. Plus, we need visibility on your teeth to watch for advanced stages of gum disease and tooth decay, and bonds can sometimes conceal the symptoms.
- Do not grind your teeth. If you clench or grind your teeth, the life of your bonds will be significantly shorter. Thankfully, we can also create your custom night guard to prevent night-time bruxism from damaging your bonds.
- Don’t have significant changes to make. Bonds can only do so much. If you’re hoping to repair overcrowding or large spaces between teeth, Invisalign is a better option. Some badly damaged teeth may be better off extracted and replaced. Only your dentist will be able to tell you which procedure is best for your situation.
- Have naturally sensitive teeth. Bonds aren’t just good for cosmetic changes. If you’ve struggled to eat or drink hot and cold substances, bonds can be your shield against reactivity. If your teeth are sensitive due to major loss of enamel, that’s another situation. You may be better off looking into veneers.
- Have stains that are resistant to whitening. If you have Fluorosis or tetracycline stains, you may benefit from dental bonding.
- Don’t want to jump into veneers just yet. We get it, veneers are a huge step. They’re completely permanent and would require you to maintain or replace them for the rest of your life. If you’re not ready for that step yet, bonds are a great way to wear your ideal smile without permanent changes to your teeth.
Don’t Wait to Tackle Those Insecurities With Easy, Affordable Cosmetic Bonding
Whether you’re looking at dental bonding for functional reasons, or you’re hoping for a confidence boost, we’re here to help. Our cosmetic dentists are committed to providing quality service and beautiful results, all according to your financial and personal preferences. If you’re still unsure about whether dental bonding is right for you, we can give you more details during your consultation.
Check out our other cosmetic dentistry services
Choose Greene Street Dental for Cosmetic Tooth Bonding
Looking for your one-stop cosmetic dental office in Lower Manhattan? We hope we can be your all-in-one aesthetic dentistry professionals. Our team specializes in all areas of cosmetic dentistry. Can you imagine having a whole new smile in just one visit? With dental bonds, you don’t have to wait to be a brand new you.
Book online or call (212) 226-5777 today.