If you are thinking that your teeth could do with an upgrade but don’t have the time to spend hours in the dentist’s chair during several appointments, then you need to come to Bromley Dental Practice to see the cosmetic dentist in Bromley.

Here at our practice, we have a Cerec machine that can save you time, money and hassle. The Cerec machine makes veneers, inlays, onlays, and crowns while you are sitting in the dental chair.

Normally, your cosmetic dentist in Bromley will need you to come for at least two appointments if you need inlays, crowns or veneers. During the first appointment, your teeth are prepared and impressions are taken. These are sent off to a laboratory where your porcelain restorations are made by dental technicians. This can take as much as two weeks. In the meantime, you have to wear temporary restorations. They don’t look as natural as your permanent ones will, so there’s added self-consciousness for a couple of weeks, and sometimes they fall out, and you have to go back to the cosmetic dentist in Bromley to get them put back on, all the while waiting for your permanent restorations to come back from the lab.

With Cerec, we can prepare your teeth, make the restorations and fit them all in one appointment. That’s one less appointment you have to fit into your busy schedule, one less journey, one less shot of local anaesthetic your body has to flush out afterwards, and no walking around in less than lifelike temporary restorations. Cerec helps make your life so much simpler.

Why do you need restorations?

Crowns cover the whole tooth and are a way of giving teeth that are starting to crumble, but still have a healthy root, a new lease of life. They fit over the whole tooth and strengthen it.

Inlays are used when decay has left a particularly large area to fill. The porcelain seals the cavity and strengthens the crown.

Veneers are fixed over the front of the teeth to hide imperfections such as chips, cracks and stains that whitening can’t remove.

Do you want to correct your misaligned front teeth or relapse, but don’t prefer to undergo costly dental treatments? We have the right solution for you. The Inman Aligner is a revolutionary cosmetic dental appliance that adjusts teeth together, as if squeezing them. This treatment has been available for many years, but it’s been gaining attention only recently.

We’ve listed some information that you might find helpful when deciding whether this treatment is right for you.

How Does an Inman Aligner Look?

This dental appliance is made of Nickel Titanium coil springs with two aligner bows that sit on both sides of the teeth, which guide them to their new position. The inner aligner bows are available in different colours, like green and violet, while the front part is usually clear. The only visible part when you wear an Inman Aligner is a single wire on the front teeth. It’s similar to wearing retainers.

Can Inman Aligners Treat All Dental Conditions?

The Inman Aligner is a good choice for orthodontic relapse and dental conditions related to the upper and lower teeth, such as crossbites, crowding, rotations, and protrusion. It’s not an ideal treatment for all teeth, like correcting arches, though.

Are Inman Aligners an Affordable Choice?

As Inman Aligners move only a specific part of the teeth, it’s less costly than traditional and clear braces. In addition, our dentists have pre-programmed this treatment to minimise the number of dental visits. There’s no need to visit our clinic regularly unless prescribed.

What Happens When you Wear an Inman Aligner?

Depending on your pain tolerance, Inman Aligners might or might not hurt during the first few days of treatment. The discomfort will fade eventually, after taking aspirin, Tylenol, or any over-the-counter painkiller. In most cases, this dental appliance affects speech during the first to second week. As you get used to it, you’ll be able to speak normally again.

Inman aligners help patients adjust their teeth to achieve a beautiful smile. Contact us or visit our homepage to know more about the services we offer.

Why Have Amalgams Become Less Popular?

Lots of people still have older style amalgam fillings. These are fillings that look silver or grey in the mouth, and which were widely used to repair cavities in back teeth as the material is durable, relatively long-lasting and cheap. However just recently there has been a move away from placing amalgam fillings, and more and more people are opting for white fillings that blend in with the rest of their natural teeth and which look much nicer. There have also been some concerns about the mercury content of amalgam fillings, and although clinical studies have deemed them to be safe, some people feel more comfortable having these fillings removed and replaced with metal free restorations. So what should you do if you have amalgam fillings?

Amalgam Fillings Can Be Problematic

If you are a regular patient at Bromley Dental Practice, Dr Zaki Bashir will be checking the condition of these fillings at every appointment. Amalgam fillings generally last for around ten years before they need replacing. As they age they can begin to leak and crumble.

There are several problems that can develop due to having amalgam fillings. Firstly, your Bromley dentist will need to remove all the decay from the tooth as well as some of the healthy tooth structure before placement. Once in position the material will expand and contract every time you eat or drink something hot or cold. This constant flexing can eventually cause tiny fractures in the filled tooth, weakening the overall structure.

It might not be the best solution to remove an amalgam that is still in good condition, but when the time comes Dr Bashir will make sure it is safely taken out and properly disposed of. At this point it is well worth considering white fillings, and here is why.

White Fillings are a Tooth Friendly Solution

IF you do have a tooth that has a cavity or which has become chipped or cracked due to an accident, then tooth coloured composite resin can restore it in a way that will work in harmony with your tooth. The actual preparation of the tooth is slightly different, as your dentist in Bromley will only need to remove damaged or decayed areas of the tooth, leaving more of the healthy tooth intact. The actual composite resin bonds very strong with the natural tooth, and does not expand and contract.

In the past composite resin fillings were only used to repair front teeth as the material was not strong enough to withstand being chewed on. Nowadays modern composites are very strong and durable. One thing to bear in mind is that white composite resin does eventually become stained, so it will need replacing at regular intervals to keep your smile looking its very best. White composite fillings are not expensive so it should be easy to keep your smile healthy and looking its best.

Composite resin is used to repair small to medium sized cavities. If you have larger areas of decay then Dr Bashir will recommend you have a different type of filing made from porcelain or gold as this will help restore the tooth to full strength.

A porcelain veneer is a very thin piece of porcelain, typically 0.5mm or less, and it fits over the front surfaces of your teeth. This treatment is used to correct the appearance of front teeth. Porcelain veneers are a great way to help improve your smile, without making any major changes to the structure of your teeth. Your Bromley dentist would only need to remove a very small amount of tooth material to create enough room for the veneers. Porcelain veneers can be used to:

• Change the shape of teeth, including their length and size
• Hide teeth that are discoloured or stained
• Mend chips or cracks in teeth
• Replace worn areas of teeth
• Correct the appearance of slightly misaligned teeth
• Close up or minimise gaps in between teeth

This treatment is extremely versatile as your dentist can replace just one or two veneers, or you can choose to have multiple veneers on both your upper and lower front teeth. If you choose to have multiple veneers then it’s possible to change the overall shade of your teeth to something lighter and whiter if desired.

What’s the Procedure for Having Dental Veneers?

You’ll need to visit Dr Zaki Bashir to find out if dental veneers are the right choice of treatment. Your dentist in Bromley will want to discuss the type of results you hoping to achieve, as well as the number of veneers required. The next step will be to prepare the teeth for the veneers. This is where Dr Bashir will remove a very small amount of tooth structure from the front surfaces of the teeth due be veneered. Next, an impression is taken of your teeth to be sent to the dental laboratory so the veneers can be fabricated.  Once they are finished they will be returned to Bromley Dental Practice for fitting. Your dentist might need to make a few small adjustments to the fit perfect before they are permanently bonded in position. The veneers are quite strong once they have been bonded onto your teeth, and you can brush and floss them as normal. It’s best not to use them for biting into extremely hard foods, or for opening packets as you could chip them.

The condition of the veneers will be checked at each appointment, and regular professional dental care will help prolong their life. Eventually they will need to be replaced, and this treatment is generally not reversible.

Dental veneers are often used in combination with other treatments such as tooth whitening and orthodontic treatment. Using two or more treatments together doesn’t necessarily cost much more, but could be the best way of preserving as much of your tooth material as possible. For example if your teeth are slightly out of alignment then Dr Bashir might recommend you wear braces first of all to help straighten your teeth, before placing veneers. This can mean fewer veneers are required to help perfect the look of your teeth. The overall colour of your teeth can often be lightened considerably through tooth whitening prior to veneers. Dr Bashir will always recommend the most conservative method to brighten up your smile while still achieving top quality results.