Cosmetic Dentistry

A common question asked by patients to dentists is “Are you a cosmetic dentist?”. The question should be “Are you an uncosmetic dentist?”. The point being that all dentistry is essentially cosmetic in that it must blend with nature and look aesthetically pleasing while being functional. All dentists should strive to achieve natural-looking, aesthetically ideal dental work. The American Dental Association has not recognized a specialty of Cosmetic Dentistry and there are no residency programs specifically tailored toward Cosmetic Dentistry. However, there is ample and extensive opportunity to receive specialized training and continuing education in the field of cosmetic dentistry and general dentists who are so inclined may broaden their skill set and knowledge to include procedures and treatment techniques that are not taught in dental school. Dr. Stanton has received hundreds of hours of classroom and clinical training in the field of cosmetic dentistry and successfully completed hundreds of cases.

Porcelain Veneers

Porcelain veneers have been performed for over twenty years. The technology involved with the materials and techniques has dramatically changed over this time allowing for very durable, predictable and aesthetically ideal restorations that blend in with natural teeth in a practically undetectable fashion. The veneer itself is made of porcelain thinner than a contact lens. It covers the entire front of the tooth (teeth) but leaves the back intact. This means that the veneer is a very conservative procedure requiring little to no tooth modification. They essentially are bonded over the teeth dramatically and completely changing the color, size, shape and position of the teeth in about 2 weeks! Once the veneers are bonded in, the bond strength of the veneer to the underlying tooth is almost as strong as the bond of tooth to itself. This means that veneers almost never come loose and usually only do in the case of an accident, severe trauma or an incorrectly bonded veneer. Dr. Stanton has been trained and is experienced with all major veneer systems on the market today so that he can choose the best material technique for each individual case to achieve the best cosmetics, function and durability. He has started and successfully completed hundreds of cases with a current success rate of over 99%!

Sedation Dentistry

Fear is a common emotion and obstacle related to dentistry. Unfortunately, many patients have bad memories of a painful dental visit and avoid future dental visits to avoid more pain. The vast majority of the time, we can determine during the patient interview the specific needs of that patient and tailor their treatment accordingly to alleviate these fears. Sometimes, either the fear is too great or the work to be done is extensive and sedation is chosen. In these cases, we do a thorough medical screening, consult with any necessary physicians and determine a sedation regimen for each patient. We choose the safest methods of sedation used today, pharmaceuticals used on children in smaller doses. This allows the patient to still be conscious through their procedure, but to be free of anxiety and pain, not to mention the memory of the procedure. They “wake up” a few hours after their procedure with little or no memory of the procedure itself and no lingering side effects, but with a whole new smile!

Implants have become the treatment of choice to replace teeth that are missing or require extraction. An implant is a small titanium screw that is placed where the root of the missing tooth used to be. A porcelain crown which looks like the missing tooth is then attached to the implant for a result that is the closest thing to having the real tooth back. Other alternatives for replacing teeth are either a bridge or a partial denture, both of which we offer and deliver with success but significant disadvantages are associated with these in comparison to the implant and they are chosen in those rare cases when the patient is not a candidate for implants. Industry-wide, implants have over a 95% success rate. In our practice so far, we have experienced zero failures for a 100% success rate. Furthermore, our patients surveyed stated they felt more post-operative discomfort from having a tooth pulled than from having an implant placed. This is primarily due to the extremely small and controlled amount of trauma induced during an implant placement. As you can see, implants have definitely gone from the experimental phase to one of the most predictable dependable procedures done today and we have extensive experience doing everything from a single tooth replacement to replacing an entire mouth with implants.