procedures

In addition to general and family dentistry, Dr. Barrow also provides cosmetic dentist services. Among these services are:

• Bleaching - Bleaching will not change the shade of existing bonding, veneers or crowns. Bleaching does not erase tetracycline stained teeth, but can lighten the stains. Patients having stained teeth due to tea or coffee drinking, aging or grey or yellowish teeth are ideal candidates for bleaching.
• Cosmetic Tooth Recontouring - Teeth that are too square, too long, too pointed or overlapped, jagged or chipped can be changed in appearance by recontouring. Recontouring is the most conservative cosmetic treatment. It is a quick and painless procedure whose results can be seen immediately. The procedure is usually done to improve appearance by "creating more harmony or balance" in the look of the smile.
• Porcelain Veneers - Veneers are thin shells of porcelain that fit over damaged, discolored, or misshapen teeth. Porcelain is inherently brittle, but when it is bonded firmly to the structure of a tooth, it becomes strong and durable. Porcelain veneers are placed to mask discolorations, to brighten teeth, to straighten irregular teeth, and to improve a smile. Highly resistant to permanent staining from coffee, tea, or even cigarette smoking, the wafer-thin porcelain veneers resulting in an aesthetically pleasing naturalness that is unsurpassed by other restorative options.
• Tooth Bonding - Bonding will be used by your cosmetic dentist in order to fill the gap between the teeth, for covering discoloration, repairing fractures, reshaping teeth, correcting the crooked teeth.
• Orthodontics - A misfitting bite or misaligned teeth can be corrected by a cosmetic dentist in conjunction with an Orthodontic specialist. Orthodontics makes use of braces to align the teeth properly. Poorly aligned teeth are prone to decay, gum disease, jaw joint disease. Slowly the misaligned teeth are moved to their proper places with braces. Our Cosmetic Dentist Practice offers Invalign, which is a system similar to braces in which a series of clear aligners are used to move the teeth into their proper positions. Using state of the art digital technology the patient can view the look of the new bite from all angles, through each stage of the re-aligning process.
• Periodontal - Periodontal treatment is often described as plastic surgery for the gums. It is defined as the surgical treatment or correction of a "gummy" smile, problems associated with attached gingiva, root coverage, aesthetic crown lengthening, correction of ridge defects, exposure of impacted teeth for orthodontic treatment, aesthetic enhancement of implants. Your Prosthodontist works with a Periodontist to provide your cosmetic case with the best care for your soft tissues. A Periodontist also places implants where teeth are missing.
• Complete & Partial Dentures - A cosmetic dentist provides Complete & Partial Dentures. Complete Dentures replace all the teeth where as partial Dentures can replace the teeth ranging from one to many.
• Dental Implants - Another way a cosmetic dentist treats missing teeth is with dental implants. Dental implants can eliminate the numerous embarrassing inconveniences of removable partial and full dentures. Benefits of implants include: improved appearance, comfort, self-esteem, better eating, and convenience. Implants are placed in the jaw and become integrated with the bone. The prosthetic tooth is attached to the titanium implant providing a permanent and attractive tooth replacement.
• Bridges - A bridge is a fixture used to replace missing teeth. A dental bridge is a false tooth, which is fused between two porcelain crowns to fill in the area left by a missing tooth. The two crowns and the false tooth is known as a fixed bridge. This procedure is used to replace one or more missing teeth. Fixed bridges cannot be taken out of your mouth as you might do with removable partial dentures. Bridges can reduce your risk of gum disease, help correct some bite issues and even improve your speech. Bridges require your commitment to serious oral hygiene, but will last as many ten years or more.