Cosmetic tooth bonding and contouring are not always as popular as simple and effective teeth-whitening or comprehensive porcelain veneers. However, they are often ideal solutions for improving your smile when your cosmetic needs fall somewhere between simple and comprehensive. Tooth bonding and contouring are minimally invasive cosmetic procedures that are recommended for issues that are more involved than teeth stains, but that may not require the permanent tooth preparation required for porcelain veneers and crowns. To improve your smile’s appearance while preserving a maximum amount of your healthy tooth structure, bonding and contouring may be your best option.
What Are Bonding and Contouring?
Tooth bonding is the artistic process of using tooth-colored composite resin to build up and repair certain types of tooth wear and damage. After customizing the resin to match your tooth’s unique color and then bonding the resin to the affected area of your tooth, your dentist will shape the resin to your tooth’s ideal contour. Then, he will harden and polish the resin, making it durable and highly lifelike in appearance. Contouring is the opposite of bonding, and involves gently sculpting small areas of your tooth’s outer layers to correct issues such as jagged and overlapping edges.
The Benefits of Bonding and Contouring
Bonding and contouring can address a wide variety of cosmetic smile concerns without having to permanently alter significant amounts of your tooth structure. For instance, bonding can repair a chip or light crack in your tooth’s surface, or cover large spaces between teeth (known as diastemas) in lieu of a porcelain veneer or dental crown. Similarly, contouring can correct a tooth’s size and shape by relying on minimal changes to your tooth’s outer layers, rather than its main structure.
Find Out if Bonding and Contouring Can Fix Your Smile
With cosmetic tooth bonding and contouring, you can fix your smile in less time and with significantly less hassle. To learn more, schedule an appointment with your dentist by calling Keelan Dental in Butler, PA, at (724) 285-4153. Our Smile Certified experts happily serve patients from Butler, Cranberry Township, Mars, Pittsburgh, Butler County, and all surrounding communities.