Before: A mild case of tetracycline staining as seen here often manifests itself as orange-brown to purplish bands on the anterior teeth. These teeth also have a generalized yellow-brown tint above and below the bands.

After: Upon bleaching the upper and lower teeth, the bands have faded and are almost imperceptible when seeing the patient in person. Also, the color and brightness of the teeth have become lighter by several shades, and the patient's smile is noticeably improved.

Before: This 39 year-old autoworker came to us tired of the way he looked, and of his inability to eat foods like corn on the cob. He also smoked 2 packs of cigarettes a day, and had gum disease which was evidenced by the red, inflamed, and swollen condition you see in the picture.

After: After periodontal therapy which improved his gums, we placed an upper anterior bridge, which replaced the missing teeth and allowed him to eat normally again. Note the redness and swelling is almost completely gone around his lower anterior teeth. Also, most of the yellow stain is gone as his plaque control is much improved.

Before: An attractive 48 year-old woman, a chronic bruxer, had flat, heavily stained front teeth, with large silver fillings in her bicuspids. When she smiled, her upper lip moved 4mm above the gumline of the upper centrals - she had a "gummy smile". When asked about the color of her teeth she said she would like them whiter, but not too bright.

After: The patient first bleached her teeth at home to lighten the color of her teeth. A periodontal evaluation determined that we could remove about 2mm from the gumline without resorting to flap surgery. Eight porcelain veneers and crowns were then placed on her anterior teeth to cover the large spaces left by old fillings and cavities, and to improve contour and alignment. The gums, which are still healing in this picture, do not show as much when she smiles now. Note the prominence of the bicuspids, behind the canines, and the improvement in the fullness of the display of the teeth.

Before: An 8 year-old boy who had been in an accident, presented with this diagonal fracture on the right front tooth. There was no exposure of the underlying nerve, and the tooth surprisingly showed no symptoms of trauma.

After: A tooth-colored filling, bonded in place, restored the tooth to a normal appearance, and allowed resumption of chewing with the front teeth.

Before: This patient, a 26 year-old woman, didn't like the way her front teeth looked, especially the size and shape of the lateral incisors, "peg laterals", adjacent to the centrals. Secondarily, she thought her teeth were too yellow.

After: Eight porcelain veneers were placed from the left first bicuspid to the right first bicuspid. By increasing the width and length of the laterals and slightly narrowing the centrals and cuspids, we were able to achieve a more ideal proportion width-wise. The first bicuspids were included maintain the evenness of the teeth when she smiled. The slight translucency of the porcelain at the edges of the incisors adds to their natural look.

Before: This relatively young man of 37 years came to us with few teeth remaining, and, amazingly, had been chewing with only his molars for a number of years. As a result of the tooth loss, his upper teeth had shifted to the left, and when he closed, his upper front teeth touched the gums of his lower arch. The toothless, lower bony ridge was also sloped from left to right. Before treatment the patient adamantly insisted that we retain his lower molars as they were the only chewing teeth he had left.

After: A bridge and crowns were placed on the upper arch to close the spaces, replace the missing teeth on the left side, and open the bite. A lower partial denture anchored to the molars allowed him to resume chewing somewhat normally. The impact on his appearance was tremendous. Although his face remained slightly asymmetrical, his cheeks were not as hollow, and his facial proportions were quite improved.