Jamie complained of chipped front teeth which were also brown in colour and different sizes. Part of the trouble was that he was a tooth grinder.
Dr Murphy advised him that – regardless of whether Jamie achieved his expected treatment outcomes – he would need to wear a removable appliance at night to prevent further grinding and probable further tooth loss.
It was agreed to test Jamie’s tolerance to this first and he started wearing the appliance in conjunction with a course of tooth whitening.
After three weeks Jamie felt better about the colour of his teeth and stated that he was “sleeping better now that I’m not grinding my teeth at night…and so is my wife!”
Uneven Front Teeth Away
He still wanted to have something done permanently to his chipped front teeth to improve their shapes and sizes, not to mention the rough and sharp edges.
Dr Murphy advised against porcelain veneers in this instance as there was a lot of dentine on view – notoriously difficult to bond onto in heavy wear cases.
Jamie had tried composite bonding with other dentists and it had always failed. After debating the risks involved in crown preparation – nerve damage in 10% of teeth, over a ten year period – Jamie consented to porcelain crowns.
He was very happy with the outcome, particularly as he no longer had to look at a set of chipped front teeth.
“My teeth are whiter, straighter, smoother but I still feel they are natural. This wasn’t going to be Hollywood as I’m in my 50s! I can’t thank Dr Murphy and his staff enough.”