You would never buy a pair of performance running or hiking shoes without trying them on. Even when your feet have been measured, the shoes have been fitted, and you have walked around the store with them on, once you bring them home you sometimes realize that they rub here or pinch there. Your legs get tired, you get blisters, or your feet don’t breath properly. So you return the shoes and get another pair.

You can’t really do that with your dental restorations – at least not the returning part. I have seen a lot of dental patients in Buckhead who wish they could return the dental work they have had done. They come to me because their restorations are breaking down or falling out. They have headaches, they grind their teeth more – in short, one of the most important mechanisms in their lives, the one they rely on to eat and speak, is failing them and all because they couldn’t “try on” their dental work before they committed to it.

I believe in doing things a bit differently at my Buckhead dental practice. Every time I do any kind of work that requires a change to your teeth with new restorations I use provisionals. Simply put, provisional restorations are plastic restorations that serve as a template for porcelain restorations. They are created based on your molds and measurements and then placed in your mouth to see how everything is going to look, feel and function.

Think of your provisional restorations as a sort of trial smile – one you can take home and really put to work. You want to pay extra attention to how they feel  so by the time we get to placing your porcelain restorations, all the issues – cosmetic, comfort and bite – have been addressed and corrected. No matter how strong and durable a porcelain restoration is, if there isn’t harmony between your jaw and your muscles when you put your teeth together, the porcelain will eventually break. If we can get everything in harmony, even your plastic provisional won’t break or come loose!

Our method of taking enough time to be sure everything is right puts part of the process in your hands. You can take an active role in not only the comfort, but also the way your smile looks down to the details. Wearing provisionals is easy and comfortable and they look great – patients are surprised at how nice they look – but what really matters is the try-on period. It lets us get your smile right… and keep it that way.

For more information about how we make our dentistry so predictable, please call our Buckhead dental office at 404-255-7500.