Delivering a predictable outcome

Harrison Child presents a case in which he treated a patient with composite veneers using an injection-mould technique.

With recent innovations in smile design technology, gaining predictable results has become more straightforward. For any cosmetic restorative case, a digital mock-up can be produced and used to create a trial smile directly in the patient’s mouth. This provides an extra layer of consent as patient satisfaction with the design is confirmed, before moving to the restorative phase. Whilst there is generally more refinement involved than with freehand composite restorations, injection-mould composite veneers deliver a highly predictable outcome, providing additional reassurance for the clinician and more certainty for the patient.

A 33-year-old eyelash artist came to see me because she wanted a bigger, brighter smile without the result appearing too unnatural. Her main concern was the two upper central incisors looking too prominent and long. She did not like the appearance of the pronounced embrasures between her teeth, as she felt it made them look gappy. She also wanted her teeth to be whitened. The patient had won the prize of a smile makeover in an Instagram competition during 2019 but treatment was delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.