The smile is one of the initial features people notice in personal encounters. Getting an improved smile isn’t really as difficult as one may think and can take years off a person's overall appearance.

Gladstone, MO -- (SBWire) -- 01/21/2013 --Dr. David Platt, Dentist Partner, Gladstone Family Dental in Gladstone, MO received a call from a 67-year-old woman who wanted a Complimentary Cosmetic Consult. Dr. Platt showed her before and after smile photos. After looking through all the photos, she said, “I wish I could see how my smile would look if I had dental work like this done.”

Dr. Platt explained that he would do a diagnostic wax-up model of how her smile would look after her dental work was done. “Making sure that the patient gets the right look, feel and function is the goal during any restorative or cosmetic dental procedure,” said Dr. Platt. The preliminary diagnostic wax-up model of a planned restored smile gives him a record of what the patient wants so he can begin the process with the ultimate results already known.

The model also shows the patient's new smile in its natural color and translucency. Dr. Platt can also see how the new smile will improve any bite problems a patient may have. With the diagnostic model the patient is empowered to preview, give suggestions, make changes, and approve a personal “Smile Plan” before any procedures are begun. Not only can the patient see the excellent quality of the esthetic changes in the proposed new smile, the model also assures the patient that restorative work will function well when chewing or talking.

Dr. Platt chose to place both upper and lower porcelain veneers for this patient, then added a whitening procedure for the teeth that didn’t receive veneers. For the veneers, he used IPS e.max Ceram that is a highly esthetic layering ceramic. It provides lifelike, highly esthetic results with true-to-nature light scattering and a balanced relationship between brightness and color.

When asked if his patient was pleased with her smile, he said, “She was very happy and sent me a page-long thank you letter telling me how happy she was. Two appointments, just two weeks apart, and this woman appears at least ten years younger."Dr. Platt stated that "I was so proud of this case that I made a video and put it up on YouTube."