Dental Bonding in Calgary SW

Dental bonding is one of the most popular cosmetic dentistry procedures because it is so effective, affordable and long-lasting.

How long-lasting?

With good dental care, composite bonding lasts up to 10 years before requiring touch-up treatment.

However, if you neglect to look after your teeth or regularly chew hard food, bonding may last for a shorter period. If you regularly consume tea, coffee or other dark foods, premature staining may also cause the appearance to deteriorate.

The best way to decide between the two procedures is via in-depth consultation and examination from your dentist at Sierra Dental.

What is Dental Bonding Used For?

Many patients choose dental bonding to quickly enhance their smile. Unlike crowns or veneers, bonding can be done in one visit, allowing for an immediate and impactful enhancement. Dental bonding is popular with teens and young adults because it’s one of the easiest and least expensive cosmetic dentistry procedures to complete. Although it does not last as long as a lab-made veneer or crown, it does help patients preserve more of their natural tooth enamel. Unless the bonding material is being used to fill a cavity, most times patients don’t even need to be frozen.

Because there are limitations to dental bonding, some dentists choose it for use on small cosmetic changes only.

Since every patient’s needs are different, we invite you to consult with your dentist about the best cosmetic approach for your particular situation.

Give one of our professionals a call at 403-297-9600 for assistance and dental bonding information.

How long does dental bonding last?

Dental bonding is one of the most popular cosmetic dentistry procedures because it is so effective, affordable and long-lasting.

How long-lasting?

With good dental care, composite bonding lasts up to 5 years before requiring touch-up treatment.

However, if you neglect to look after your teeth or regularly chew hard food, bonding may last for a shorter period. If you regularly consume tea, coffee or other dark foods, premature staining may also cause the appearance to deteriorate.

When is Dental Bonding An Option?

  • To restore chipped or cracked teeth
  • To fill decayed teeth rather than using silver amalgam
  • To change the shape of disproportioned teeth
  • To mask discoloration in tooth enamel
  • To close spaces or fill in gaps between teeth
  • To make teeth look longer
  • As a cosmetic and biocompatible alternative to mercury fillings
  • To protect and repair a portion of the tooth’s root that is exposed with gum recession.

How should you care for bonded teeth to help the results last longer?

After dental bonding, taking certain steps with your oral hygiene and eating habits can improve the longevity of the treatment and help ensure that your smile maintains its beauty.

Natural enamel is stronger than the composite material used in dental bonding so you need to take extra care when looking after your teeth.

Here are a few pointers:

  • Avoid hard foods: hard foods such as popcorn and nuts should be eaten in moderation and untreated teeth should be used to chew them to avoid breaking or cracking a bonded tooth.
  • Avoid dark-coloured food/drink: tea, coffee, red wine, tomato-based sauces, and other dark foods and beverages will stain the bonding material easier than lighter-coloured foods.
  • Brush twice per day and floss thoroughly: cleaning the teeth using an electric toothbrush and nonabrasive fluoride toothpaste and flossing will help keep your teeth healthy.
  • Don’t chew pens or bite fingernails: these can damage the composite material used in bonding as well as your untreated teeth.
  • Don’t smoke: tobacco is notorious for staining teeth and bonded teeth may stain even more easily than untreated ones.

See your dentist regularly: frequent dental visits (ideally, every six months) will allow your teeth to be cleaned and assessed properly, with any problems flagged before they become emergencies.

Contact Us

Do you need dental services? Don’t hesitate to contact our Calgary dentists today. Our Signal Hill dental clinic offers a wide range of dental proceedures including emergency dental services. We are accepting new patients and are excited to welcome you to our clinic.

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EVENING & WEEKEND APPOINTMENTS

We understand that you are busy and don’t always have time to visit a dentist for a routine checkup in the middle of your Monday. That’s why we offer extended hours from 7:00 AM to 8:30 PM Monday through Thursday.

We are also open all throughout the weekend. That’s right, we’re open every day of the week.

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DIRECT BILLING TO INSURANCE PLANS

To support our clients, we offer direct billing, predeterminations of treatments, and financial arrangements to all our patients to ensure smooth and easy payment transactions.

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PAYMENT PLANS & FINANCING AVAILABLE

We understand that dental services can be an unexpected expense. That’s why we offer flexible payment plans and options to suit our patients’ needs. Speak with one of our dental assistants to learn more.

FREE PARKING

At Sierra Dental, you will never struggle to find parking. Our clinics offer convenient parking options that are free of charge to our patients. It’s one more way we work to put a smile on your face.

Frequently Asked Questions

Dental bonding refers to attaching dental material to your damaged tooth using adhesives and a high-intensity light.

Dental bonding is a relatively painless and non-invasive procedure. You may feel some sensitivity in the area directly following the procedure, but it shouldn’t last long. However, bonding materials can be more sensitive and prone to breaking or chipping than the tooth itself, so you should be careful and avoid chewing on any hard objects such as ice, pens, fingernails, etc.

Crowns are also known as “caps” and restore function and appearance to damaged teeth. Like bonding, crowns are most commonly used to fix cracked or chipped teeth, but they can also be used to restore the tooth when large fillings are present.

Here are some issues that cosmetic dental bonding is commonly used for:

  • Restoring Damaged Teeth
  • Filling in Decayed Teeth
  • Fixing Discolouration
  • Close Spaces

One of the major attractions of dental bonding is the lack of risks or side effects associated with the procedure. It is generally a safe and well-tolerated treatment and the results meet most people’s expectations.

You will need to keep in mind that the composite resin used in bonding is weaker than natural enamel in teeth so you shouldn’t expect the same resilience and strength to treated teeth as to untreated ones.

Bonding may chip or crack more easily than an untreated one, especially if you regularly consume hard foods, eat candy or bite your fingernails.

That’s why the care routine mentioned earlier is so important after undergoing a dental bonding procedure.

Some people need to weigh the pros and cons of porcelain veneers and dental bonding when selecting which cosmetic dental procedure to go with.

There are some similarities with the procedures but also some important differences.

First and foremost, you need to consider which procedure will be most effective in achieving your desired result. Discuss this in detail with your dentist before committing. Veneers are usually preferred for people who have pronounced cosmetic concerns and crowding or misalignment of their teeth while composite bonding can address less serious dental complaints.

Dental bonding is a simpler process than veneers. It often requires no freezing and minimal to no tooth preparation beforehand. Veneers, on the other hand, require your dentist to remove a small amount of enamel from your teeth so that the veneers blend in properly with the natural teeth and freezing is normally required

Bonding can be completed in one visit where as veneers require a minimum of two but possibly more visits.

The materials used in bonding and veneers are different too. Bonding uses a tooth-coloured composite resin material whereas veneers use custom-made porcelain, created from a durable ceramic substance in a laboratory.

Bonding materials also stain whereas the porcelain used in veneers resists most substances that cause staining.

Finally, porcelain veneers generally last longer than dental bonding, providing your oral hygiene routine is good and you visit the dentist regularly for cleaning. However, it also costs more for the initial dental work.

The best way to decide between the two procedures is via in-depth consultation and examination from your dentist at Sierra Dental.