*Note: Juan has reviewed this post and given us permission to tell his story. We never disclose any information about our patients without prior consent and approval.
Learning to smile again
Smiling… it shows the world you are confident, happy and excited about what’s going on. The ability to smile everyday is something many of us take for granted. There are many people who have accidents or events that can effect their smile. In today’s blog we will go over a case that made me smile and our patient smile even more.
I should start off by saying every case is different, and that treatment options and outcomes vary from patient to patient. Juan is a normal guy – he loves sports, working and hanging out with friends. After meeting Juan for the first time I noticed when he laughed or smiled that he “taught” himself to cover his teeth. Growing up Juan ended up with a cavity between the teeth, something many of us deal with. In Juan’s case however, the treating dentist decided to use a technique popular in certain areas of Central and South America called framing. In this technique the dentist removes the decay, and then places a metal bracket around the teeth to “seal out the decay.” Over time Juan learned to deal with it, however decay got in around the bracket and Juan decided it was time for a change.
Juan came in for a comprehensive exam in which we take pictures of every tooth and take a full set of x-rays. After completing some routine work, cavities and a cleaning, we were ready to help Juan smile again.
BEFORE AFTER
After making Juan comfortable, we carefully removed the brackets from his teeth. Unfortunately the decay had spread throughout the tooth, so after careful decay removal, we built back up the tooth to a normal contour. Once decay removal was completed, we then got the tooth ready for a crown, took an impression, and placed two temporary crowns on the teeth. Two weeks later Juan came back to us and we gave him his new smile. Juan was lost for words and so happy. Since then he said the hardest thing for him to do was to learn to smile again. For years he had been hiding his teeth, and now he doesn’t have to.
If you or someone you know isn’t 100% happy with your smile, let us know. We will be happy to work with you to come up with a treatment plan that meets your needs, and ultimately helps you smile again.
Keep Smiling Chicago.
Kevin Dow
312-372-4845
*Note: Juan has reviewed this post and given us permission to tell his story. We never disclose any information about our patients without prior consent and approval.
